Scott Morrison and Stuart Robert presided over a gross policy failure that brutally harmed vulnerable Australians and cost the nation $1.2 billion in compensation. Yet they still have their jobs, writes Belinda Jones.
Source: Morrison and Robodebt-responsible ministers deserve to lose their jobs
![May be an image of text that says 'Australia COVID 2020 Total Cases 2021 2022 28,407 Reported Deaths 367,097 909 7,273,639 Number of Days 1,331 340 6,808 Cases Per Day 365 84 163 Deaths Per Day 1,006 2.7 44,623 3.6 The first 163 days of 2022. [Data from 11 June 2022, reported 12 June] 41.7 Credit to Prof Mary-Louise McLaws for the 2020 and 2021 data. Credit to https://covidlive.com.au/ for the 2022 data.'](https://scontent.fmel7-1.fna.fbcdn.net/v/t39.30808-6/285135563_4915512758558489_7972203965817793755_n.jpg?_nc_cat=111&ccb=1-7&_nc_sid=8bfeb9&_nc_ohc=0gbAbadDBY0AX85Y4nB&_nc_ht=scontent.fmel7-1.fna&oh=00_AT_xPHNBzDHZBkac2V5feNjhTTn-QPtM1YeV0qd2O21Lng&oe=62ABFD3F)
Aged-care residents are being forced to isolate in their rooms without visits from family members for “weeks on end” as COVID-19 rips through the sector. Government figures show more than 1100 aged-care homes are now battling active outbreaks, with 222 elderly residents dying of COVID-19 in the week to January 27. All the while homes are having to get by with fewer workers.
Source: Booster rollout questioned as COVID aged care outbreaks surge
Scott Morrison and Dominic Perrottet have shown a reckless disregard for the wellbeing of Australians in their questionable COVID strategy, writes Geoff Dyer.
Source: Morrison and Perrottet turn their backs on Australia’s COVID crisis
“When is a new covid variant good news? When you’re a pharma shareholder, obviously.”
Victoria’s anti-lockdown campaigners are spreading misinformation that people, including children, in Indigenous communities in the Northern Territory are being forcibly detained by the defence force and coerced into receiving the COVID-19 vaccines.
Source: COVID misinformation spreading about Aboriginal community lockdown
Austria has already “locked down” 2M unvaccinated
In Germany citizens would be required to provide proof of vaccination, a certificate of recovery, or a negative test to ride public transport on top of the existing rules around entering some venues and settings. The head of Germany’s disease control body, The Robert Koch Institute (RKI), warned the country faced a “serious emergency”. “We are heading into a serious emergency. We will have an extremely unpleasant Christmas if we do not act to stop this,” RKI president Lothar Wieler said. The resurgence of the virus has been blamed on the low vaccination rate, as well as waning immunity over time, which has prompted an urgent drive to boost jab levels.
Source: Fourth wave hits Germany ‘with full force’ as infections rise to all-time high
The United States has crossed the threshold of 700,000 Americans dead from COVID-19 according to data from Johns Hopkins University. Some 43 million Americans have contracted the deadly disease, which can have long-term health consequences.
Source: It isn’t Red COVID, it is Republican Necrophilia – Creepy Love of Death
But while many Australians have seen uniformed officers enforcing COVID restrictions as an overreach, especially in poor and culturally diverse communities, some Americans are more outraged than we are. Just as Australians don’t understand the American psyche when it comes to things like gun rights, many freedom loving Americans just do not get why most Australians have tolerated such harsh limits on their liberty during the pandemic. That’s despite the huge disparity in infection and death rates between the two countries.
Source: Zoe Daniel: Americans now think Australians are crazy
Despite lessons from Singapore, the UK, and others where public health is crashing despite 80-90% vaccination all that really matters to the LNP is they are wasting money on people and need the effen states to get out of their way. There is an election coming and they need some short term “seeming success” like Singapore initially did after they reached 80% vaccination of “all” their citizens. So who gives a fuck what happens in the long term as the election will have been done and dusted?
Meanwhile those individuals in real need of assistance or on the verge and teetering will be “stranded” but then they aren’t LNP votors or donors. Only those small businesses that don’t “snap back” will be coupled with those that were always at the bottom of the pecking order anyway. So, tough luck according to Frydenberg but he will have saved those organizations that pay the LNP to be the LNP and run their fiefdom Australia. Unfortunately the stock market has hit and iceberg before Frydenberg could save it a sign of worse things to come.
The federal government’s plan to cut off COVID-19 payments is partly to encourage states to open up faster and remove more rules, Treasurer Josh Frydenberg said, despite business and social groups warning lockdowns may continue beyond 80 per cent vaccinations.
Source: Treasurer says cutting COVID payments will encourage states to open faster
Email Twitter62 Facebook8.6k LinkedIn Print Scenes of protesters clad in hi-vis jackets and shouting anti-vaccination slogans have dominated the news this week.
As the ABC reported: Some of those gathered held a banner reading ‘freedom’, while others sang the national anthem and chanted ‘f*** the jab’. Some attacked union offices, drawing criticism from officials such as ACTU chief Sally McManus, who described the protests as being orchestrated “by violent right-wing extremists and anti-vaccination activists.” These images may shock some but for researchers like me — who research far-right nationalist and conspiracy movements, and explore the online spaces where these people organise — these scenes came as no real surprise.
Victorian Treasurer Tim Pallas says half of inspected construction sites failed COVID compliance checks Some of today’s protesters have identified as CFMEU members who do not want to be vaccinated Union secretary John Setka says “professional protesters” from the far-right were behind Monday’s violent demonstration
Source: Protesters march through Melbourne’s CBD in wake of construction industry shutdown – ABC News
Australia was in a world-leading position on managing COVID last year and squandered it.
And now continues to do so with small-minded, inward-looking debate while the world moves forward.
Fortress Australia is not just physical, in the form of all but closed borders, but mental and emotional, as we and our leaders choose to reinvent processes and debate that have already been had elsewhere.
Instead of taking advantage of international advances and knowledge that may allow us to accelerate towards normality, we choose to argue among ourselves.
Source: Zoe Daniel: How Australia squandered its world-leading pandemic position
“So, in New South Wales, as we continue to combat this in Sydney, what I want to say to those in Sydney is we’ve got to press on. We’ve got to continue to show that strength. We’ve got to continue to support each other. There are no easy solutions here. There are no silver bullets, just as there were not last year when Victoria went through their prolonged lockdown. This thing only gets beaten by suppressing it. Of course, vaccines can put wind at the back of those who are trying to achieve that outcome, and that’s what we have to do.”
If only we’d remembered to buy the vaccines, which are morphing here from a shot in the arm to a tailwind for those of us who are keen to stay alive or out of an ICU. If only we’d got them into peoples’ arms. We’ve had plenty of time to do both.
Spoiler alert: the day after his presser in which he publicly sends Gladys “Oliver” Berejiklian, who dares asks for more, away with an empty vax bowl, in another Oliver Twist (remember he played the Artful Dodger in his High School production, in 1982 – the PM or his fixer comes up with a solution. He has a secret stash of vaccine. Sceptics wonder if this just a virtual surplus vaccine derived by extending the Pfizer second shot from three to six weeks – against all medical advice.
(“I’d Do Anything” is the anthem of the resourceful pickpocket and street urchin). So well cast. Right on cue, The Dodger finds some more vaccine in a national stockpile that must have fallen down the back of the sofa – no- not that sofa. The next day.
As the learned Dr Sheep Devil Person aka Dr Jennifer Wilson tweets,
Morrison says he has “found” 280,000 Pfizer doses. But he couldn’t “find” anything when Queensland asked two weeks ago? Only the most vile person would play games with vaccines in this way.
The latest Essential poll last week showed people’s support of the government’s handling of the pandemic sliding nine points from 53% to 44%. And 30% of respondents described the government’s COVID strategy as poor, compared to 24% a month earlier.
The ‘gold standard’ state is in crisis We get so many COVID-related numbers thrown at us these days it can be eye-glazing. But these numbers demonstrated better than any others how the nature of the pandemic has morphed as much as the virus itself in the last couple of months. It’s no longer just about protecting old and vulnerable people. The chances that you will catch it from a casual contact are much higher. It’s a disease that is hitting people of every age, and hard. It’s not just a race to vaccinate the vulnerable groups — it’s a race to vaccinate everyone. Politically, too, it is morphing. The all-too-easy politics that seemed to flow from Victoria’s woes last year — the implicit message that it all came down to various forms of incompetence in one state — are also a thing of the past now that the “gold standard” state is in such a crisis. This isn’t just a shot at the fact the Prime Minister has put so much store on NSW Premier Gladys Berijiklean’s handling of the pandemic in her state until now. It is that so many more variables than tracing systems and hotel quarantine are now open to question, and set different political hares running. It is vaccine supplies and
Source: The NSW COVID outbreak shows the pandemic is morphing in many ways — politically, too – ABC News
After claiming “official” discussions with Pfizer had only started in December, Health Minister Greg Hunt has finally confirmed that the government met with Pfizer last July to discuss purchasing the Pfizer vaccine. Sources say Australia was given options for as many doses as needed to be delivered in January this year, yet government officials turned down the offer Callum Foote reports.
Source: Government’s “appalling” error, rejects offer of 40 million Pfizer doses in July 2020 – Michael West
Today we discovered that no-one knows how many aged care workers have been vaccinated.It seems that we do not know how many aged care workers had been vaccinated, as there seems to be no-one keeping track of who has received the vaccine, and who hasn’t. According to the Department of Health, work is now “underway” to survey aged care workers at the nation’s facilities (read: literally counting heads).
Source: There’s no record of vaccinated aged care workers – » The Australian Independent Media Network
The Morrison government has come under attack over “failed” quarantine arrangements and the sluggish pace of the national vaccine rollout as Victoria enters a seven-day “circuit breaker” lockdown. There is mounting concern the latest virus wave could have become “uncontrollable” with almost 30 cases in the Melbourne-based cluster. The acting Victorian premier, James Merlino, on Thursday pointed to vaccine delays and “aged care facilities where not one person has been vaccinated” as practical problems in managing the response. Both are the responsibility of the federal government. His Labor colleagues in Canberra declared the situation could have been avoided.
Maybe it’s wishful thinking to declare the pandemic over in the US, and presumptuous to conclude what lessons we’ve learned. So consider this a first draft.
Overwhelmed hospitals in India are begging for oxygen supplies as the country’s coronavirus infections soars again in a “tsunami” of disease, setting a world record for cases for the third consecutive day.
Source: In Delhi alone, COVID kills another Indian every 4 minutes
The intention of this post is to examine three areas of concern which have arisen or have persisted in concerning the world at large. They are: the COVID-19 pandemic; Climate Change; and Donald J. Trump. The focus will be on how these topics are presented in various arenas, including Murdoch media.
Three strikes out! – » The Australian Independent Media Network
This is garbage. It comes at the absolute worst point in the pandemic with an unprecedented surge in cases nationwide and with months ahead before the vaccine helps get us out of the pandemic. Millions are going hungry. And McConnell’s focus is on letting businesses get off scot-free for endangering, even killing, their employees. Oh, and free business meals. Because he is a fucking monster.
McConnell Poisons the Covid-19 Stimulus Negotiations Again with Cruelest Offering Yet | The Smirking Chimp
The Victorian Premier has become the biggest challenger to Morrison’s agenda in a national debate over the pandemic. While Andrews puts a priority on shutdowns in the name of saving lives, Morrison puts a premium on opening up the economy.
Daniel Andrews is now Scott Morrison’s biggest threat
I could stand in the middle of Fifth Avenue and shoot somebody and I wouldn’t lose voters,” Donald Trump boasted in 2016. He thought his almost unlimited bravado, bombast and dominance of any situation allowed him to get away with figurative murder.
Trump said he could kill and win – Covid and cheating may prove it | Robert Reich | Opinion | The Guardian
Soon after the US President’s refusal to attend the debate, Trump’s campaign team then issued a statement suggesting pushing back the encounter to October 22, the scheduled date of a third debate between the candidates, while using the town hall-style format planned for October 15. The Trump campaign proposed holding what would be a third debate on October 29.
US 2020 Election: Second US Presidential debate to be virtual amid concerns of Donald Trump’s COVID-19
President’s doctor reveals treatment with experimental antibody cocktail REGN-COV2
Donald Trump receiving Covid-19 treatment yet to be peer-reviewed | Donald Trump | The Guardian
And, given Trump’s need for a new electoral “hook” that conforms with the new political reality surrounding his illness, the possibility of an ‘October surprise’ in the form of an arms control agreement that is widely seen as benefiting US national security interests may be the best opportunity for a sick president to appear presidential at a critical time in his bid for re-election.
Trump will surely use his Covid for election advantage, it also opens door for unthinkable… such as breakthrough on New START — RT Op-ed
Yes Trump was an amplifier trivializing Covid-19 but never forget he was amplifying Murdoch media his primary PR company. Include Sinclair Breitbart and others in the excercise
The president of the United States is one of those members of the Republican base. He learned about the virus through Fox’s dismissive coverage and refused to take steps to protect himself and those around him from it. And now he has it.
Fox News systematically attacked coronavirus public health recommendations. Now its most famous viewer has it. | Media Matters for America
So if I were forced to pick between this being real and something Trump made up, I’d pick the scenario that he has actually been diagnosed with Covid-19 for a few simple Occam’s Razor-like reasons: 1) He’s been trying to play down Covid-19 all year, so to now tell people it’s something that can disrupt his election campaign suggests that he might have got it wrong. 2) Disappearing for a few days or weeks disrupts his narrative that he’s a strong man and nothing can stop him. 3) The fact that Hope Hicks was diagnosed first and then he and Melanie got tested indicates a level of planning that I suspect would be too difficult for Trump as it involves a two-step plan. 4) It’s been suggested that the Republicans told him to hide away so that he didn’t have to do any more debates because he lost. Trump never listens to anyone so it’s unlikely he’d believe them about either losing the debate or the necessity of hiding so that he didn’t need to do more. 5) This puts Covid-19 front and centre when Trump has been trying to shift the campaign chatter to the economy. While he could theoretically argue that the big drop in markets when he tested positive shows how much he’s needed, that’s not the sort of argument that sways many people. It’s sort of like when your partner turns up late when you’ve been trying to prepare for guests and says, “Wow, look at the mess you’re in. This just shows how important I am!” If you really wanted to impress, it would have been better to have been there.
Trump, Conspiracies And Occam’s Razor! – » The Australian Independent Media Network
Another indication of how Donald Trump could care less how many people die due to his malfeasance on protecting lives from the Covid-19 pandemic.” —Chuck Idelson, National Nurses United
‘White House Cover-Up’: Covid-19 Task Force Reports Withheld From Public Reveal Trump Knew of Threats as He Spread Lies | Common Dreams News
No Body Bags: private aged care, private hospitals expose transport workers to Covid – Michael West
Private aged care homes and private hospitals in Victoria are failing to use body bags, putting frontline workers and their families at risk. Aged care is regulated by the Federal Government and hospitals are regulated by the state. Luke Stacey reports.
No Body Bags: private aged care, private hospitals expose transport workers to Covid – Michael West
The Australian Catholic Church says it will not support a potential vaccine for the coronavirus, arguing that a more effective method would be moving the virus to another location and pretending nothing had happened.
Catholic Church Opposes Vaccine, Suggests Moving COVID To Another Parish Instead | The Shovel
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