Dignity. Rights. Education.

Guest Author Uncategorized

Thanks to Jaycee for this excellent thread-starter … which I only edited a tiny bit …

(Image Credit: Kalanchoe sp, Freedom Bells)

I have put this piece up without ANY editing for syntax, grammar or clarity of structure. I accept there are some typos, there are grammatical gaffes and some weakness in layout etc. I do this not because I am proud of my grammatical failings, they will always be there, my lousy education guarantees THAT! I do this because it must be realized that there are many who would like to contribute, to post articles, but are sometimes a tad awed by the prospect of judgement not on their opinions, but on their writing. There are many who do post here with admirable skill more accomplished than myself … Ian, GD, Fiona, BB, Aguirre, Kambah Mick, Puff, Leone2, Janice, and others (and I apologise for missing any, but you and we know you!) but I feel there are others who lurk here and who post commentary that would have bloody good yarns and stories to tell. I myself left high school after the second year to go into trade and never sat for another academic exam till my forty sixth year … and then it was touch and go! And THIS TOO is the Labor story … that those who have worked their way through life, perhaps raised a family, developed a trade, profession or business or are on PAYE employment, can draw from their own experiences and pass them on to a listening audience without fear of ridicule and rest assured that what they do pass on will be woven also into the Greater Labor story.

Death by a Thousand Cuts: Living by a Simple Philosophy

Or: “Old Ideas, New Australians”

(Image Credit: Fairfax)

1983 … Business … of Survival

With the Death of Richard, I must now manage alone, on one pension.

The house seems in good condition. No large account, only the small loan I had taken out, which finishes in June 1985. Must try not to take out anymore loans, to [sic] much drain on my low income.

I must try to live on produce from garden, with eggs to help out.

Try to cut down on weekly food bills, most of all on meat.

The animals take quite a lot (money) for food, reg, etc.

As the fowls are all getting old, must breed up some new hens.

That was from an aged pensioner’s diary … sure, we know she was not going to die of hunger or homelessness – or do we? She certainly was afraid of some vague uncertainty … and therein lies the simple truth:
A lifetime of habit, creates a certainty of belief a moment of uncertainty doubts a lifetime of belief.

For that lady, her entire life was constructed around hard work … the old-age pension that Labor and the unions put in place gave her a measure of security so she could live out her final years in dignity. That is a word well worth praising: Dignity. Let’s put that up there at the top of the page of Labor principles.

DIGNITY

(Image Credit: Ex-ceed)

And damn if a person who applies their person to contribute toward the social betterment of their family, friends and neighbours for their working life, they are denied that most basic of respects: Dignity! and it only comes from others who have walked that same path. The speculator, always on the make, always on the lookout for the next “win”, the next “deal”, has neither wish nor capacity for dignity … he has traded it away with a Faustian deal with capital … no need to look to him for a “fair go”, his motto is “Opportunity” … but does he seriously believe that if HE did not exist, there would be no work to do?

(Actually, the name that lady called her late husband was not quite correct … you see, his name really was Riccardo. He was an Italian … SHE was born in Australia of Irish / Cornish stock – now, THERE’S a mix! But you know, it is not at all uncommon – of the three sisters in that lady’s family, after the war, one married an Italian, one married a German (third generation Australian) and the third a Polish man. This idea that we are just lately become a multicultural nation is not true. For many years there has been intermarriage in the community … sure, the surnames may be Anglo, but there is mixed ethnicity in the family somewhere, and we should be proud of this … love knows no boundaries, children know no race.)

I keep hearing this catch-cry: ”What does Labor stand for?” To my mind, Labor stands for what it was raised for a simple measure of dignity … in work, in leisure, in the fair go for all people. I remember when I was about ten years old, with my older brother, selling newspapers at the Royal Show. The manager would allocate you so many papers for the day, you’d sell them, putting all the coins into a leather bag at your hip and at the end of the day, you’d give the bag over to that manager. He’d count out what you owed for the papers and any over (you’d get tips, but most times didn’t have the time to separate the tip from the coinage) incl’ tips he’d give back to you along with your pay. But there was this one big bastard manager one year, who’d keep back most of your tips. My older brother, being a stroppy sort of young fellow, challenged him (my brother was canny enough to keep a careful watch on his tips) and the manager got angry, saying, ”If you don’t like the way I do things, you can get off with yourself!” … and THAT included me. So a thirteen and a ten year old couple of kids get cheated by an unscrupulous manager (News Limited, by the way!) – nothing new, neither then nor now! .McDonald’s do it all the time – it’s called cheap labour – but to cheat kids … what sort of people are these? Vermin who steal the rights of their fellows. Labor with the unions, stand up for those rights Let’s put that up on the list.

RIGHTS

(Image Credit: Right Now)

And damn if a person applies their advantageous position to cheat even paper-boys … what sort of bastards are we up against? And they ask what does Labor stand for? Labor stands for what it was raised to stand for … the Rights of the everyday people to stop the vermin from ripping off the wages of ALL people and to bestow on ALL of us what Gough Whitlam called for and what Labor calls for now: “A fair go”.

Labor must think carefully before they pass these new “security laws” put up by Brandis. They are not to protect us from “terrorism”, but are deliberately being put in place to track and control our own citizens … it is as obvious as the nose on your face. There has to be a measure of restraint in how far we go to cow and threaten the populace. There has to be a measure of dignity and rights in our confrontation of any threat. Better we offer safe harbour to the majority of whom have been driven from their homelands in fear of their lives or livelihood, like those three men-folk above, than attempt to cow and oppress a minority for little more than their own particular culture.

Now read these comments and tell me they are irrelevant today:

As rivers glisten in different colours, but a common sewer everywhere looks like itself, so the all-powerful rule of capital ruined the middle class, raised trade and corporate agriculture to the highest prosperity, and ultimately led to a – hypocritically whitewashed – moral and political corruption of the nation.”

And:

“The leisure class lives by the industrial community rather than in it. Its relations to industry are of a financial rather than an industrial kind. Admission to the class is gained by exercise of the financial aptitudes—aptitudes for acquisition rather than for serviceability. There is, therefore, a continued selective sifting of the human material that makes up the leisure class, and this selection proceeds on the ground of fitness for financial pursuits.”

Both the above pieces are over one hundred years old The first by Theodor Mommsen on ancient Rome, the second by Thorsten Veblen on post-Victorian capitalism … yet they could both have been written today. Why is it that such rational observations go unheeded in our society? I read such and take them in and use them (as you see here) as moral and ethical fodder in my own life. Where do we see such civilized observations used widely? I don’t know! I don’t hear or see it in everyday life! Where is the scholarly debate among political higher learning in this nation? Education abandoned – that’s where. Let’s put that word up there too

EDUCATION

(Image Credit: Workforce Planning Tools)

And damn if the multitude of tomes of wisdom that have been written in the tears of humanity over millennium get abandoned for stupid, facile, quick-fix slogans. What sort of people are these who, flaunting their higher education, claim the high ground of public debate, yet cannot or will not learn from history and will not read from the wisdom of the ages? There are those who cannot claim education beyond the third year high school, who read and revere such books … their shelves a proud display of well-thumbed volumes. And some ask what should Labor stand for? Education … Labor stands for what it was raised for – Education for ALL peoples – not the abandonment of an age of learning but education.

The many different ethnic groups that come to these shores, from the earliest to the latest, have one goal in mind: ”Betterment” of their family fortunes, their security and their children’s education. It is that simple … sure ( and I mean no disrespect, only metaphor) they brought their metwurst and salami and tabouli and prayers with them – that is their immediate security – we all take a bit of “home” when we go on holiday. When one is driven in haste and fear from one’s house, what would YOU grab? a piece, any piece of home? That is what “culture “ is … a little piece of the past to carry with oneself into the future. In the worst case, it could be but a poem, a prayer, a song from the motherland … in the best case it is the family. How can one reject the call of assistance – not charity – assistance to a family in need and still shelter under the common name of humanity?

So there are the players, there are the situations … we know what the problems are today … what can be the solution?

Check this little piece from a short story by Eric Knight; see if it gives you ideas:

Never Come Monday

The Prime Minister thought of a lot of things all at once. Suddenly he called his secretary and said:

“Carrington-Smaithe. It is Sunday to-day, I hear, and it will be Sunday again tomorrow. Pack my things. We’re going away for the weekend.”

“But sir,” said the secretary “What about the international crisis? We have two ultimatums that must be answered immediately.”

“Dear me”, said the Prime Minister. “That is a nuisance, but all the world knows the British weekend is inviolate, and if this be Sunday, as it seems to me it must be, then I won’t be able to answer till the weekend is over.”

“But when will it stop being Sunday, sir?”

“Well, Carrington-Smaithe, how long will it take our fastest cruiser squadron to get around to that troublesome part of the world?”

“Oh, about thirty-six more hours, sir.”

“Hmmmph! Then I think it will stop being Sunday in about thirty-six more hours.”

There is a secret desire in that little piece of the realization of reality (it is well worth a read, by the way), a desire that is really a need for time off from work. But it can be more than that … it can be the barricade between capital demand and producer compliance, a demarcation line between demand and supply. I have never liked sacrificing my weekends for overtime, ever! Damn their work! No-one should be compelled to work on the weekend, and if they must, as in the emergency services then they ought to be suitably – VERY SUITABLY – rewarded. Work will be around a long time after we are ALL dead and gone! And there can be the solution to differentiating Labour from Capital … the inviolate weekend the compulsory time off for R & R. For as long as one stays healthy, one can always earn money … but time is of the essence. You will run out of time before you run out of money. Take the time; screw the money – let capital know it has no price for your free time. And they still ask what Labor stands for … Labor stands for what it was raised for … honouring the eight hour day or its modern equivalent, honouring “family time”, personal time, resting time. Those who would try to reduce the vulnerable to a kind of 24hr. slavery would love to claim ownership of the whole of our weekend … bugger them! They can’t have it!

The solution is that WE who are the producers, the consumers, the life and breath of business, take control of our working lives. WE draw a demarcation line between being compelled to work and a time for life. WE stop the machine for a pause in production so we can enjoy our family and friendships. I say WE take back our lives and deny the vermin their pound of flesh! It has never been the speculator who physically laid the “foundations”, never the stock-broker who mixed the “mortar”, never the wealthy who carried the hod of bricks to build our house. They don’t own it, they don’t own us – they OWE us!

THAT is Labor policy: Dignity, Rights, Education – and what flows automatically from those simple entitlements. Stake your ground, claim your rights and serve your people.

“The quality of mercy is not strain’d.
It droppeth as the gentle rain from heaven
Upon the place beneath. It is twice blest:
It blesseth him that gives and him that takes.”

683 thoughts on “Dignity. Rights. Education.”

  3. Trafford is home, his tail wagging and feeling his old self. He has to go back tomorrow where the vet place has told me I have to either cough up with $795 or have all the docs so i can apply for Vet Pay, one of the bloodsuckers, imo, who get people into credit contracts at a time of great vulnerbility. The advice that I could get the money from son in England in a few days cut no ice. Cash or Vet Pay with 20% deposit and god knows what terms. My Mum has been going to that vet for 25 yrs and me for three.

  5. I just went to the website. Nowhere can I find an interest rate but by inputting to their calculator I get this.

    Total treatment cost $800
    less deposit paid to vet $160
    Total on VPay. $640

    26x fortnighly payments of $32.10
    Total payment $874.32

    Can someone work out the interest rates etc. I have a headache and can’t deal with it.

    And is it 874.32 + 160? I assume so. I will search their website more for answers.

  6. Leone..those “fashionista pics”…I must warn you, I am going to report you for displaying terrorist material!…then I will report Abbott for concealing “small arms” for terrorist activity!

  10. That does it!

    I am going to put in an official complaint to the boss.

    No more photo’s of (ugh! I can’t even type his name let alone speak it aloud) you know who should ever be posted on this site.

    Who’s with me folks, register your disgust and with a bit of people power we can get the mods to behave themselves.

  12. http://www.themandarin.com.au/5022-federal-icac-proposed-tackle-commonwealth-corruption/

    http://www.crikey.com.au/2014/10/01/should-labor-have-backed-clives-war-on-campbell/

    http://www.abc.net.au/news/2014-10-01/twomey-inquiry-into-the-queensland-government/5783010

    http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2014/09/140927-largest-cave-china-exploration-science/

    http://www.nationalgeographic.com/china-caves/

  15. Ctar1
    i can do one-up-manship on that.

    My Mum lives just a couple of blocks down the same road as the Adelaide “Body in the Barrels” house. One man, who used to roam the street picking up cans for the deposit, she used to see a few times a week in the street. He ended up in a barrel.

  16. The movie they made of that was one of the creepiest I have ever seen. There is some violence but it is more the psychological and group processes portrayed that are disturbing. Radicalised muslims have nothing on this true story,

    Abbott is no Bunting but the group processes I suspect are similar. Am I too harsh” i think not.
    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Snowtown_(film)

  21. This Pub has some of the most fantastic people I have never met. Truly without a doubt the most wonderful and kind hearted and sincere people I could ever call friends.

  22. GOCE reveals gravity dip from ice loss

    To paraphrase (rather than blockquote):

    GOCE is short for ‘Gravity field and steady-state Ocean Circulation Explorer’, a satellite being used by the European Space Agency (ESA) to measure the Earth’s gravity field. Its high-resolution measurement mean scientists can now look at changes in ice mass in small glacial systems – offering even greater insight into the dynamics of Antarctica’s different basins.
    They have found that the loss of ice from West Antarctica between 2009 and 2012 caused a dip in the gravity field over the region. Between 2011 and 2014, Antarctica as a whole has been shrinking in volume by 125 cubic kilometres a year.

    Maybe Maurice Newman would like to investigate that …

  23. puffy, sorry to hear about your vet issues, and I hope your furry friend makes a full recovery.
    The cost of vet care is one of the reasons that after I’ll not consider having another pet.

  26. Hi Puffy,

    Sorry to hear about your little dog. I do hope everything will be OK. Sometimes vets will allow you to pay them off if you make arrangements with them first.

    If the vet you are going to will not, perhaps try one of the others.

    Unfortunately though, these days it is all about the almighty dollar and not the animals.

    Hugs and best wishes to you and your little dog.

  27. PJF
    If you’re around.
    You mention John Galbraith & farming. You may be aware, he wrote a small book called “The Non Potable Scotch” about his childhood on a farm Good Galbraith wit.

  28. PuffyTMD, I hope your pup’s problems are dealt with soon, but the whole thing about paying up front is enough to consider pet health insurance …

    And if that bed were something other than digital, I couldn’t think of a more appropriate resting place for your esteemed repose *twinkle* (Gold, of course, is so much better than mere brass to sleep, on for a dragon that is)

  29. Good morning Dawn Patrollers.

    Abbott’s rhetoric seems to be wearing a bit thin inside Coalition ranks.
    http://www.smh.com.au/federal-politics/political-news/tony-abbott-expresses-support-for-parliamentary-burqa-ban-but-colleagues-do-not-20141001-10oqqb.html
    Peter Hartcher describes it as a failure of leadership.
    http://www.smh.com.au/federal-politics/political-opinion/tony-abbotts-cavein-to-divisive-policy-of-backbenchers-a-failure-of-leadership-20141001-10opbv.html
    Michelle Grattan says Abbott has fanned the debate he was trying to cool.
    https://theconversation.com/abbott-fans-the-burqa-debate-he-was-trying-to-cool-32390
    Jacqui Maley profiles the “burqa bashers”. And reckons it’s a diversion from the budget mess.
    http://www.smh.com.au/federal-politics/political-opinion/burqagate-serious-business-or-just-a-great-big-cover-up-20141001-10ot3j.html
    Paul Sheehan puts Abbott’s “apocalyptic death cult” into perspective. A good read.
    http://www.smh.com.au/comment/the-muslim-world-like-the-christian-world-is-complex-so-lets-get-some-context-20141001-10opsd.html
    Paying the price for ignoring Iraq warnings.
    http://www.theage.com.au/comment/paying-the-price-for-ignoring-iraq-warnings-20141001-10oeup.html
    Abbott’s bogus war narrative and his problem with history.
    http://www.independentaustralia.net/politics/politics-display/abbotts-bogus-war-narrative-and-his-problem-with-history,6954
    The terrorists win as new laws are passed.
    http://www.smh.com.au/comment/terrorists-win-under-new-spy-laws-20141001-10on9x.html
    Mark Kenny – Government in humiliating retreat with the budget.
    http://www.smh.com.au/federal-politics/political-news/government-in-humiliating-retreat-on-budget-20141001-10olsu.html
    Will Hockey now find even more vindictive budget savings in retaliation?
    http://www.smh.com.au/federal-politics/political-news/treasurer-joe-hockey-confirms-government-is-looking-for-new-savings-20141001-10ofir.html

  30. Section 2 . . .

    Laura Tingle says that Hockey is waving a red flag instead of a white flag. She begins the pay-walled article with “Even in politics, or perhaps especially in politics, just saying something over and over doesn’t make it true, or make it happen.”
    Stephen Koukoulas – Dodgy Brothers budget repair.
    http://thekouk.com/blog/abbott-and-hockey-dodgy-brothers-budget-repairs.html#.VCxsGvmSySo
    Department stores are copping it as real wages and consumer confidence fall. Keep talking Joe – you’re doing a great job!
    http://www.smh.com.au/business/poor-retail-sales-hit-department-stores-20141001-10omqc.html
    Are department stores losing their relevance?
    http://www.smh.com.au/business/you-shop-but-they-drop-why-department-stores-are-dragging-down-retail-20141001-10om9s.html
    For once Gerry Harvey gets it right.
    http://www.smh.com.au/business/gerry-harvey-brands-tax-avoidance-morally-wrong-20141001-10oph3.html
    The three worst things the Liberals did yesterday.
    http://www.ellistabletalk.com/2014/10/01/the-three-worst-things-the-liberals-did-yesterday-74/
    How can dangerous fools like Newman and Warburton continue to be tolerated and let off the hook?
    http://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2014/oct/01/tony-abbott-adviser-bureau-meteorology-warming-inquiry
    The downward spiral of “our” ABC.
    http://www.smh.com.au/federal-politics/political-news/abc-retains-lateline-but-axe-looms-on-tv-radio-20141001-10outl.html
    A nice Christmas Island welcoming message from a hand-picked Administrator – a youthful Barry Hasse. Remember him?
    http://www.smh.com.au/federal-politics/political-news/new-christmas-island-chief-barry-haase-to-asylum-seekers-its-your-own-fault-20141001-10ot16.html
    Last night Mrs BK and I pulled out of our planned trip to Turkey next year. Here’s one of the reasons.
    http://www.smh.com.au/world/turkey-vows-to-fight-islamic-state-coalition-strikes-near-border-20141002-10oy0a.html
    David Leyonhjelm pays the piper after donations from Big Tobacco.
    http://www.smh.com.au/federal-politics/political-news/phillip-morris-donated-to-liberal-democrat-senator-david-leyonhjelm-20141001-10oux4.html

  31. Section 3 . . .

    Clive Palmer gets a slap on the wrist and detention from the ASX.
    http://www.smh.com.au/business/mining-and-resources/asx-suspends-clive-palmers-australasian-resources-over-missing-accounts-20141001-10ooim.html
    Elizabeth Farrelly is less than impressed with Sydney’s new Opal card.
    http://www.smh.com.au/comment/opal-card-makes-public-transport-harder-less-fun-and-more-expensive-20141001-10oip1.html
    James Hird will get the boot today as Essendon announces that they will not appeal last month’s Federal Court decision.
    http://www.theage.com.au/afl/afl-news/james-hird-facing-the-axe-at-thursday-board-meeting-20141001-10ot99.html
    Be careful Clive for what you wish for.
    https://newmatilda.com/2014/10/01/careful-what-you-wish-clive
    Pat Campbell looks at Palmer’s Senate inquiry into Newman.
    http://www.smh.com.au/photogallery/federal-politics/cartoons/pat-campbell-20120213-1t21q.html
    Some more cartoons from Fairfax. There are five of them to flick through.
    http://www.theage.com.au/photogallery/national/cartoons-for-thursday-october-2-20141001-3h2e2.html
    MUST SEE! David Rowe on the burqa threat to Parliament House.
    http://www.afr.com/p/national/cartoon_gallery_david_rowe_1g8WHy9urgOIQrWQ0IrkdO

  32. CK Watt

    (From last night) I back your protest to the boss, if he gives you trouble just let me know and I’ll put my 2 bob’s worth in.

    Puffy
    When Kira got ill, our vet let us pay our bill off. In fact we were still paying it off when Hunter had his mishap with tablets, and we just put it on the account. I reckon we will have paid it all of in another month or so. We are very lucky.

    BK

    Sorry to hear you will have to cancel your trip next year. I’m sure you’ll work out somewhere else to go that will be relatively safe.

  35. ” Laura Tingle says that Hockey is waving a red flag instead of a white flag. She begins the pay-walled article with “Even in politics, or perhaps especially in politics, just saying something over and over doesn’t make it true, or make it happen.”..”

    Well it did work with the MSM. once!!

  37. I suspect, we can’ go into Iraq boots and all yet, because we can’t claim legitimacy, like those other countries that have actually been targeted on their home soil by a terrorist conspiracy….that’s why, I suspect, Abbott has got the SS and his Gestapo running from house to house ringing doorbells trying to find some sort of “terris” conspiracy…so he can point his pinky and flap his ears and yell…: “AHA!!”

    I heard on some channel ..I forget which..that Abbott’s got our fly-boys dropping leaflets over ISIS territory, demanding they surrender “or else”…well…that WAS the idea…trouble is, someone put the wrong leaflet box in the Hercules and they were dropping last election LNP. how to vote for Bronwyn Bishop cards !……the word “on the ground” is that it must be some sort of joke!..” What sort of idiot would vote for these bastards?” one seasoned performer was heard to ask.

  38. ” BK

    Sorry to hear you will have to cancel your trip next year. I’m sure you’ll work out somewhere else to go that will be relatively safe. ”

    I hear springtime in Tierra Del Feugo is quite pretty…

  40. Tone has a bit of a problem before he can drop his bombs of humanitarianism on IS. The Iraq president has said that he only wants the international coalition to drop bombs, not any one country off its own bat. Mesma and Tone are still hanging out from the call from Mr Obama to get going. With any luck, that call will never come.

  41. Did I hear truffles say the words “a levy on broadband” ? Dunno what it was about as the radio was on when I came inside and I heard (or thought I heard) truffles utter the words – didn’t have time to stop and listen as I was answering a call of nature! Is a great big new tax on the cards as part of the HoJo’s new budget measures ?

  42. Puffy,
    Good you are planning to give your rip-off vet the flick. We’ve got one of those here but are lucky enough to have another vet clinic which provides excellent service at much cheaper prices. Their over-the-counter animal meds are also much cheaper.

  43. This little black duck

    Abbott’s without being asked can send “humanitarian bombers” half way around the world in a trice. However when asked for real humanitarian assistance in Africa to help fight Ebola Abbott says we cannot send even a single person, not even a Nationals MP. Meanwhile dirt poor Cuba have sent 400 medical staff to assist.

  46. Ebola – time to start worrying.

    Man diagnosed with Ebola virus in US was sent home for two days
    http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/oct/01/ebola-case-diagnosed-us-officials-texas-virus?CMP=ema_1731

    How many people were infected in the four days before this man was diagnosed? Could he be ‘patient zero’ in a US outbreak?

    There’s more.
    Saudi Arabia plans for Ebola as millions visit for hajj pilgrimage
    http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/oct/01/saudi-arabia-ebola-hajj-pilgrimage?CMP=ema_1731

    Meanwhile, our government has cut funding for the only Australian research into this disease.
    http://www.smh.com.au/technology/sci-tech/csiro-cuts-researchers-at-high-containment-laboratory-20140814-1043l5.html

  47. Tony’s mob doesn’t give a damn about the rest of the world and anybody in it. All they say and do is for local consumption and for the enrichment of them and their cronies at the expense of the rest.

  49. Currently rather unwell & not following much.
    But can someone explain Abbott’s slow, very slow progression toward actually doing something for good or ill in Iraq? Other countries said they’d drop bombs & stuff & they did. Whereas every day we in Oz are told that tyre pressures have been checked, someone’s spoken to someone else, the pilots have been given their maps, whatever.
    I think it’s just that Abbott & the media are milking every instant for what they can. But are there formalities of engagement that only apply to us?

  50. BSA Bob, as with most of the rhetoric surrounding Abbott and his delusions, it is always better to stand back and let other people’s sons and daughters take the heat. After all it would be a quinticential “shit happens” moment if one of our fighters was killed while defending the government from budget coverage!

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