Endman posted:

Ring the bells, ring the bells!

freebooter posted:

So is the housing market going to collapse or what

At this point I want it to happen not so much so I can afford a house, more because I want boomers to get their comeuppance

MysticalMachineGun posted:

(Not playing favourites here, honestly can't find a Pope with DiNatale in it)

"The Guardian posted:

Vast majority of boat arrivals in past 40 years given refugee protection

More than 80% of asylum seekers who have arrived in Australia by boat over the last 40 years have been given refugee protection, new analysis has revealed, with suggestions asylum seekers are not getting fair assessments on Manus Island.

The data, taken from publicly available federal government statistics and analysed by the Refugee Council of Australia also shows a marked difference between the rate of successful determinations made in the Nauru or Manus Island processing centres.

The RCOA’s report compiled a number of sources looking at boat arrivals during particular time periods affected by different political eras, and found there were 69,602 boat arrivals between January 1976 and June 2015.

Of those arrivals 30,400 people had had their case resolved, with 81% given some form of protection, including permanent and temporary protection visas.

Paul Power, the executive director of the RCOA, said the organisation wanted to “paint a realistic picture” of boat arrivals and refugee status as both sides of the debate often relied on flawed or incorrect information.

“This is needed in the public discussion,” Power told Guardian Australia.

“We’ve consistently heard politicians, like [former foreign affairs minister] Bob Carr, argue that many of the people coming are economic migrants and, yet even for the people he was speaking about at that point, the final outcomes have been that the majority are refugees.

“This has been one of the policy dilemmas for the Australian government. If the great majority of people coming by boat were people who had no claim for refugee status, then the policy is able to deal with it very easily and people are returned home.”

He also noted those on the opposing side of the debate often cited 2008-2012 figures which showed much higher refugee determinations of more than 90%.

Under offshore processing policies either side of that period, the rates of refugee protection status were measured at about 70%.

More than 32,000 cases of people who arrived by boat in the last 40 years remain unresolved and, while data on when those people arrived is not available, “all the anecdotal evidence suggests the vast majority are people who arrived during or after August 2012” when the “no advantage” policy was enacted, Power said.

“If you look at the number of people who arrived by boat since 2012, subtract the people who have been recognised as refugees on Nauru and Manus … then it’s very close to the number.”

The research also showed a huge disparity between determinations made on Nauru – about 85% granting refugee protection – and Manus Island – only 58%.

Daniel Webb, the director of legal advocacy at the Human Rights Law Centre said the gap was “either a pretty strange statistical anomaly or [showed] the assessment process in PNG is not fair and accurate.”

The United Nations high commissioner for refugees has previously criticised PNG’s process for determining refugee status, finding a limited capacity in officials to conduct assessments and a lack of clear or adequate legal and regulatory framework.

Webb pointed to comments made in 2014 by the then prime minister, Tony Abbott, and his PNG counterpart, Peter O’Neil, that it was likely “a good majority” of claims would be rejected.

“It’s hard to have faith in a process when both prime ministers appeared to pre-empt its outcome,” he said.

“When you walk through that Manus detention centre, and you see the desperate conditions people are being left to languish in, it’s pretty clear the whole arrangement isn’t actually about processing people but about pressuring them to return.”

Trapezium Dave posted:

He's in the back of the Snape one:

freebooter posted:

So is the housing market going to collapse or what

At this point I want it to happen not so much so I can afford a house, more because I want boomers to get their comeuppance

my stepdads beer posted:

Lol at the misleading scale

quote:

Cardinal George Pell says 'I have the full backing of the Pope' as testimony spotlight continues By Europe correspondent Lisa Millar in Rome, staff Updated about an hour ago

Key points:

Cardinal Pell met the Pope yesterday, after his first four-hour session of giving evidence
International media, including Italian reporters, have been covering the hearing
Expected focus today will again be on Ballarat and period from 1973 when Cardinal Pell was a priest
Australia's highest-ranking Catholic arrived at Rome's Hotel Quirinale this morning ahead of another session giving video evidence to the commission on what he knew about abuse committed by Catholic priests.

What did Pell know?
Key points from his latest testimony to the royal commission about Monsignor John Day's abuse of children in Mildura in 1971/72

Heard "gossip" about Day regarding a "great scandal," but "in those days", if a priest denied abuse he was strongly inclined to accept it.
"Can't recall" being told Day had a "love of young boys" or of hearing rumours of Day taking children on car trips and molesting them.
Couldn't remember any lay person mentioning rumours of Day's abuse to him, but "they might have."
Became aware of the allegations in August 1972, following the publication of a newspaper article.
Background: At the time, Cardinal Pell was a priest in Swan Hill, about 200 km away.
About the abuse of children at schools in Ballarat East

He said he was told that Brother Gerald Leo Fitzgerald was kissing children but "the general conviction was it was harmless enough."
Knew Brother Fitzgerald had taken boys on bike rides and swum nude with them and considered that "unusual" and "imprudent."
Had not heard about Brother Stephen Francis Farrell "exposing himself" to children.
Background: Cardinal Pell was Episcopal Vicar for Education in Ballarat from 1973-1984.
About the abuse of children at schools in Ballarat East (cont'd)

Had said he'd never heard of the term "bum buddies" and agreed that if children had been labelled that it "certainly suggested" abuse.
Never came to his attention that Brother Ted Dowlan had a reputation for putting his hands down boys' pants.
Had heard "fleeting references" to Dowlan which he concluded "might be paedophilia activity."
Background: Cardinal Pell was Episcopal Vicar for Education in Ballarat from 1973-1984.
About Father Gerald Ridsdale's abuse of children

He said he'd heard Ridsdale had taken groups of boys away on camps and overnight trips and that considered that "unusual, but not improper."
Never knew that Bishop Ronald Mulkearns had knowledge of allegations against Ridsdale in the 70's or 80's.
Bishop Mulkearns' handling of Ridsdale (moving him to other parishes) was "catastrophic" for victims, as well as the church.
Background: Ridsdale was convicted of dozens of counts of sexual abuse against children in Western Victoria

The cardinal met Pope Francis yesterday, after his first four-hour session of giving evidence.

"I have the full backing of the Pope," he told reporters outside the hotel. Cardinal Pell's office said the regularly scheduled meeting was in regard to his work as head of the Vatican Treasury. Cardinal Pell was listed on official Vatican records as the Pope's last visitor for the morning before he left for lunch. It has not been confirmed if the subject of his royal commission testimony was raised in conversation. During a video link hook up on Monday (Australian time), Cardinal Pell said he did not know about sex abuse allegations which had been covered up, but he described the handling of them as "catastrophic" for both the church and victims. He also said he was not going to try to "defend the indefensible". Cardinal Pell left the Hotel Quirinale at 3:00am (local time) and was meeting with Pope Francis later that morning.

International media, including Italian reporters, have been covering the hearing.

The daily newspaper, La Repubblica, made note of the fact that Cardinal Pell is the most senior leader in the church to face this kind of questioning. It is expected the focus today will again be on Ballarat and the period from 1973 when Cardinal Pell was a priest. Survivors of child abuse who have travelled from Australia intend on being in the audience again. It has been a gruelling experience for everyone, with media commitments keeping them busy until well after 4:00am. Anthony and Chrissie Foster said they were looking forward to some more detailed questions. They discovered the book about their daughters, who were both abused in the church, had been translated into Italian and was selling well. They said the trip to Rome had been worthwhile because of the attention they had been able to draw to the issue in Australia.

quote:

Indigenous body frustrated by Malcolm Turnbull's 'rhetoric' during tearful NITV interview AM By Lindy Kerin Updated about 2 hours ago

The country's peak elected representative body for Indigenous Australians says it is less than impressed by the Prime Minister's latest comments on Indigenous affairs.

Key points:

National Congress says it has been waiting for meeting with PM since he took office
Turnbull says "every PM a PM for Indigenous Affairs"
Vote on constitutional recognition an option for May 2017
In an extensive interview with Stan Grant on National Indigenous Television (NITV), Malcolm Turnbull said there was "no silver bullet" to overcoming Indigenous disadvantage and reiterated that he wanted to work with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.

At one point during the interview the Prime Minister was moved to tears over a story of Indigenous separation, and the demise of traditional language. But the National Congress of Australia's First Peoples says it has been waiting for a meeting with the Prime Minister since September last year. Congress co-chair Rod Little said his organisation first sought a meeting with Mr Turnbull when he took over the job in September last year. "There was a tinge of hope," he said. "But now there's the rhetoric that's come back, that I've always seen when there's a change in leadership. You have some hope that things are going to change, but there's not much hope there. We saw the opportunity in his words, when he was saying he wants to have this renewed relationship. But that kind of commentary has been around again and again, for many, many governments that I know. If you want to have a relationship with the First Peoples then a logical start point would be with the elected representative body." Mr Little said he still hoped his organisation could meet with the Prime Minister. "I am disappointed but I'm optimistic," he said. "I'm reaching out and saying look, we are here. We want to do things. Things have to be done by us, for us, with us. Now look, I'm optimistic. I'm frustrated because I see the same kinds of comments … time and time again, and the results of that rhetoric is the results that we have today — no closing of the gap, no, high incarceration rates, high suicide levels — all of those things."

'Every PM is a PM for Indigenous affairs': Turnbull

The interview, which aired on NITV's new current affairs program The Point, was a lengthy, wide-ranging interview with Mr Turnbull on his approach to Indigenous policy. "There is no silver bullet, you know that," he said. "I think one of the reasons there's been so much disappointment in terms of the outcomes of policy here is because everyone has been searching for the one big, sweeping answer." Mr Turnbull's predecessor Tony Abbott often described himself as the Prime Minister for Indigenous Australians. Mr Turnbull told NITV that was also how he saw his role. "Every Prime Minister is a Prime Minister for Indigenous affairs, a Prime Minister for all Australians and the first Australians, who have been treated so unjustly, who have suffered so much over so long," he said. "Reconciling the nation with that history, and righting those wrongs and settling that injustice, is an objective and obligation on every Australian, but especially on every Prime Minister." The Prime Minister said a vote to change the Constitution to recognise Indigenous Australians in May next year was feasible.

quote:

Maritime Union of Australia delegates vote in favour of merging with Construction, Forestry, Mining and Energy Union By political reporter Matthew Doran Updated about 11 hours ago

If agreed to by the CFMEU, the plan will then go back to MUA members to finalise the deal. The formation of Australia's most powerful and militant union is a step closer, with delegates at the maritime union's national conference unanimously voting in favour to merge with the construction union. The Maritime Union of Australia (MUA) and the Construction, Forestry, Mining and Energy Union (CFMEU) publicly floated the idea of a merger in October last year.

Key points:

MUA delegates vote in favour of proposal to merge with CFMEU
The proposal will now go to the CFMEU national executive who are expected to endorse the merger
Employment Minister Michaelia Cash says merger represents "a major threat to productivity, jobs growth and economic prosperity"
On Monday, MUA delegates agreed to the proposal, which strongly condemned "the extreme political nature of the industrial offensive against Australian workers from neo-conservative commercial forces and the Abbott [now Turnbull] Government".

"The offensive includes the systematic destruction of Australian workers' rights and job security, particularly through industry policy that is destroying manufacturing and related service industries and, the systematic reduction of trade union rights in mining, hydrocarbon and construction industries in particular," the MUA's Principles for Amalgamation document stated. "The Royal Commission into Trade Unions and the constant attempts to further erode worker protections and rights through new legislation and the revisiting of old legislation, like the ABCC, is central to this offensive." MUA national secretary Paddy Crumlin has heralded the decision as a win for the union movement. But Mr Crumlin said the merger would only go ahead if the MUA were able to keep its identity, and operate as a division of the much larger CFMEU. "[Members] know that they're entering into a marriage, it's like any marriage, they want to keep their personality, they don't want it to be subsumed," Mr Crumlin said. "There's a process of getting to that situation before marital vows are exchanged to ensure that we keep this great and long and proud history. We know we're entering into a marriage that's going to transform the ability of us to protect ourselves on the job, and in doing that transform the ability of other workers in that union to be able to protect themselves." The proposal will now go to the CFMEU national executive, who are due to meet later this week and are expected to endorse the merger.

MUA national secretary Paddy Crumlin has heralded the decision as a win for the union movement.

"I think our executive and our union will be looking forward to working with the MUA and the TCFUA [Textile, Clothing and Footwear Union of Australia] to create a new union which is looking after its members, looking after their families and looking after the communities that rely on their jobs," said Michael O'Connor, national secretary of the CFMEU. Those conditions that the MUA have put, I'm sure will be greeted positively by our executive. We'll take whatever time is necessary to get the new union structure right, to involve all our members, to make sure the process is transparent and democratic, because that's what we're all about." If agreed to by the CFMEU, the plan will then go back to MUA members to finalise the deal. The TCFUA is also in discussions to merge with the CFMEU.

Employment Minister Michaelia Cash argued the merger represented "a major threat to productivity , jobs growth and economic prosperity. The fact that the two most militant unions in Australia are proposing to merge is extremely concerning," Senator Cash said. "The potential merger of further unions to cover the majority of transport logistics across Australia should concern all Australians. Since Mr Shorten became Opposition Leader, we have seen the increasing influence of radical unions over Labor policy — one can only imagine how this control would be exacerbated by these proposed mergers."

Industrial relations a key issue heading into election year

Industrial relations will be a key issue heading further into this election year, and legislation to reintroduce the Australian Building and Construction Commission (ABCC) is being held out as a possible trigger for a double dissolution poll. The merger discussions could be seen as laying the groundwork for a union-led campaign against the Coalition, with a combined war chest. "There's is a feeling within the CFMEU and the MUA and the wider trade union movement, that trade unions are beginning to mobilise again against the tremendous political cynicism that's currently prevailing in the government of the day and the political atmosphere in this country," Mr Crumlin said. "The whole position of combining resources, it's not money, there's no Trojan horse here, it's not about getting control of the Labor Party and breaking the law. "The whole thing that's going on here is that people want to have a fair go, and they're willing to join together and join hands with each other to make sure that happens." Whether TCFUA members will also form part of the united front, with its executive lobbying for similar conditions as the MUA deal, is yet to be finalised. "You never take workers for granted, it's a decision of our members and we'll respect that decision," said Michelle O'Neill, national secretary of the TCFUA. They want to make sure it's a union that they can see themselves in, that they feel confident that they're represented in the union, that their leadership is there, that they're part of the decision making. Our union is not doing this because we have to do it, we're doing it because we want to do it, our union is smaller than it once was, but it is an effective union for its members."

quote:

Australia dodges recession, unlike other commodity economies: BIS Shrapnel report By Thuy Ong Posted about 2 hours ago

Despite a volatile start to the year and a drop in commodity prices, Australia has avoided a recession and looks unlikely to have one, according to a new report. Other commodity exporting nations have been unable to avoid economic contraction, with Australia's advantage lying in its low-cost production, said economic forecaster and industry analyst BIS Shrapnel. Resource-bound countries, including Russia and Brazil, are suffering through recessions after experiencing falls in their terms of trade. "Australia is a low-cost, high quality resources exporter, and other countries simply cannot compete with that," said Dr Frank Gelber, chief economist at BIS Shrapnel. "While prices are a lot lower, we are very low cost producers and so we've been able to maintain our share of exports, or more than our share of exports." Australia weathered the global financial crisis relatively unscathed, and Australia's economy posted stronger-than-expected GDP growth of 2.5 per cent in 2015. The latest official economic growth figures, for the fourth quarter and which will confirm the nation's annual economic performance for 2015, are due out tomorrow morning.

BIS Shrapnel said 2016 "is just the second year of an expected four to five-year decline, which will see mining construction fall by 70 per cent from its peak. The main reason [Australia hasn't experienced a recession] has been strong and sustained growth in resource production and export volumes - around 8 per cent per annum in each of its past three years - aided recently by surging education and tourism exports," said Dr Gelber. "Without this export volume growth, Australia would have gone into recession." The slump in the Australian dollar to around 71 US cents has boosted both inbound tourists and Australians choosing to holiday domestically. According to Tourism Australia, there was a jump of 8.2 per cent in international visitor arrivals in 2015, to 7.4 million people. Sectors including agriculture, education services, finance and business services are also seeing a pick-up, said Dr Gelber. "Hence, we believe a recession in Australia is highly unlikely," he said. "There's no magic wand for the economy, and the shift to non-mining investment will be agonisingly slow. But it's not all doom and gloom - yes, growth will be soft, but it's still growth."

quote:

AFP sought access to Parliament House computer servers as part of Mal Brough investigation By political reporters Stephanie Anderson and Stephen Dziedzic Updated yesterday at 6:51pm

The Australian Federal Police (AFP) have sought access to computer servers at Parliament House as part of their investigation into the downfall of former speaker Peter Slipper. The AFP has confirmed it has been conducting enquiries with the Department of Parliamentary Services. The Department runs Parliament House and its computer servers hold the emails of Federal MPs. The AFP told the ABC the investigations were in relation to an ongoing investigation — but did not specify which one. The ABC understands the AFP sought access to the parliamentary servers as part of their inquiry into the role Liberal MP Mal Brough played in procuring Mr Slipper's diary.

In an earlier statement, a spokesperson for the AFP confirmed officers have not raided a politician's office in the past fortnight. It also ruled out having seized material under search warrant from the Parliamentary Offices of a federal politician "in the past two weeks". But it did not say if it had accessed the parliamentary computer system. Mr Brough said there had been no raids on his Parliament House office. In a statement, Mr Brough said "rumours are circulating through Parliament House that the AFP have raided my Parliament House Office". "These rumours are completely false," he said. Mr Brough said that the AFP has not sought any "additional assistance in any way" from him since January 7.

Shadow attorney-general Mark Dreyfus questioned Speaker Tony Smith on the police enquiries following Question Time, but Mr Smith refused to be drawn. He instead referred to the guidelines put in place regarding parliamentary privilege, which requires police to seek permission to enter Parliament House. "Members would be aware that Australian Federal Police has a national guideline for executive of search warrants where parliamentary privilege may be involved, which has been agreed between the minister responsible for the Australian Federal Police and the presiding officers," he said. "Any process for the execution of search warrants in circumstances where parliamentary privilege may be involved would only be done in accordance with the principles of that guideline, to ensure that parliamentary privilege is protected."

Cartoon posted:

A sham and a farce.

MysticalMachineGun posted:

THE MAJOR PLAYERS

LNP


The Nationals


ALP



The Greens


The rest
Clive Palmer

Gorilla Salad posted:

Okay, can someone parse this bit for me? I feel like a teacher asking a student to "Please show your working" because that doesn't qualify for any definition of ironic I've ever heard of. Even the stupid definitions of ironic used by hipsters.

"It's ironic Pell should have been expected to pay more attention to his priests raping little children because Pell also happens to be a homophobic bigot."


Yes, why would someone try to silence a victim of a pedophile currently being investigated by the police.

Beep, boop, does not compute.

MysticalMachineGun posted:

LNP

quote:

Canada’s immigration minister said on Monday the country has reached a significant milestone with the arrival of 25,000 Syrian refugees.

Immigration minister John McCallum said work continues to integrate the Syrians into the community. McCallum was at Toronto’s Pearson airport as the last two government-arranged refugee flights were arriving as part of the Liberals’ $678m (US$501m) settlement plan.

The refugee resettlement program was launched in November, after prime minister Justin Trudeau came to power and promised to bring in 25,000 government-sponsored refugees by the end of 2015 amid an intense debate in the West over what to do with people fleeing violence in the Middle East.

quote:

Qs: Was it common knowledge of [pedophile priest Gerald Ridsdale's] interfering with children at Inglewood?

Pell: "I couldn’t say that I ever knew that everyone knew. I knew a number of people did. I didn’t know whether it was common knowledge or whether it wasn’t. It’s a sad story and it wasn’t of much interest to me"

Endman posted:

First as tragedy, then as even bigger tragedy.

SeekOtherCandidate posted:

let's see if we can go a month without some gronk posting about nuclear power this time

Vahtooch posted:

Absolutely stunning op. Now I'll just go back to sipping lattes and not wanting to work hard, and you know, crying into said latte since I just read this.

https://www.themonthly.com.au/issue/2016/march/1456750800/richard-cooke/boomer-supremacy

fickle poofterist posted:

Where did I see the graph with the house pricing and GDP over time and some boomer comments about hard work? I want to show it to dad and convince him to give me more pocket money

Subjunctive posted:

tithin posted:

MysticalMachineGun posted:

Is this it? El Scotch quoted it last thread:

Anidav posted:

I dont understand why that Luke guy is still opposition leader.

Vahtooch posted:

Absolutely stunning op. Now I'll just go back to sipping lattes and not wanting to work hard, and you know, crying into said latte since I just read this.

https://www.themonthly.com.au/issue/2016/march/1456750800/richard-cooke/boomer-supremacy

El Scotch posted: