This is absolutely priceless.
As seen on ABC TV with Kerry O’Brien, John Clarke and Brian Doyle.
The right to remain silent must not be changed or challenged. This is one of the basic tenets of Criminal Law. It stands right along side the presumption of innocence until proven guilty beyond reasonable doubt.
QANTAS is in the news again with its decision to lay-off more Australian staff and send those jobs off-shore, in a blatant cost-cutting measure. In my on-line search to find information to confirm this decision, I found this (edited) article and book which looks at “The Men Who Killed QANTAS” by Matthew Benns
The foundation for the grounding of the entire QANTAS fleet for the first time in the airline’s history was laid years ago. QANTAS CEO Alan Joyce, an Irish/Australian science graduate from the University of Dublin, worked for Aer Lingus for 8 years. He left to join Ansett Australia until he was appointed as CEO of Jetstar Australia. He was groomed as Geoff Dixon’s natural successor and the ideal candidate to see the work Dixon began through to fruition. Let us not forget that Dixon was the main cheerleader for an $11 billion debt-fuelled buyout in 2006 that would have put Qantas to the wall when the GFC hit. The shareholders vetoed the deal.
When the board backed Alan Joyce for the top job over 36 year QANTAS veteran John Borghetti it was effectively backing Dixon’s vision that had already begun with the use of cut price flight attendants from Thailand and New Zealand. Today there is a strong question mark over whether the airline picked the right man. Borghetti has gone on to take the helm of Virgin Australia, which is quickly filling the gap QANTAS has left for a quality airline the nation can be proud of.
QANTAS is currently locked in a battle to the death with its own workforce. Joyce clearly believes the only way forward is to base the workforce offshore to lower costs – Australian jobs will be lost but QANTAS will be able to compete on the same playing field as rivals such as Singapore Airlines and Cathay Pacific. Such a strategy comes with a massive cost. When a Rolls-Royce engine on flight QF 32 exploded over Singapore on the eve of the airline’s 90th anniversary it was the quick thinking of the pilot that saved the lives of the 440 passengers on board. Seasoned former RAAF and experienced pilot Richard Champion De Crespigny overrode the new Airbus A380s computers to safely land the plane. Alan Joyce hailed him a hero. But all that is quickly and unfortunately forgotten in his race to cut costs and put cheaper crews in the cockpit of Australian aircraft. Ask any passenger and there is no question that they want a well paid, seasoned QANTAS veteran in the cockpit when things go wrong.
QANTAS is more than a business. It is The Australian airline, with a long and proud history. It is perhaps unfortunate that Joyce does not seen to understand that principle, but then again he is Irish! QANTAS founder Hudson Fysh was a committed champion of pilots in the mould of Richard De Crespigny. What would Fysh have thought of the grounding of the fleet and the moves to send the workforce offshore simply to cut costs? There is no substitute for quality, and quality costs! Costs and safety are inversly proportional! The less you spend on maintenance, inspections and quality control, the greater the negative impact on safety. QANTAS has an enviable safety record in that it has never had a fatal accident. No other airline can claim that! Maybe under Jocye’s watch that will change.
Some may see this post as an advertisement for the book. It is certainly not so, the book rather supports a view that I have had about the (mis)management of QANTAS for some time. I have ordered the book and I will look forward to reading it to expand my view and knowledge on this subject. The book is available through Random House Books Australia.
I came across this post at Doohan It This Way in which Andrew make reference to an article by Phillip Blond which makes excellent reading. I would invite you follow the links.
This was my comment to him:
After reading the article, I’m left with the feeling that the ideal that Burns is suggesting however admirable, I’m just not sure that it’s achievable! My gut tells me we’re likely for a lot more of the same old, same old. Australians (and Americans, for that matter) are very reluctant to go outside the two party system. And with that in mind, look who you’ve got to choose from…..the “Bird from Barry” or “Billy Big-Ears!” Australian politics will be down in the gutter for some time to come. We also really need to lose the preferential voting system. Only in Australia is it possible that the vote you gave to candidate X will actually go to candidate Y. Political bankruptcy? I see it more as political “amorality!”
German politicians from across all political parties in the Bundestag have reacted angrily to warnings by Italy’s Mario Monti that German control over EU debt policies threatens to bring about the breakdown of the Eurozone.
“We must make it clear to Mr Monti that we Germans will not shut down our democracy to pay Italian debts,” said Alexander Dobrindt, secretary-general of Bavaria’s Social Christians (CSU).
Bundestag president Norbert Lammert said Italy’s unelected prime minister is playing with political fire by trying to circumvent democratic legitimacy.
The dispute comes as relations between Germany and Italy touch the lowest ebb since the Second World War, with Il Giornale publishing a front-page picture of Chancellor Angela Merkel under the headline “Fourth Reich”.
“The tone of the debate has turned dangerous. We must be careful that Europe does not rip itself apart,” said German foreign minister, Guido Westerwelle. He stated that he was “categorically” against further expansion of the EU rescue machinery or bond purchases by the European Central Bank. “I can’t imagine that a majority of the Bundestag will back unlimited debt liabilities,” he said.
The outburst leaves it unclear whether Germany will agree to activate the eurozone rescue fund (EFSF) on acceptable terms if Spain and Italy request bail-outs, the political trigger needed for ECB bond purchases under the “Draghi Plan”. Mrs Merkel and her finance minister Wolfgang Schauble back ECB action but could face a revolt within her coalition as a result.
An Italian newspaper owned by former prime minister Silvio Berlusconi has caused controversy by printing a front page headline which said ‘Fourth Reich’ above a picture of German chancellor Angela Merkel.
The picture in newspaper Il Giornale also showed Chancellor Merkel raising her right arm in salute, a gesture associated with the Nazi salute used by Hitler’s followers. The article, which was published on Friday, has heightened a bitter war of words between Italy and Germany over the handling of the ongoing Euro crisis.
The picture in newspaper Il Giornale – owned by former prime minister Silvio Berlusconi, showed Chancellor Merkel raising her right arm in a “salute”, a gesture more associated with Hitler’s followers, according to the Italians. To me this is more like a hand raised in agreeance to a decision or motion, or even a wave at a another person. A salute? No!
From my limited knowledge of Italian, the emotive headline reads this way:
“The no of Merkel and Germany will bring us and Europe to it’s knees. Their oversight is dumb: They did not understand Draghi.
“The Crisis seen by Berlin”
“The Germans saviours of the Euro? Italy spends more on macaroni!”
The angry article attacked tough talking Chancellor Merkel saying that her uncompromising position had brought ‘us and Europe to its knees’ adding that ‘Italy is no longer in Europe but in the Fourth Reich.’
It went on to say: “In the First Reich, Germany wanted the title Emperor of Rome and in the next two they used their might against the states of Europe, with two world wars and millions of dead, but this was not enough to quieten German egomania. Once again it has surfaced, but this time not with the use of cannon, this time it’s their control of the Euro.”
‘The Germans believe the Euro is theirs and we have to submit, surrender, hand ourselves over to the new Kaiser Angela Merkel who wants to rule our house.’
It is not the first time that Il Giornale has been at the centre of controversy with Germany – two months ago after Italy beat Germany in the Euro 2012 semi final, they printed a picture of Chancellor Merkel below the headline: ‘Ciao, ciao culona’ which when translated means “Bye bye lard arse.”
Germany has accused Italy over the mishandling of the ongoing Eurozone crisis and accusing Rome of not doing enough to get its finances in order to resolve the single currency problem which has been dragging on for two years. The Italians, much like the Greeks, have become accustomed to a certain life style often referred to as La dolce vita (the sweet/good life), and thus openly resent German “interference” in the Italian lifestyle and economy. They would overtly resist any impostion of austerity measures in a similar way to the Greeks. In this author’s opinion, the German economy is one of the few in Europe with strength and robustness. The Germans can rightly feel that they are supporting the rest of Europe. Will it result in the disintegration of the Eurozone? That is unlikely, but it remains to be seen.
Source: Il Giornale
Virgin Australia was today widely criticised after a Sydney fireman was asked to swap seats because he was sat beside two unaccompanied boys.
After having to defend its policy, the airline this afternoon announced via Twitter that it was reviewing its stance. “In light of recent feedback, we’re now reviewing this policy. Our intention is certainly not to discriminate in any way”, a Virgin spokesperson said today. The spokesperson also stated that the policy was shared by QANTAS, Jetstar and Air New Zealand.
A Virgin spokeswoman said the policy was shared by Qantas, Jetstar and Air New Zealand.
This polcy shift occurred after Johnny McGirr, 33, took his allocated seat. He found that he was seated next to two boys who he estimated to be aged between 8 and 10. Mr McGirr was assigned the window seat, but sat in the aisle seat to allow the two boys to look out the window.
However, just before takeoff, a flight attendant approached him, asking him to move. When Mr McGirr asked why, he was told, “Well you can’t sit next to two unaccompanied minors.” The flight attendant said it was airline policy. Mr McGirr replied “That’s pretty sexist and discriminatory. You can’t just say because I’m a man I can’t sit there,” the flight attendant apologised and said that was the policy.
Mr McGirr stated the attendant then asked a fellow female passenger, “Can you please sit in this seat because he is not allowed to sit next to minors?”
“After that I got really embarrassed because she didn’t even explain why. I just got up and shook my head a little, trying to get some dignity out of the situation,” Mr McGirr said.
“It strips away all the good that any male does regardless of his standing in society, his profession or his moral attitudes”
Mr McGirr pointed out that he works as a fireman in Newtown in Sydney and was trusted in his job to look out for the welfare of children.
It fails to amaze this author why this “policy” was not applied a little more covertly. Virgin knows through its booking system when unaccompanied minors are flying with them. When seat allocation is done, surely the system can identify those minors, and allocate seating accordingly. Virgin Australia, however noble the intent cannot publically vilify a member of the public that they appear to have done on this occasion. One also has to question whether Twitter is the ideal or appropriate method to release such a policy statement.
You are invited to participate in the poll below:
British Airways reversed its policy after being successfully sued for sex discrimination after a male passenger was reseated away from an unaccompanied child.
Source: Sydney Morning Herald
As a result of yet another mass murder in the United States, President Barack Obama’s solution to stem the ever increasing level of gun crime is to do some “soul searching” on ways to reduce gun crime in the US.
Soul searching? Yes, that will do it!
Americans can do all the soul searching they like, but this will NOT reduce gun crime. There is only one way to reduce gun crime and that is gun control!
However, it is clearly obvious that Americans are not interested in soul searching, or gun control, or any infringement of their “rights”. They remain deeply mistrusting of their government, public administrators, their neighbours, minorities (both racial and religious), and declare that they need weapons to protect themselves from these groups, and because the American “psyche” revolves around gun ownership and the use of violence to settle a score! Americans have already done all the “soul searching” they are going to do about gun ownership – none!
Americans want guns!
So they will soul search, procrastinate, deliberate, ponder, consider and generally do nothing, the Enemy Within will continue to carry out senseless acts of carnage against innocent citizens of the United States.
Gun crime is managed by gun control and minimising gun ownership – clear and simple!!
This is clearly evident when you consider gun ownership in Japan
Civilians can almost never own handguns.
There is no right to bear arms in Japan. In practical terms, and there is no right to privacy against police searches for weapons. Other Western-style rights designed to protect citizens from a police state are also non-existent or weak in Japan, and yet Japan could never be referred to as a police state.
There are reportedly 77 handguns in civilian possession in Japan, most of these being owned by registered sportsmen. The rate of registered firearms per 100 people in Japan is 0.32. Gun crime does occur in Japan, but in extremely low numbers. There were only 30 crimes committed in 1989 but these occurred with shotguns or air rifles. With no legal civilian handgun possession, Japan experiences in an average year less than 200 violent crimes perpetrated with a handgun, and these almost always are perpetrated by Boryokudan, an organised crime group. Most gun crimes involve the unlicensed possession of a handgun, and not the commission of crime. In the years after the Second World War, former US soldiers were the major source of illegal guns. Today, all illegal guns in Japan are smuggled from overseas (especially from the Philippines and the United States) by organised crime groups.
Robbery is almost as rare as murder. Indeed, armed robbery and murder are both so rare that they usually make the national news, regardless of where they occur. Japan’s robbery rate is 1.4 per 100,000 inhabitants. The reported American rate is 220.9. Yes that’s 220 times more frequent.
Source: David B Kopel
Japan is a clear example of how no gun ownership means no gun crime! There is surely a lesson to be learned from this?
“The death toll from small arms dwarfs that of all other weapons systems — and in most years greatly exceeds the toll of the atomic bombs that devastated Hiroshima and Nagasaki. In terms of the carnage they cause, small arms, indeed, could well be described as ‘weapons of mass destruction’.” — Kofi Annan, UN Secretary-General, March 2000
The Daily Telegraph today featured a story called “The Great Coach Poach” relating to how Australia’s greatest sporting coaches have guided overseas althletes to at least 14 gold medals in swimming, rowing, cycling and triathlon.
While these coaches are no doubt good at what they do, it is no doubt that the payment of lucrative salaries that are encouraging Australian coaches to takes their skills offshore.
Denis Cotterell is rumoured to have been paid $500,000 after Chinese swimmer Sun Yang won gold in the 1500m and 400m freestyle events. Ken Wood, another swimming coach, stated “China pays four times what I get from Australian swimmers” he said. He added, “It would frighten you if I told you the amount.”
The AOC deputy chef de mission, Kitty Chiller was reported as saying “We can’t deny them a livelihood. By allowing them to coach overseas athletes we are still getting the benefit from them.”
Shane Sutton is the personal coach of Tour de France winner Bradley Wiggins. Wiggins also won gold in the individual time trial at London 2012. Fellow Australian coach Tim Kerrison is also supporting the British Cycling Team.
The Telegraph quantified the “expat tally” this way:
- Cycling: Shane Sutton – 4 gold; Tim Kerrison – 1 gold
- Rowing: Paul Thompson – 3 gold; Tim McLaren – 1 gold
- Swimming: Ken Wood – 2 gold; Denis Cotterell – 2 gold
- Triathlon: Brett Sutton – 1 gold
Until Australian sport can offer salaries commensurate with those that can be earnt overseas, this sporting “brain drain” is set to continue and to the detriment of Australian sport.
When a team does poorly is customary to sack the coach or manager (or both)!
You will no doubt recall from my writings here, that the Australian swimming team has turned in its worst result in terms of medals won in 16 years. As a result the swimmers have been slammed by Australian commentators, by their fellow countrymen through the use of Twitter, and by their Swimming Australia bosses. Head coach Leigh Nugent offered this comment, “Most of our girls, the Aussie girls, are carrying too much weight”, when asked for an explanation.
So let’s sack the Swimming Australia heirarchy, and let’s put an administration in place who can put resources in place to assist, motivate and support the swim team to achieve the goals that they seek! Good idea?
Wrong! A Swimming Australia powerplay has rewarded its senior officials with contract renewals, which will ensure that they avoid blame and fallout as a result of poor performances in the pool at London 2012. CEO Kevin Neal was awarded a new five year contract on June 21, while there is a move afoot to change the Swimming Australia constitution to allow the president of SA, Mr David Urquhart, to serve in third term in office. Presidents up till now have been limited to two terms of office. Head coach Leigh Nugent had his contract renewed in March, which means of course that he will lead the team to the Rio Olympics in 2016.
The actions of Swimming Australia need to be examined, and the following points explained:
- Why the constitution of Swimming Australia needs changing? There is a reason why presidential terms are limited to two – to ensure impetus, performance, fresh ideas and so on!
- The failure of Swimming Australia to appoint a sports pychologist to accompany the Olympic team.
- The blaming of athletes performance by suggesting they have an “easy lifestyle” and of being overweight.
- The financial support of former champions to attempt comebacks.
- Why Australian coaching talent has been allowed to work with successful overseas teams – in times gone by that would have been seen as being treasonous – but these days, it’s all about the money!
It would have appeared to me that these contract renewals should have been considered AFTER the Olympics when the results were on table, when the contract renewals could be considered on their individual merits. Not so! It appears to the top stakeholders of Swimming Australia are trying to resist change and manipulate procedures, so they can stay ensconced in their positions of power with the financial rewards that go with the position.
So it’s more of the same from Swimming Australia. Expect them to continue to place blame on the athletes and the coaches, rather than examining their own performance. The athletes will continue to do their level best for themselves and for their country, but will be hindered by tired ideas from an administration working to their own agenda, rather than for excellence in the sport!
I continue to support the individual swimmers who have given their very best at the highest level of competition. It is unfortunate that they have been let down by their own administration, their media and their own counrtymen!
I have commented on this in earlier posts, as has my fellow blogger in Doohan It This Way. I am referring the amount of poor press that the Australian Olympic team has received from Australian sporting commentators. They have suggested that somehow Australia’s althetes have “failed”, “let their country down”, “disgraced the green and gold” and other terms of derision. As Australia’s “expected” haul of medals is ever decreasing, this criticism has gone into overdrive.
Now I read in The Daily Telegraph of August 4th, 2012, with a headline “Stoush over failures in pool”, that Australia’s swim boss Leigh Nugent has now blamed Australia’s poor performance in the pool as “the nation’s easy life”. When forced to offer an explanation for Australia’s worst swimming performance in 16 years, Nugent could only say “we live in society where people look for the easy way”. He went on the say that “most of our girls, the Aussie girls, are carrying too much weight”. Nugent also stated “We had a team of stars a few years, ago!”
I am personally disgusted that the head of the swim team has had the audacity to utter this absolute drivel. Australia has presented it’s best swimmers for these Games. If somehow they have not performed, it’s because they competed against faster swimmers from the US and China or wherever. There is no disgrace in being beaten at this level of competition. They have NOT failed, they have NOT let their country down and they have NOT disgraced the green and gold. Rather, they have simply done their best, given their all and should be applauded for doing just that.
In other sports, if a team does not win, they sack the coach/manager. Maybe that’s what is needed here!
In an associated story, London 2012 has been referred to as the “Twitter” Games with our athletes being subjected to repetitive and numerous vile and offensive Tweets. Emily Seebohm was particularly targeted for crying after her sliver medal performance in the 100m backstroke. Twitter has been described by a sports counsellor, Matt Bulcher, as “a poisonous medium where people for no reason fire off the most ascerbic barbs” He further suggested to athletes that they “leave Twitter alone”. He also warned athletes that “if you must go on Twitter, you must understand that there will be a lot of hatred directed towards you”.
What are we coming to as a society?
Words, By George! 