Mt Gambier City Council Acts To Deliberately Destroy Aquifer Cafe/Tours Business

Howdy dear availees, and welcome to TMGI for a post on stuff we've already covered in depth, and that will generate further posts on the same issue...apologies for days without a post but have an actual excuse this time...(what?! not another deeply confronting existential crisis?-Ed)...no Ed, mate, actually an extension cord crisis, where-in I only have one cord which was being used for my li'l mobile air-conditioner and therefore couldn't be used for my computer...and gourd bless it, it does try it's best, but after a coupla' hot days, and even with the bedroom/lounge area closed-off to contain the coolness, etc, my li'l conditioner is next to useless unless you're right next to it...(when, by derogatory definition, it is actually next to useless, ahahaha............it's a joke...where-in you're the 'useless'?...and you're next to it?...yeah?-Ed)...yeah yeah, I get it, it's just not that funny...anyhoos, last evening I was so knackered from the heat and sleepless hights, etc, I fell asleep on the couch right after dinner, and suddenly it's 5 days since the last post...(and nearly a fortnight into 2021 already-Ed)...indeed, but we're here now and here we go...

Regular/previous availees will remember that we've posted a coupla' times about the Definably Deceitful Rancidly Corrupt Fundamental Bastardry of Mt Gambier City Council in their actions of evicting the iconic Aquifer Cafe/Tours business from the premises adjacent the Blue Lake...those posts were on 1st December 2020,  Mt Gambier City Council's Latest Act Of Moronic, Corrupt Thuggery - Blue Lake Aquifer Tours Evicted/Closed, and 6th December 2020, Mt Gambier City Council Deceitfully Evicts South East's Premier Tourism Experience...there's so much stuff already covered there-in that I ain't gunna bruise y'all eyeballs with another re-hashed battering...well except for a bit of this...the Aquifer Tours is/was an 'iconic' Tourism business/experience, and socially important Cafe/information site, etc, established 30 years ago and successfully run since by Trish and Gary Turner, with absolutely zero support from MGCC or other alleged 'tourism officials', eg, Biddie Shearing...(well I think it's more than reasonable to say 'successfully despite MGCC and Biddie, etc'-Ed)...well, indeed...and now it is an undeniable reality that MGCC is seeking to destroy the Turners dual businesses, and have sought to justify this commercial assassination with base lies...

As stated before, we here at TMGI try not to engage in 'We Told You So' sortta' stuff, but we're gunna' go very close in covering/referencing the article attached below, from The Border Watch, 24th December 2020...please note where Mr John Darley MLC (Member Legislative Council/SA's Upper House) has 1) apparently initiated the contact with TBW, he contacted them, and then 2) he makes the following statement...

"They (elected Members) may have wished to cancel the lease for some other reason, but they can not use land tenure as a reason because that is not true"

Well I'm loathe to contradict you Mr Darley, but MGCC can and indeed have used exactly that 'reason'...and thusly the first and most obvious 'Told You So' identified here is also the most damning of MGCC and their conduct, "that is not true"...right from the off, TMGI has stated that Council's explanation/justification/excuse is a lie, and that they are motivated by some other agenda...(to put a Councillor's relative/mate in there-Ed)...well potentially and probably, sure...but it's not like I'm some gifted seer on this stuff, many other people have expressed their beliefs about both of these issues, ie, it's a lie and what Council's really up to...we've got another post coming with many of those comments from Social Media covering exactly those concerns/thoughts...anyhoos, here's the article...

So there it is, "that is not true"...but the most glorious thing here, in a purely personally gratifying sense, is the involvement of Mr Darley...and I'll counter/balance my sense of glee and achievement with the qualifier that it is entirely plausible that this 'ere blog had absolutely nuthin' to do with Mr Darley gettin' amongst it...(whaaa?! what are you on about?-Ed)...well, there's many aspects to explaining that, so let me do so in 9 parts...("9"?!-Ed)...joking, just joking, 7 parts at most...but seriously, there's so many issues here that were identified in our previous posts in TMGI, and those posts would seem to pre-date Mr Darley appearing in TBW...(fair enough, but please explain-Ed)...I fully intend to...but another quick qualifier, I have become aware that Mr Darley was likely involved in this issue before I posted stuff mentioning him, etc, but when he became involved and to what degree I cannot say for certain, and I don't know what motivated him to contact TBW...regardless, what he says here is unambiguous and absolutely damning of MGCC...

Qualifying In First Place:...as always is the possibility that it's just a co-incidence of events and/or involvement that TMGI coverage aligns with or precedes other coverage/reportage/whatevs, 'cos it's not unusual for us all to be engaging in or discussing the same issues...point one...point two, as above, Mr Darley was likely involved before we posted, etc...all of that aside, there are some undeniable truths here, namely, that in early December 2020 TMGI encouraged/requested dear availees to contact Mr Darley...and, unless Mr Darley had previously already contacted TBW but for some reason that wasn't printed, etc, TMGI's request to dear availees pre-dates this reportage by 3 weeks...therefore, it's a perfectly reasonable question worth asking, is Mr Darley's contact as a result of someone contacting him in response to TMGI's request?...regardless, the facts remain that 1) TMGI identified Mr Darley as someone who might be able to help with and/or explain what was really happening here, and 2) here he is...and then he's stated in no uncertain terms exactly what TMGI has previously stated, MGCC's excuse is "not valid", their explanation "is not true"...so there's a coupla' sortta' 'We Told You So' moments that are potentially actually just TMGI accurately reporting the reality...(as opposed to what Council is saying-Ed)...well quite...

I also completely denounce and dismiss as deceitful blather the deeply disingenuous bleating comin' outta' MGCC along the lines of how "disgraceful" their deliberate conduct has been...'oh gee whiz, if only we'd handled it better'...bollocks!...this is MGCC trying to distract and distance themselves from their own deliberate bastardry...(well exactly, they've done this deliberately, no excuses-Ed)...indeed, and surely Council has already 'been in contact with relevant bodies'...(well I understand that the Turners were notified of their eviction possibly as far back as August 2020, at least 3 months before getting chucked-out literally into the street, 30th November 2020, and 4 months before 'the lease' supposedly/allegedly 'expired' on 31st December 2020-Ed)...and the issue has been a live one for long before that...and then we circle back to the fact that Council's explanation is untrue/deceitful...

Mt Gambier City Council Are Corrupt Thugs And Liars:...said it once, said it twice, said it many times, and I'm saying it again...and in this article is the proof that MGCC is out to destroy the Turner's businesses and take them over...and again it goes awfully close to being a 'Told You So' scenario 'cos TMGI clearly identified/stated that this eviction/closure was about taking the Turner's highly successful businesses off them and then handing it to one of Councils' mates/relatives/whatevs...(and Council's not even trying to hide it!-Ed)...nope, they are not...(Council is straight-out admitting that they're trying to get "joint custodianship', which is bureaucratic babble for 'control of both businesses'-Ed)...spot on...(and unless their planning to leave the Cafe empty until June 2022, that means forcing the Turners out of their long-held lease arrangement-Ed)...absolutely it does...(and the Liberal Party stoogefest that is MGCC is going to go to their Liberal government mates to try to achieve that control-Ed)...yes, yes, and yes...(and even if Council can't organise that 'theft', the Turners will be left literally standing in the street to sell tickets for the Aquifer Tours-Ed)...yes they will, and what a great look that'll be for Mt Gambier and tourism in general...

We've also identified that there has been a definable animosity from Council towards the Turners, further underpinning the reality that Council's actions are not based on best practice management principles that best serve the community and tourism, etc, but are rather driven by vindictiveness and self-interest...    

As this article presents it, and ignoring for the moment that it's an abject lie as identified by Mr Darley, the reason that Council has not managed to organise is apparently 'cos they're trying to get that "joint custodianship"...(so effectively, the pseudo-reason that Council has used to throw the Turners out of their Cafe business is one of their (MGCC's) own construct, connected as it is to Council trying to get control of that Tours 'lease/contract'?-Ed)...spot on again mate, even if MGCC weren't lying through their teeth about this, their 'excuse' for failing to resolve this relates directly to their own conduct...and beyond that, Council have known for literally years that the 21 year lease was due to expire and should have organised/finalised a new 'lease' many months before supposedly having to evict the Turners... 

And as for the farcical carry-on between Cr Bruin and Acting CEO Barbara Cernovskis about 'ensuring "activation of the Blue Lake area", at best it's a pathetic attempt to address the obvious catastrophic repercussions for Tourism in the area, and by application it's a farcical and disingenuous joke...how does a QR code and glossy posters and part-time info booths and random drive-by vendors replace a fully functioning cafe and info point that is/was open 8-9hrs a day, 7 days a week across the peak tourism period?...(well it doesn't, none of it comes even close to providing the service/facilities that Council has shut-down-Ed)...yeah I know, it was a rhetorical question mate...(oh right, fair enough-Ed)...it's a ludicrously unworkable nonsense...I've made a point of going past the Cafe everyday, sometimes several times a day, eg, on the way to and from gym, and/or walking the doggo, etc, and I've seen Council's info van there once, and it was gone less than an hour later, and only a coupla' times seen the icecream man van..and whilst my attendance has been infrequent, the undeniable reality is that on each and every occasion I've been up there, the Cafe would have been open...(and what about all the tourists with their faces pressed up against the windows looking in-Ed)...yep, and that, tourists clearly wondering what the heck is going on...   

***As an extreme example, just this morning on the way to doggo park around 0900hrs, I did a slight detour past the Cafe and down to the Southern carpark where the info van and/or vendors sometimes set-up, and nuthin', no info, no vendors...then again on the way home, no info, no vendors...then I gave someone a lift to an appointment, so I went right 'round the lake to pass the time, no info, no vendor...then they got delayed so I went again, nuthin', no-one...and one last time after dropping them home, I did one final lap, no info, no vendors...now that is a lot more than I have been on any other day, and it wasn't planned, eg, so I could blog about it, but that's how it happened...I was at the Cafe and carpark 6 times between 0900 and noon, and no info van and no vendors...and on any given day, every day of the year bar Xmas, the Cafe would have been open for coffee/tea/icecream/whatevs, and/or to provide info...and today? diddly squat...***

Unless I've somehow missed it or not noticed or forgotten, whatevs, I don't recall hearing/seeing the Aquifer Cafe referred to as the "Blue Lake Welcome Centre"...(because that's not what it is-Ed)...sure, but that nomenclature perfectly encapsulates the reality of the service that the Turners were providing to tourists and the Mt Gambier community...given that many tourist's first stop in Mt Gambier is the Blue Lake, the Cafe was usually the first contact point where they would go for info about local attractions and/or directions, etc...in my infrequent visits up there, eg, walking the dog or my once-a-month cafe coffee experience, it would not be an exaggeration to say that literally every time I saw/heard tourists seeking info, and on many occasions those tourists wouldn't get a coffee or do a tour or whatevs, they'd just get their info and go...and the point being, the Turners were not being paid for providing this service, it was not part of their actual business and they were doing it gratis...(and other info points in town, namely the Lady Nelson and Main Corner are run by Council and all involved get paid for what they're doing-Ed)...exactly, and I'd reckon it would be fair to say that the Turners saw just as many tourists and provided just as much info, etc, but with zero support from Council...  

And that last bit of this article looks like some carefully worded propaganda on behalf of Council, that clearly seeks to distract from the incredible damage that MGCC has done...(and not least of all by describing exactly the business/service that the Turners were providing, "a contemporary visitor experience that champions and adds value to the local area, capitalising on its natural beauty, cultural heritage and important role in water supply"-Ed)...right on, that describes exactly what the popular Cafe did, including providing an outlet for 30+local artists, sculptors, etc...(giving them daily exposure to often international tourists, whilst providing a venue for various social groups to gather for a coffee, etc-Ed)...yep, and Gary's Aquifer Tour spiel covered local history, from the geological, through Indigenous culture and legend, etc, and onto recent 'European' occupation, and included the history of water supply, etc, with a portion of the tour spent in the Old Pumping Station...(and the glass lift ride down the old well shaft, etc-Ed)...yep, everything that the 'spokesperson' identifies as desirable is exactly what was already happening...and now it's gone, and it's MGCC's fault and it's not just incompetence or poor planning or whatevs, it's absolutely deliberate... 

This whole situation is 100% about MGCC deliberately and vindictively and viciously setting-out to destroy the Turner's businesses...everything that MGCC says that is not an admission of this is an abject lie, and Mr Darley has hit the nail right on the head without identifying it as such when he says "cancel the lease for some other reason"...given MGCC's well established record of Institutionalised Corruption around issues of Insider Trading and/or Nepotism, TMGI is absolutely convinced that the genuine intent, the only genuine reason is that Council plans to hand that highly successful iconic business to a Councillor's relative/mate...and we ain't Robinson Crusoe in that belief...

I see where people keep commenting that this fake/fraudulent 'lease' situation should be referred to the State Ombudsman's office, which is directly attached to the Independent Commissioner Against Corruption, etc...(and that Council's lies and fakery/fraud with the Farcical Aquatic Recreation Centre should also get referred-Ed)...absolutely it should...and whilst I do agree with the sentiment, I also remind dear availees of the rancidly corrupt 2013/14 ICAC pseudo-investigation of MGCC that was in actuality ICAC protecting Council...(and the Ombudsman's ludicrous exoneration of former Mayor Andrew Lee, which we also covered in this 'ere blog-Ed)...yeah, all that stuff...and the ridiculous set of circumstances where-in I wrote an official complaint (September 2017) about the direct abuse and threats I repeatedly copped from Councillors and former CEO Mark 'Mighty Marky Mark McShenanigans' McShane, and that the (then) Minister Geoff Brock sent my complaint back to McShenanigans for him to resolve, even though the complaint was about him...and that that complaint remains unresolved/unanswered and my mate McShenanigans has shot-through like a rat out of an aqueduct...

I have absolutely no faith in the Ombudsman/ICAC, and believe that any 'complaint' process would likely be buried under years of the same farcically undefinable ICAC Section 56 Confidentiality legislation that I've been 'Convicted' of supposedly breaching...so good luck with that...(and I reckon that Council knows they're protected and that's a big part of what enables and motivates them in acting so corruptly-Ed)...well it goes without saying, but well said anyways... 

Tomorrow: MGCC's Fascist Attempt To Silence Critics

As also covered in recent posts, MGCC's introduction of 'Unreasonable Conduct' pseudo-legislation is definably about  protecting themselves from any accountability for their rampant Institutionalised Corruption, and to shut down and hopefully silence 'Whistleblowers' and genuine complainants and litigants, etc...it's all the same animal as the lease corruption evidenced above and as relates to MGCC's relentless and ongoing deceits about the FARC...(and gourd knows what all else-Ed)...indeed, although this is more than enough corruption, even for a Council as corrupt as MGCC, there's inevitably more that we don't know about and likely more to come...(what about that super-dodgy re-zoning issue in Wehl St?-Ed)...as a further example, sure, and whatevs else we don't know about...

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

The Sedition Edition - Donald Trump Praises Attempted Coup In USofA

Howdy dear availees in Sweden, Finland, Vietnam, and Nigeria, but most particularly today in the USofA...last night's (yesterday's) extraordinary scenes at the Capitol building are nothing short of an attempted coup, and an attempt that obviously had the pre-organised support of a number of people, upto and including the out-going President Donald Trump...and even more concerning is that many people seem to think that this attempted coup was basically just a dress rehearsal for the real coup attempt that will be coming on January 20th 2021...and given that this has happened at the behest of, and with the ongoing support of the raging Sociopathic Narcissist Donald 'Orange Roughy' Trump, those sort of concerns are well-founded and quite understandable...

It is fundamentally non-believable that a supposedly 'organic' bunch of a few hundred random 'protestors' managed to somehow literally, actually just stroll into the Capitol building, particularly whilst the Parliament was in session...it is no coincidence that these were the same crew, eg, members of the 'Proud Boys', whom Trump told to "Stand Down and Stand By", which he has just done again...it's no coincidence that these 'protestors' were almost (if not actually) entirely White...what about the scenes recorded that appear to show cops/security literally opening the doors for 'protestors' and 'inviting' them in?...where's the security?... 

Conspiracy Bonfire Of The Vanities:...and just the day before, it was Trump himself who called for this to happen, Trump himself who stated that this was going to happen, 'we're going to walk down this street to the Capitol', etc...for months Trump has been relentlessly throwing fuel onto the conspiracy bonfire of supposedly fraudulent elections, and openly praised White Supremacists, and refused to denounce Rascism, etc, etc...it's an old adage/observation that Americans don't get 'Irony', but it's ironic really that Donald's only claiming 'fraud' in the States that he lost...and to further illustrate just how deliberately Rascist and bigotted and biased Trump is, and how hard he bellows that stuff to his 'supporters', here's a short, sharp reminder of what Trump himself said regarding the BLM marches/protests...***   

Reminder: the President supports a Minimum TEN YEARS in prison for this type of behavior

8:14 AM · Jan 7, 2021·Twitter for iPhone

***...so where's his outrage about this 'Anarchy' and this 'vandalism', etc?...and right on cue, here come the Right Wing Nut Job support base, particularly in the Murdoch media and their RW media stablemates, condoning and excusing and supporting the 'coup', all screeching about how it's actually 'the Lefties' who are to blame...and no better example than this rabid Murdoch hack lunatic Right Wing apologist, our very own Miranda...take it away Mirsy...*** 

Miranda Devine

@mirandadevine

I guess we really shouldn’t be surprised at what’s happening in the Capitol after the way leftist violence was condoned most of last year. You let the genie out of the bottle, there’s no telling where it goes

***...let's just ignore the vast chasm of reality that The Devine One has managed to effortlessly vault across, eg, the differences between how Black Lives Matter protestors were met with lines of highly-militarised police/security with tear gas and 'non-lethal munitions' and tanks and helicopters, etc, actual genuine protestors who were railing against actual Institutionalised Rascism in Policing, etc, and were bashed and shot and dragged away en masse, etc, etc...compare that to this bunch of 'White' MAGA incels who have literally strolled into the Capitol...and the difference? one group were protesting human rights and Rascism, etc, so they're supposedly 'Antifa thugs', and the other group are Trump supporters...and that there's the difference, one lot are protesting against, the others 'protesting' in support of...and if you thought Miranda had gone for a meander down her own personal rabbit hole of excusing and justification, etc, no no, over there on the unhinged Right Wing (Trumpian) Fox News, they're actually saying that this was an instance of 'Antifa Lefties' infiltrating the pro-Trump crowd, and that it is/was Lefties who are causing/generating all the chaos...wow... 

Compare this velvet glove response in the Capitol to how protestors and media were bashed and shot, etc, to clear the streets so that Trump could stroll across to do that insipidly evil photo-op in front of that Washington church...authorities knew this 'protest' was coming 'cos Trump himself called for it, and even said that he was going to participate, so where are the lines of armour-clad riot police?...and how were these 'patriots' allowed to just stroll out again? it's an absolute set-up, made possible by the President of the USofA...and if you were in any doubt as to who was/is responsible and who wanted this to happen and who is happy to see it happening, etc, the answer to these questions is, the current President Donald Trump...he's openly rallied these people and courted and praised them and poured into them his often baseless Scapegoating and Bigotry and Rascism, eg, Mexicans are rapists and criminals who are taking your jobs, build the Wall, etc...and now it's his relentless 'Fake Media' and 'Stolen Election' mantras...there is one person responsible for this bizarre event, it's Trump...

And even after the event, Trump is openly praising these Domestic Terrorists, calling them "beautiful" and saying "I love you".   

Here's A Conspiracy Theory:...that this entire 'event' is/was actually a bipartisan or even Democratic controlled set-up, manipulating those poor unfortunate 'patriots' who have been unwittingly tricked into participating, tricked by having their 'patriotism' used against them by 'the Lefties', etc...that is, this pseudo-coup was motivated by a desire to create a faux-justification for extensive security enhancements and legislation, etc, for the Capitol building and other government institutions and politicians, etc...that is, use the now 'real' threat of insurrection and violence, etc, to enhance 'security', which is actually code for increased 'Fascism' to be used to control the people, etc...and it's a perfectly reasonable theory apart from the fact that it was Trump and certain Republicans who incited these 'patriots'...if this theory were in anyway true, then by definition, Trump is so gullible and so easily manipulated, etc, that he was tricked by the Democrats/Lefties to do their bidding...  

Tomorrow: Mt Gambier City Council's Lies About Evicting Aquifer Tours/Cafe

Promised this for today, but obviously globally important events take precedent, and the relentless Instituitonalised Corruption of MGCC is important, but compared to this stuff (above), well, it's only local political corruption, albeit corruption enabled and protected by broader issues of corruption within SA and Federal politics...and for those who think I'm being overly melodramatic about what MGCC have done, eg, blaming the lease process, here's what SA MLC John Darley stated about this in The Border Watch (24th December 2020)...and according to TBW, Mr Darley "contacted" them...Mr Darley, if you please...

"They (elected members) may have wished to cancel the lease for some other reason, but they can not use land tenure as a reason because that is not true."

In closing, I note that many commentators are pointing to the actions of staunch Trump supporter Vice-President Mike Pence as to how Trump is being viewed within his own Party and other areas of power, namely, it was Pence who made the call for National Guard to be called in...it was Pence who bypassed his own President to make that call...and Pence has also stated that he will go against Trump's oft-expressed desire for him (Pence) to call the election for him (Trump)...

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

Re-Booting TMGI For 2021

Howdy dear TMGI availees across the globe, across Oz, and here in the SE of SA...just a very quick message to say that I'm gunna' move toward doing this 'ere blog and the associated Facebook page as a daily 'job', ie, 5 posts a week mostly done on weekdays, with weekends and public holidays off, etc, a bit like when we first began...posts will be a bit shorter maybe, but will ultimately cover more topics more thoroughly...I know I've set-out down this path repeatedly in recent times/years, but there's a fundamental ground shift I've recently experienced, call it an epiphany if you must...and I know it was probably the wrong time of the year to start a Facebook page, just before Xmas and New Year, and with the recent 'decline' of Facebook's popularity it's potentially a case of shutting the gate after the horse has bolted, etc, but whatevs, it's happening people!...

Given myself a bit of a deliberate break across the last week or so, but there was also the fundamental re-evaluation of my motivations, etc, as prompted by someone's friendly enquiry, "why? why do you do the blog, etc? why continue to put ya'self through this, particularly given the grief you've copped for doing so?"...I was part-way through my traditional response about the guilt associated with my perceived failures to resolve the St Martins Lutheran School Child Abuse Cover-up, etc, and was politely challenged about that position, "ya' can't live ya' life like that"...and they're right ya' know...

So I've re-positioned myself somewhat around what others have observed/stated to me about the positives of my actions and/or situation...there will always be the guilt, that's just the way it is, but there's also the sense of genuine achievement for 1) standing my ground and even continuing forward despite all the abuse and persecution, eg, my "bizarre trial" re ICAC, etc, which others have noted is in and of itself proof that I am having an effect, ie, 'the ICAC and SA government and SAPol (police), etc, wouldn't have gone to all that trouble and expense if you weren't a problem for them'...and 2) I have fundamentally redefined the official narrative about Mt Gambier and South Australia, etc, by recording a genuinely accurate history sans the political vested interests influence...these things I have achieved and these are indeed things to be proud of...

This second point becomes it's own self-perpetuating motivation, 'cos I've established a massive foundation of knowledge and experience, etc, and, loathe as some would be to admit it, a certain credibility based on my accuracy of reportage...

So it's onwards and upwards, starting properly,

Tomorrow: Official Proof Of Mt Gambier City Council's Lies About Aquifer Tours Closure    

We here at TMGI try to avoid getting caught in the 'We Told You So' space, but there's a whole bunch a' stuff goin' on here that's been exposed publicly/officially, and it's as if the script of that exposure was writ large here on TMGI in advance...for a thoroughly entertaining and infuriating account of MGCC's definable corruption and vindictiveness and selfishness and incompetence, etc, etc, tune in right here...you'll laugh, you'll cry, you'll spit venomous chips of belligerent disbelief and wanton retribution that your illustrious leaders have bare-face lied to you yet again...

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

Scott 'Promo Scummo' Morrison - A Study In Lies, Propaganda, and Ideological Hatred

***pardon moi, started this post 3 weeks ago, so it's a bit clunky, but here 'tis***

Howdy dear availees everywhere...I know that we've covered a lot of this stuff recently, but it's been another extraordinary coupla' weeks of PM Scott Morrison just straight-out lying, and a litany of accompanying Liberal/National ideological hatred...personally I've had a very average week dominated by galloping depression and the worst coupla' days of hayfever that I've had in literally decades, still recovering days later...(yes, whatevs, apology accepted, let's get back to the far more pleasant topic of LNP bastardry and hatred and associated political posturing-Ed)...we closed out the Annus Horribilis with two weeks of the LNP openly demonising and attacking the poorer people in our supposedly egalitarian society, eg, those receiving welfare, part-time and casual and low-income workers, etc, and trying to ram through Union-busting legislation and new 'Anti-Terrorist' laws that are actually about shutting down any anti-government reporters and particularly anyone using Twitter and/or blogs, etc, and most particularly any 'Whistleblowers'...(but hang on, we're at least 2 of those things, arguably all 3-Ed)...absolutely we are, and we're exactly the sort of citizens that the LNP is targetting with this faux legislation, but even more specifically those who have access to public servants and/or politicians, etc...

This supposedly desperately needed latest round of 'improved Anti-Terrorist' laws, by design, can and will give the government the sort of control it craves over 'social media-style' reportage and activism, whilst simultaneously having a massive 'chilling effect' on potential 'Whistleblowers' and other complainants and any reporting/public disclosure of that material...(what is this crap?! 'must answer questions'? no right to silence? must reveal sources? wildly vague and all-powerful warrants? and all with 5 years gaol hangin' over you as a threat?-Ed)...you've missed the bit about 5 years gaol for just revealing that you've had a warrant served against you...(I know people like to make jokes about this stuff, but this is truly Orwellian Totalitarian stuff right here-Ed)..indeed it is, and it's got SFA to do with 'Terrorism', and everything to do with protecting the Institutionalised Corruption of the LNP...note how some of this stuff was rushed through both houses of Parliament in literally hours, but it's been over 2 years since the LNP 'promised' some sort of 'Integrity Commission'...(and what they've proposed recently is a fatuous shell of an IC that is virtually powerless to do what most people would consider it's fundamental job of stopping corruption-Ed)...and nor will it have the power to address and resolve any historical corruption, ie, everything that the LNP is doing currently to steal Taxpayer's money via a litany of Nepotistic Tenders and 'Consultancies' and rorted 'Funding Progams', etc...    

So anybody on Twitter and/or bloggers, etc, y'all/we're all potential Terrorists according to the LNP...(but they still won't acknowledged what their own security experts are telling them, that it's not us bleedin'-heart lefties that are the real concern, it's the Right Wing extremists to look out for-Ed)...well indeed, but when you're a government consisting of Right Wing extremists and dull-eyed god-botherers and the like, you're hardly going to call-out a major part of your supporter base, now are you?...(absolutely not, and that takes us nicely to the latest attacks on workers and the unemployed, etc and the associated demonisation of these vulnerable groups-Ed)...indeed it does...and don't let the wholly complicit pro-LNP Main Stream Media piss their self-serving non-truths into your ever-suffering ears, there is nothing about the COVID-19 pandemic that has stopped the Scummo LNP from pursuing their Ideological Hatred War against the various political punching bags that they love to target...and at every first opportunity, real or created, the LNP have axed support and gone straight back to their hatred hobby-horse of demonising and blaming the poor...(and women, what about the cuts to Child Care Wage Support and associated funding?-Ed)...exactly mate, what was the first area to have it's JobKeeper withdrawn, Child Care, and other funding was reduced or stopped completely, with the effect of both 1) forcing workers back into the Child Care work place, and 2) mothers back into the home to look after their kids...in a predominantly female-based area, this is unambiguously a gender-based action, with a heavy bent toward forcing women back into the home where the LNP believe they belong...

Basically, it's a win-win for the blokey half-wits in the LNP...given the basic nuclear family male/female paradigm, etc, which is pretty much all they want to acknowledge anyways, given all that, it 1) literally forces the lower income earner in the household, almost always the female partner, given they're likely working part-time and almost always at a lower rate than male counterparts, etc...(mate, there's so much going on there-Ed)...indeed, but it forces those people to consider what's more financially advantageous, work and use that wage to pay for Child Care, or stay home...(which is effectively what it amounts to for many people, does the income justify the employment when the wage only just covers the cost of child care? better off just staying home and looking after your own kids, right?-Ed)...which brings us to 2) this then acts to reduce unemployment numbers and costs, etc, 'cos there's many women who are forced to return to work in the sector, and/or become their own 'primary carer' and withdraw from the job market...("and/or"?-Ed)...well how many women are forced to return to work in the sector 'cos there ain't no JobKeeper, etc, and have to put their own kids in 'care' for that time?...(ouch, it's a double whammy-Ed)...and one that affects almost entirely women...(and in contrast the LNP threw $$$hundreds of millions at Homebuilder and 'Apprenticeship' programs, both of which are hugely dominated by male workers, eg, tradies-Ed)...a perfect contrast Ed, axe all support for the female-dominated industry, but sling $$$millions at male-dominated areas...and it ain't no accident...

And whilst this was the first example, and occurred months ahead of other cuts to 'COVID Support', at every turn the LNP have hacked-back Jobkeeper and particularly Jobseeker, then in this past fortnight we've seen the LNP just launch themselves at workers and their incomes and rights, etc...we've seen Work Choices Mark II tabled with supposed benefits for casual workers, but at the cost of part-time and other low-income workers, and with no genuine repercussions for employers who transgress against these faux-improvements...(and right alongside that there's the renewed attack on Trade Unions, again promoted with the fraudulent justification that this is about improving things for workers-Ed)...absolute gaslighting, like the LNP give a stuff about workers welfare and/or rights...(well as I like to say, you know why we have Unions?-Ed)...why?...(because of employers-Ed)...hmmm, many a true word spoken in jest...(oh I ain't jokin' mate, if employers could be trusted to treat their employees justly and with respect and pay them properly, etc, the entire business model for Unions would be redundant-Ed)...great point mate...(if employers could be trusted the entire reason for Unions existing would be moot-Ed)...absolutely true mate, with a few genuine exceptions it's employers who are the problem...(yep, and their conduct creates the environment where Unions aren't just possible but are essential-Ed)...just look at the swathe of Food Industry problems where high-profile employers have ripped-off their employees, often totalling $$$millions...(and it's never an over payment 'errors', it's always underpayment 'errors', suggesting that it's not 'errors' but actually quite deliberate-Ed)...yep, certainly has that look about it...

Rebooting RoboDebt:...after the criminal and deliberate 'failures' of Robodebt, the LNP have established a Version 2.0 using private debt collectors to 'recover' alleged over-payments...it includes large quotas/retrievals, and specific directions that the collector must immediately notify the department if the 'client' threatens self-harm...(as was/is an issue with Robodebt I, with over 2,000 deaths associated, including several suicides directly linked to receiving a 'debt' notice-Ed)...indeed, but this notification directive is not about the welfare of the 'client', it's specifically defined as being about "reputational damage" to the department...and there's a further directive that the department must be advised "within one hour" if the 'client' threatens to contact a politician or go to the media...it's 100% LNP bastardry...(and didn't Scummo and Christian Porter and Alan Tudge, etc, didn't they capitulate on a class action against Robodebt?-Ed)...yep, a minimum $1.2 billion capitulation that was entirely without empathy, compassion or contrition, it was entirely about protecting these corrupt, sociopathic LNP clowns from having to front Court and be held to account for their deliberate bastardry...here's an excellent story about it from Independent Australia...    

https://independentaustralia.net/politics/politics-display/the-morrison-governments-program-of-class-warfare,14644#.X-LgwS07VA8.twitter  

Never let y'allselves be distracted away from the truth, namely that everything that was done to support workers and protect jobs and to protect our society in general, eg, the JobKeeper payments and temporary increase to JobSeeker (NewStart) and border closures, etc, etc, all of that was forced on Scummo and his band of Merry Rorters by a combination of the State Premiers and/or the Unions and business leaders, etc...all of it...here's an excellent summary of Scummo's attitude from staunch LNP supporter Niki Savvas...(well actually, she may lean heavily that way, but I've seen her increasingly critical of the LNP, and whilst she still has her LNP_blinkered moments, sure, she's certainly far more balanced than most of her rabidly conspiratorial and complicit colleagues-Ed)...fair call mate...here 'tis..***

Credit where credits due! Huge wraps to Niki Savva. Admit I’ve never been a fan, but doesn’t she nail it smack bang with this #2020Wrapped

report of #screenshotsaturday #ScottyFromPhotoOps Ms Savva has nailed Morrison’s lack of action and opposition to everything to a tee!

***The only thing Niki has missed is Scummo's 'Let It Rip' attitude/strategy that relates to all this...(the stuff about just letting COVID-19 go through the community unchecked and whoever dies dies, etc, that stuff?-Ed)...yeah, exactly that stuff...and then there's bloody David Speers...(Speersy! maaate!-Ed)...yeah, poor old sad Speersy, what sort of drooling LNP stooge looks down the camera, and without the least trace of irony or sarcasm, tells the ABC viewers that Scott Morrison has had a great year...(if it weren't so sad and so deeply disturbing, it'd be hilarious, you know, in a comic-tragedy kinda' way-Ed)...no mate, it's just sad, sad and corrupt and a massive problem 'cos when this is the only story the people get fed, then unfortunately many are going to believe it...here's a great Twitter thread (below) that covers a lot of it...(yet more great work from the Twitterati-Ed)...absolutely...I would add to this list of abject failures, Scummo's heavy personal involvement in a series of losing elections, from the Eden-Monaro by-election, to Labor wins in the Northern Territory, Canberra, and in particular Queensland...(yeah right, Scummo was all over Eden-Monaro like stink on a monkey, and completely took over the lNP's Queensland campaign, frequently forcing LNP leader Deb Frecklington to literally stand quietly behind him-Ed)...like a good LNP woman should, right?...(well that certainly looked like it was the case, but whatevs, Scummo made those 2 elections all about him, and he lost, massively-Ed)...yay for Scummo...  

https://twitter.com/BelindaJones68/status/1337794608886030336

And I know this is next bit is about USofA President Donald Trump, currently setting-about destroying whatevs remains of the US's democratic processes and global standing as a functional world power, etc, but given Scummo's unambiguous and wholesale subscribing to 'Trumpian Politics', it's an apt descriptor/critique...again I've seen this several places so I don't know who was the original author...and I'm somewhat bemused but disturbed by the Trump supporters...(well you could stop that sentence right there, ahaha-Ed)...indeed, nice one man, but seriously, how do these people keep on keeping on with their 'Stolen Election' manifesto when 1) Trump's own lawyers have withdrawn  from multiple 'cases' when they go to Court and are asked to provide evidence...(because there ain't any, evidence that is-Ed)...exactly...and 2) a series of Republican judges have denied or thrown out numerous attempted 'cases'...and 3) the biggie, the Republican-controlled Supreme Court, bulging with Trump appointees, the highest Court in the land, etc, etc, now they've politely laughed the latest attempt right outta' the building...(and all this follows the pre-election campaign by Trump to compromise the election in his favour by voter suppression, eg, de-registering voters, de-funding the Postal Service to compromise mail-in voting, etc-Ed)...spot on! he tries to rig the election, still loses, and then squeals foul, what a class act... 

        Whoever wrote this, pretty much captured the thoughts of millions around the globe . #LoserOfTheYear

10:55 AM · Dec 12, 2020·Twitter for Android

Now just for a closing laugh at the laughable, corrupt, B-grade, repeatedly sacked, failed marketting stooge who has back-stabbed his way to be our illustrious PM, cop a gander at this...I'm not sure who the original artist is, but I believe that the image was first done using USofA Vice-President Mike 'Tup' Pence...(oh I've seen that one, it's even more disturbing than this version-Ed)...well quite, but anyways, here 'tis, enjoy... 

Captain Chaos - PSST - I'm incognito

@Captain_Chaos_X

#ScottyFromPhotoOps Why, because I can! All credit to the unknown original artist

(That is truly, truly hilarious-Ed)...yep, I reckon it sums him up perfectly, it's all flash and pomp and fantasy and professional fakery whilst poncing-about like a prize pony, making endless 'announcements' about things that do not and will not exist...but it ain't really over until the old lady sings...and never forget the attacks Scummo/the LNP have made on pensioners, eg, cutting the pension several years back...(and what about Scummo's recent comments about not counting on the Aged Pension as being a 'right', and even referring to it as 'welfare'-Ed)...well quite, but let's allow those whom suffer these crass indignities and abuses to speak for themselves, ma'am... 

This is far more relevant to #ScottyFromPhotoOps ... #auspol

 

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

Robe Council Trying To Use 'Unreasonable Conduct' To 'Ban' Former Mayor William Peden

Howdy dear availees everywhere...in the previous post we covered the rankly corrupt Mt Gambier City Council's deeply deceitful but blatant attempt to try and empower themselves to 'ban' troublemakers, and that this was unambiguously about denying Ratepayers/citizens from being able to hold MGCC to account for any of their (Council's) litany of Nepotisms, Conflict of Interests, and/or Insider Tradings, and/or other various corrupt dealings and/or mismanagement, etc...I had intended to mention that this 'Unreasonable Conduct' was very similar to what Robe District Council did a coupla' years back to former Mayor William Peden, when they passed 'special rules' stating that they weren't going to answer Mr Peden's letters, etc, etc...(didn't we cover that in the post Dear Robe Council CEO Roger Sweetman, "Whim And Fancy" This Champ, 19th February 2019?-Ed)...indeed we did Ed, and in a coupla' other posts, but it appears that we were a tad premature in our observation that this was a historical issue...(how so?-Ed)...well 'cos Robe Council is right at it right now, literally as we speak, as I was alerted to after we did the most recent post about MGCC...   

And partly 'cos I had planned to mention it anyways, but mostly 'cos it's a real-time example of exactly what MGCC is seeking to allow/'justify' in 'banning' people from contacting them, here's just a super quick post to get this stuff on the record...I can only apologise that I've not been as thorough with covering the local news as I might be, 'cos this was publicly exposed via the Naracoorte News on Wednesday 25th November 2020, as attached below...(well mate, you can't be following everything everywhere all the time-Ed)...sure, but perhaps this is the reasonable prompt I need to get a bit better organised, etc...anyhoos, here 'tis, the reportage of Robe Council straight-out threatening and denigrating a leading local citizen for having the brazen temerity to ask perfectly reasonable and appropriate questions about the conduct of the Council...(and not least of all, about stuff that should be placed on the public record by Council without having to be asked, eg, remuneration issues regarding former CEO Roger Sweetman who 'resigned' in disgrace!-Ed)...well quite, and regarding that specific point, it appears that Robe Council is not just attacking Mr Peden, but also failing/refusing to do what the Ombudsman 'ordered' them to do...   

For some reason there's a lotta' doubling-up there, but it's still an extraordinary story being told...(I think the really critical point in all of that is how Mayor Nunan refuses to answer the questions, particularly about whether or not that info is publicly available-Ed)...indeed, she certainly seems to be arguing that all of that stuff is somehow "in confidence" 'cos it's Mr Peden asking about it...(but I do also love the stuff where Robe Council is squealing about what this is supposedly costing Ratepayers, but they're the ones getting copious legal advice and holding single issue Special Meetings about one li'l ol' person, etc, all motivated by their own debilitating desire to avoid answering basic questions about their conduct, rather than just answer the questions-Ed)...yeah, but that's Mr Peden's fault 'cos he asked the questions...(ah right, I see, my bad, I thought it was the straw-clutching machinations of a desperate Council that was the actual issue-Ed)...well yeah sorry, I was being sarcastic, it is of course the Robe Council that's guilty of 'Unreasonable Conduct', in fact, I'd call it outrageous conduct...

This issue is going to continue across the next few posts, but I also have some other news...starting tomorrow, 19th December 2020, TMGI has a Facebook page of the same name...we'll mostly be using it to briefly alert the public to local issues like this one with Robe Council, and MGCC's latest actions in the same vein, etc, issues that will then be covered at length on this 'ere blog...I've been urged to use Facebook for some time, years in fact, and a series of recent events have finally pushed me to take the plunge, eg, the appalling mis-reportage of the MGCC Unreasonable Conduct stuff...I'll cover this in my opening post on TMGI Facebook...

Tomorrow: More MGCC Unreasonable Conduct Corruption 

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

PUBLIC INTEREST ALERT: Mt Gambier City Council's Latest Act Of Base Corruption

Howdy dear availees...have interrupted my own blog with 2 posts part-finished but shoved aside, etc, due to this appallingly concerning issue...please to be availling y'allselves of the MGCC Agenda for tomorrow night's Full Meeting, Tuesday 15th December 2020, and go to item 16.4, Unreasonable Conduct Policy, pages 39 and then in full 238 - 276...

In a nutshell, this is not about the 'Unreasonable Conduct' of Councillors and/or Council staff and/or contractors, etc, this is about MGCC giving themselves the 'legal right' to ignore and/or target and/or ban problematic Ratepayers, namely, those Ratepayers who write to Council asking embarrassing questions about MGCC's relentless Corruption, Nepotism, and/or Insider Trading, etc...(or anyone Council doesn't like who attend Council meetings, etc-Ed)...exactly...(and Council is trying to justify this by blaming the supposed but unidentified 'inappropriate conduct' of a supposedly large number of un-named 'perpetrators'-Ed)...absolutely, with faux concern for the welfare of Council staffers, and/or the burden on Council's meagre abilities to respond, etc...

This 'legislation' is solely and wholly about empowering Councillors to be allowed to officially ignore people they don't like and/or questions Council doesn't want to answer, and try to ban people from contacting Council and/or attending Council meetings, etc, etc...(well what about the stuff in the Background preamble, is that about the South Australian Ombudsman?-Ed)...I believe so, referring to the Ombudsman's Unreasonable Complaint Conduct Model Policy...(and who are these supposed but unnamed "best practice organisations"?-Ed)...no idea, looks like a construct of the report writer's imagination...whatevs, MGCC have clearly deliberately misrepresented or twisted the intent to suit their purpose, eg, this doesn't just include 'complainants' but anyone Council chooses...(so does that mean that they could/would come after people who don't attend meetings, etc, and don't complain to Council, etc, but who for example might write a blog critical of Council?-Ed)...well call me paranoid, but it certainly looks that way... 

I had intended to write a thorough review of this 'policy' but it is riddled with so many gaping pro-Council loopholes that it's going to take several posts, eg Council gets to define who and/or what constitutes 'Unreasonable', but by their own definition here-in, at page 243-4, dot point 3.3, under Unreasonable Persistence, a Ratepayer seeking a legally sanctioned review of a Council decision can be deemed 'Unreasonable' and therefore subject to this outrageously corrupt pseudo-legislation...(well doesn't that render this legislation technically 'non-legal' or unlawful' or whatevs the correct legal term is?-Ed)...how so?...(well if it unambiguously seeks to stifle and/or stop and/or punish Ratepayers from accessing their legal rights under other legislation, eg, appropriately Appealling, doesn't that contradiction/clash make this 'policy' therefore 'unlawful'?-Ed)...well damn Ed, it most certainly looks that way, but it ain't stopped MGCC before, so why would it now?...(and doesn't it also allow Council to just say 'nup, ain't lookin' at that' a coupla' times, and/or 'we've already answered that', etc, when in fact they haven't which is why the person keeps calling/writing/whatevs, and then Council can slam the door on ya' having never actually replied at all?-Ed)...you mean like they do now anyways?...(yep, but this supposedly allows and justifies that 'non-answering'-Ed)...absolutely, like I said, trying to legally allow what they already do, with the added bonus of being 'allowed' to 'officially' ban people...   

Excuse me, I've accidentally headed off down that rabbit hole of trying to carefully explain just how pro-MGCC corrupt this is, but like I say, literally every 'justification/explanation' and related 'action' is riddled with loopholes that allow the Institutionally Corrupt Mt Gambier City Council the supposed legal right to target people they don't like, and that's people who try to hold MGCC to account for their relentless Corruption...(and this follows on from MGCC's recent-ish legislation whereby Councillors (and staff?) are obliged to 'report/log' any conversations they might have with the general public, be it at the supermarket or in the street, etc, and that 'report' must include a synopsis of that conversation-Ed)...yep, hobble any vaguely genuine Councillors and clamp down and hopefully ban problematic Ratepayers who keep asking problematic questions about definable Corruption, or heaven forbid, exercising their legal rights, etc, etc, and try to present it all as being in Ratepayer's best interests...this is Totalitarian Gas-Lighting 101...

As I understand it some people are trying to organise some sort of protest tomorrow at the Council meeting, but I am also aware that Council has been loading the gallery with Council staffers, thusly allowing only a couple of Ratepayers to actually be in the room, so's Id get there early if ya' wanna' actually get in the Chamber before they shut the doors on ya'...and they will, shut the doors that is...

I've only read it through the once, but I am absolutely certain and therefore repeat, this 'policy' is unequivocally about attacking and shutting-down those handful of people who currently cause 'problems' by simply trying to hold the rankly corrupt Mt Gambier City Council to account, and then dissuading/stopping anyone whom tries in the future...I myself am still currently 'banned' from attending Council meetings due to Magistrate Ian White's reprehensibly vile politicised mis-use of Final Intervention Orders, and this is exactly the sort of outcome/powers that MGCC is trying to gift themselves here...and whilst I don't believe that this legislation is actually legal, in that it contradicts laws in higher jurisdictions, eg, rights to Appeal any Council decisions, etc, any and all efforts to stop it being passed in the first instance must be exhausted...(and good luck with that given the effort Council has clearly gone into to present this crassly corrupt farce in the first instance-Ed)...fair point Ed, but to those whom can, please do attend and make your displeasure known...  

I am Nick Fletcher and this is my blog, and Mt Gambier City Council is a text-book study in Institutionalised Corruption...cheers and laters...

Mt Gambier City Council Deceitfully Evicts South East's Premier Tourism Experience

Howdy dear availees in Singapore, Spain, Canada and Brazil, welcome one and y'all...absolutely no offence intended to other hard-working tourism operators, but the Blue Lake is the single most identifiable natural attraction in the South East, possibly the state, and the Aquifer Tour is/was definitively Mt Gambier's most popular tourism experience...be it for locals and/or entertaining visitors, school kids on excursions, bus loads of pensioners, etc, etc, through to hordes of international tourists, the Aquifer Tour entertained and informed many thousands of people every year, for 30 years...the Cafe is/was the first contact site for many visitors who would visit the Blue Lake and then go in for info about other local attractions, eg, how to get to the Valley Lakes? what other tours/facilities are there? where's a good restaurant? etc...the Cafe is/was also the centre of a large social structure, from walkers to friends meeting for coffee to local artists who displayed and sold their wares, etc, etc...now it's just another empty building in Mt Gambier...(well not "just another empty building", as you've identified, it's the primary contact point for many tourists, who are now going to be met with an empty space and no services/advice, it's a terrible look for Mt Gambier-Ed)...indeed it is, and entirely unnecessary, this is a deliberate construct of the corrupt and/or incompetent Mt Gambier City Council... 

Hooray for me that I finally managed to locate those comments I referred to in the previous post...this person wrote to Council seeking some answers and this is the response they received...I've left the names out just because I don't want to make trouble for those involved, but in some instances, eg, MGCC's response, obviously Council knows who they sent that to...***

Response from Council this afternoon

Hi ******, The City of Mount Gambier property management agreement between the Blue Lake Welcome Centre sub-licencees Garry and Trish Turner ends on Monday 30 November 2020, one month before the 21 year head licence between SA Water and Council for the Crown Land the centre is located on expires on 31 December 2020.

Council is very thankful to Garry and Trish for their hard work and commitment in providing 30 years of tourism services at the Blue Lake.

Council has resolved to pursue a different path for its tourism assets as outlined in the 2020-2024 Strategic Plan, with a view to developing and delivering a tourism master plan for the area.

Council will continue to work with SA Water and Crown Lands (DEW) to establish a partnership model in the new year.

 

***...and here's the person's own response to that 'response' from MGCC...I believe that this and the other comments below are fairly indicative of how most people in the community feel about this extraordinary series of MGCC's latest deceits and grossly corrupt/incompetent actions...***

 

What a completely disingenuous response from council. Two issues come to mind, one, the investment in building a business and the valuable goodwill associated with that by the Turner’s and secondly the pathetic history that council has had relative to servicing the tourist industry and associated businesses. There isn’t a council that I’ve ever heard of in a regional centre that’s handled the tourism sector worse than the Mount Gambier City Council. Promises of a plan insults the intelligence of the public, especially when their belief in council is at an all time low. Shutting down a key tourism enterprise that sits at the primary tourist attraction in the city before a better option is in place is absurd in the extreme. Talk about a move that doesn’t pass the public test!!!

This matter like others currently taking place deserves scrutiny by ICAC because they are as suss as. It doesn’t take a very clever person to predict a vested interest connected to council having plans for the Tourist oriented cafe at the Blue Lake. 

 

***...nails it, absolutely nails it, across so many issues...(well except of course the call for ICAC's involvement-Ed)...well certainly, fair point, and we'll have to look at that later in the post...and here's some of the other comments related to this stuff, which I've picked as being representative of many such comments across social media and things I've personally heard...I'll follow with my take on some of these comments...*** 

 

1) Surely council should give an explanation for the lease not being renewed???? Hiding behind in confidence excuses with publicly owned property is a disgrace.

2) Absolutely ridiculous to cut this off without a ready to go option to service that need. It’s as suss as. Get ready for the connections to council or other sector of politics to benefit in some way for this operation to shut. The vested interests gravy train will be connected to this for sure.

3) Very sad. I often despair at the decisions of our Council.

Leading up to the busy tourism season and I suspect this will be closed as I have seen nothing regarding advertising for new operators, or does council have a preselected prefered operator.

4) Congratulations for what you have achieved for tourism and Mt Gambier and the enjoyment you have given to so many visitors 

5) Yes and trying to follow up the 2020-2024 plan is like walking the great wall in China, impossible!! 

 

***...and here's how operator Trish Turner very politely describes the situation...*** 

Trish Turner

Thank you everyone for your support over the many years we will miss you all . The decision is out of our hands we would still like some genuine answers which seem difficult to obtain ,Trish and Garry.

 

***...so there ya' go, MGCC has shut-down Mt Gambier's (the South East's) premier tourism site/operation, and the people at the centre of that storm of deceit and misinformation, the operators of that business, the Turner's themselves have subtly but specifically defined MGCC's conduct, "...genuine answers (are) difficult to obtain."...(indeed, says it all really-Ed)...and there is an extended 'polite' statement on the Aquifer Tours website, please to be checking it out...I absolutely agree with the comments here, it's a disgraceful incompetence to shut-down the premier Tourism site as we go into the main Tourism season, and that there are 'vested interest' motivations at play...

 

Tell Me This Is A Coincidence:...'cos there was sweet shreck-all posted/reported about this Eviction/Closure in local 'professional' media, couldn't find it mentioned anywhere, but then I posted about it early on Tuesday 1st December 2020, and the next day ABC South East Radio had MGCC's Barbara Cernovskis on to address the situation...y'all can hear this interview by going to...

https://www.abc.net.au/radio/southeastsa/programs/breakfast/breakfast/12921662 

...for their report on Wednesday 2nd December 2020, starting at about 1hr10mins35secs...(note that Barbara refers to the business closing as of 'yesterday', being 'Monday 30th November', confirming that that interview was recorded sometime on 1st December 2020, after we had posted-Ed)...perhaps it's just a case of coincidental timing, but the fact remains that this final closure has been public knowledge for nearly a week and discussed on local social media, etc, and Council themselves have known for months, but it doesn't get 'reported' until after I cut crook on this 'ere blog...I'm not gunna' comment on that entire interview, but suffice to say that, having made extensive enquiries, I believe that Council is straight-out lying about the current status of the 'Lease Agreement' as it relates to the 'Blue Lake Welcome Centre', that indeed there is a renewed/current lease agreement in place, and that this is provably a lie by Council...

 

Dear Availlees:...just check it for y'allselves, simply contact SA Water and/or the Dept of Environment and Water and ask, and go to your local Member Troy Bell and ask him, and contact other local politicians in state parliament...(wasn't MLC John Darley formerly head honcho with the Lands Dept or some such? he'd surely know where to look and/or who to ask, etc-Ed)...well remembered Ed, when I dealt with him aways back in 2006/07 regarding the St Martins Child Abuse Cover-up he mentioned that 'Lands' was his field of expertise...(and what's the 'Blue Lake Welcome Centre'?-Ed)...well that's a carefully weasel-worded deceit from MGCC, 'cos it's otherwise and more commonly known as the Aquifer Cafe...it is my understanding that the Turners provided the Tourism Info aspect of their business as a 'gratis community service' and a courtesy entirely separate to their actual 'Lease'...(so you mean that Council has taken absolute advantage of the Turners goodwill in providing that 'free' service?-Ed)...that's exactly what I'm saying...('free' in that Ratepayers weren't subsidising it, it was being provided gratis?-Ed)...yep...(and yet MGCC has seen fit to ignore and/or abuse the Turners, and now turf them out into the street?-Ed)...spot on...the Aquifer Cafe building is/was fundamentally the ticket office for the Aquifer Tours, and any and all other services provided are peripheral issues...that aside, the Cafe is/was the focus of a local social network that is now effectively homeless, and a critical Tourist contact/info point...

 

Read between Council's well-rehearsed lines about the 'unfortunate' demise of the sub-lease and how Council is trying to get "joint custodianship" to go in "a different direction" with a view to ensuring the "sustainability of future options", etc, but when asked, 'what is the "vision"?', Council ain't got one...(and then there's the self-contradictory bollocks about not having a lease and yet having a vision/plan for the entire site-Ed)...indeed, it simply doesn't make sense...and "joint custodianship" is weasel-words for forcing the Turners out of that side of their business, for taking the Aquifer Tours lease away from them...(and what's this absolute bollocks about a 'holistic vision for the whole Lakes Area'?-Ed)...well you've basically answered your own question Ed, it's a continuation of the weasel-words around poaching that Tours Lease off  the Turners and forcing them out, but it's also the mind-numbing nonsense of 'We've Got A Plan To Have A Plan'...(so at best it's more deceit, but it's also jingoistic public service speak for either 1) we don't know, or 2) we ain't tellin' you ya' damn plebs!-Ed)...and in this case I believe it's the latter, and that it ties in directly with 1) the lies that Council are telling about the lease, and 2) people's comments/observations that MGCC does have a plan, they have every intention of putting one of their mates/relatives in that potentially lucrative business...

 

This is my absolute belief, that this is the fundamental motivator, MGCC wants a relative/mate in there... and I refer dear availees to the litany of Nepotistic Council Tenders/Contracts that have gone to Councillor's families and/or mates, eg, the Main Corner Lease going to (then) Councillor Des Mutton's son Lachlan...(not to mention the relentless cavalcade of Insider Trading and Conflict of Interest issues-Ed)...which occur so frequently in Mt Gambier City Council that it can be rationally argued that matters do not make MGCC's Agenda unless there's a buck in it for Councillors and/or their families and/or mates...(which brings us neatly to the issue of involving the Independent Commissioner Against Corruption-Ed)...it's the perfect segue Ed...firstly, I remind dear availee that the Ombudsman/Office of Public Integrity/ICAC are all the same animal, that they are all parts of the same 'Accountability' mechanism and are linked by legislative requirements, etc...then there's how they have conducted themselves when it comes to MGCC...(well you're obviously referring to the farcical ICAC faux-investigation of MGCC from 2013/14-Ed)...exactly, and here's a brief history for those unawares...

 

1) In September 2013 I attended a MGCC meeting where-in a senior Council member identified a 'contractual agreement' with a business tendering for the Old Hospital Demolition, and left the meeting, and that business was immediately there-after awarded the tender, greatly profitting that Member;

2) I reported this to the Ombudsman and (then) local Member Don Pegler, and where it was identified in Council's Minutes, etc, and under legislation that report went directly to the ICAC Bruce Lander;

3) between October 2013 and January 2014 ICAC claimed to investigate MGCC for the Demolition Tender and numerous other corruption issues I had witnessed/identified and reported;

4) in January 2014 ICAC 'concluded' it's investigation ,claiming to have identified no problems and therefore no further action taken;

5) when I was 'Charged' for blogging about his farcical outcome, and taken to 'Trial', etc, I proved in Court that the official ICAC 'investigation' of multiple incidents of identifiable corruption within MGCC consisted of a) an unrecorded 30min chat with me in a local cafe, and b) an unrecorded chat with (then) MGCC CEO Mark McShane in a hallway of the Adelaide Convention Centre, and nothing else;

6) there were no public hearings or even canvassing of the community to expose other potential issues and/or evidence, and ICAC did not speak at all to the numerous Council Members involved in the various incidents reported...

 

South Australia's ICAC's official investigation of the entire Mt Gambier City Council, across multiple issues, comprised 2 unrecorded chats and no formal hearings, etc...(and then of course there was that totes hilarious Ombudsman's exoneration of (then) Mayor Andrew Lee for doing private business whilst in China on a Ratepayer-funded Council trip, and then lying about it, etc-Ed)...yep, which we covered at the time in 'Lines Clearly Defines Fine Line By Clearing Lee'...(yeah, that was the 'line' from the Ombudsman Wayne Lines wasn't it, Lee has strayed near to but not over the 'fine line' that would make it corruption-Ed)...yep, so there you have the previous 'actions' of SA's ICAC and/or Ombudsman when it comes to holding this rancidly corrupt Council to account...(and not to forget the years of persecuting you via a wholly corrupt 'Trial'!)...indeed, ICAC has proven itself to be a stout defender of MGCC's corruption, a bastion for the Corrupt...(and an entity for facilitating the prosecution/persecution of 'Whistleblowers'-Ed)...so good luck to ya's if ya' reckon that ICAC is gunna' do anything about this latest corrupt bastardry...    

    

(I note that our mate former MGC Councillor Josh Lynagh hasn't mentioned it at all on his 'local news' website Limestone Coast Community News-Ed)...Josh is of course notorious for routinely running interference and/or disinformation on behalf of Council...(is he still doing the stuff where, as a Councillor, he would claim that his info is/was absolutely accurate 'cos it was directly from Council, but then say that it wasn't actually Council's official position?-Ed)...oh yeah, hilarious stuff, but of course he ain't a Councillor anymore...(and is he still mouthing-off about you/us and deliberately deceiving his 'readers' by denying/contradicting the facts as he knows them, eg, the truths of the St Martins Lutheran School Child Abuse Cover-up and the many local politicians, police, community leaders, etc, etc, at al, whom are fully aware and fully complicit in that horrendously corrupt Pro-Paedophile Cover-up?-Ed)...ummm, not recently that I'm aware of, but he has had plenty to say in the past...well, other than actually to my face of course...(indeed, in person he literally scurries past and/or away, eyes averted, even though he knows you ain't gunna' lay a finger on 'im-Ed)...no, but he does know what he's done, and that trying to engage me in an actual exchange based on the facts of his conduct and the realities that he repeatedly denies/misrepresents/defends, etc, that's a verbal massacre that he ain't gunna' survive...as of just now, at the time of posting, 1330hrs local time Sunday 6th December 2020, I have done a 'search' on LCCN using the term 'Aquifer Tours Cafe' and there's nuthin' more recent than 2018, and that was about 'coffee vendors'...

 

Also, the new weekly local 'paper', the SE Voice, they've run a story about it...(well thank gourdness, it is after all front page news, this is a huge story/issue-Ed)...ummm yeah, not quite front page...(oh, fair enough, I guess page 2 isn't a complete disaster when reporting this complete disaster-Ed)...keep going...(page 3?-Ed)...not quite...(4?-Ed)...wellll...(give me that...it's not here at all, what are you talking about?-Ed)...it is, you just haven't dug far enough, try page 19...(19?! don't be ridiculous, this is a hugely important story/issue, they wouldn't bury it on.........oh-Ed)...yeah, "oh"...(and this is just a tepid regurgitation of Council's propaganda, where's the outrage? where's the anger?-Ed)...well I don't know about anger, but it is indeed an unquestioning reproduction of Council's misinformation...(this is a disgraceful joke! page 19 and nothing but dross! outrageous!-Ed)...yep...anyhoos, it's apparently in this weeks The Border Watch, but I ain't seen that yet, so I'll get back to ya's with that stuff...

I'm gunna' pull stumps here, but I guarantee there's a whole lot more to come on this issue...bottom-line, MGCC has knowingly and willingly and wantonly and deceitfully acted to destroy the Turner's cafe-based business, and are openly continuing to act to destroy the other part of the Turner's business, the Aquifer Tours...please remember to check-out that ABC South East Radio interview before it gets deleted...

Tomorrow: Maybe Scott 'Scombover' Morrison's Latest Photo-Ops Propaganda

 

Maybe more about this MGCC Aquifer Tours bastardry, whatevs...I'll just make the rather obvious observation that corruption such as we witness with MGCC, that sort of Institutionalised Corruption occurs on such a vast scale not just 'cos they've got ICAC protecting them, and they know it, but also because this is the standard set by a criminally corrupt Federal Liberal/National government...(and they know that too, and it emboldens and even encourages similar levels/types of corruption-Ed)...mate, that is exactly what's happening...

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