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Responsibility

I am not a Muslim and am therefore not responsible for the actions of violent extremists who are Muslims according to Rupert Murdoch. I am however:
Male - but not held responsible for more than one woman a week being murdered in Australia by her current or former partner.
Of Irish-Catholic ancestry - but not held responsible for centuries of sectarian violence in that country.
White - but not held responsible for the dispossession and extermination of indigenous Australians by other white people.

Merry Christmas Australia.

In what we can only hope is his final piss-take for the year, Tony Abbott has announced a cabinet reshuffle. The big news is that Scott "shoot first and refuse to answer questions later" Morrison has finally been given the opportunity to bully, intimidate and extort some genuine Aussies for a change. Morrison has been given the job of Social Services minister. Social Services is a tough gig in the Abbott government, requiring a level of meanness and insanity that even Kevin Andrews wasn't considered up to.

A Star Is Born

A Star is Born.

Christmas letters from Canberra

Dear Santa,

You may have misinterpreted some of the things I’ve said this year but that's not my fault. I have always told the truth. This year I have taken responsibility for fixing everything. Anything that isn’t working perfectly now is all Labor’s fault. This Christmas I would like the same as last year; a new bike and, when I come back from my skiing holiday, a bushfire with lots of photo opportunities.

Tony. Age: Mid-twenties

Dear Santa,

The economy you gave me for Christmas last year isn’t working. Can I have another one please?

Capitalist mathematics

85 = The richest people on the planet whose combined wealth is greater than the poorest 3.5 billion

80% = The portion of the world’s population who live on less than $10 per day

3 billion = The number of people who live on less than $2.50 per day

1.3 billion = The number of people who live on less than half that amount

1 billion (47.6%) = The number (and proportion) of children living in poverty

22,000 = The UN estimate of how many children die each day due to malnutrition and preventable diseases

Don't force taxpayers to fund what they don't consent to!

"Will it be left to critics of the ABC to launch a crowdfunding campaign, so that the ABC can be funded by its supporters rather than taxpayers? Why shouldn't ABC supporters put their money where their mouth is? How can they object to that?
Free the ABC from government! and Don't force taxpayers to fund what they don't consent to!"
- Gina Rinehart on Facebook today.

Royal Commissions and Entitlement

Governments make laws but it is the legal system which interprets those laws. Our rights are protected not by the Government but by a legal system that attempts to protect our rights by ensuring those laws are applied equally and fairly to all. So a look at how Governments treat the legal system in this country is a good look at what they think of the people they govern.

The New Security Regime in Australia

Late on Thursday night the National Security Legislation Amendment Bill (No. 1) 2014 was passed by the Senate without debate or scrutiny.

Our New Ally

Introducing Saudi Arabia, our new ally in the War on Terror. Last month Saudi Arabia publicly beheaded 23 people for crimes including possession of hashish, adultery, sedition, blasphemy, apostasy, sorcery and witchcraft. About half of all people executed in Saudi Arabia are foreigners. Saudi courts, which are held in closed session, found a number of people sentenced to death were mentally unfit, but executed them anyway. Not that those courts are usually required.

Defending Our Way of Life

Last week while 800 police officers were engaged in the largest police raid in Australian history, the Gold Coast council voted 10 to 5 against the proposal to build a Mosque in Currumbin. A number of councillors who had originally supported the proposal said they had changed their vote after receiving death threats. One female councillor, Chris Robbins was also threatened with pack rape.

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