arbilp3

I feel grief for what our nation has come to.

This blog piece, imo, explains well why a fuel excise cut is the wrong way to go in a fuel crisis that is only going to get worse and also provides numerous actions the govt can take (and should have taken before this) to help people with transport.

Some of you may be interested in this petition. It currently has over 5,000 signatories.

The Australian Parliament has... passed sweeping new criminal and migration laws that dramatically expand the state’s power over speech, association and expression.

The laws... hand the state the power to criminalise speech, suppress dissent and punish people without due process.

In some cases, decisions may be made without procedural fairness, and penalties can flow from speech, symbolic expression, or perceived association rather than proven wrongdoing.

The laws mark a sharp departure from established Australian values of fairness, proportionality and the rule of law...

Claims of “association” can now ruin lives, leaving people branded and punished without real safeguards or a fair way to fight back, similar to the crack down of The Communist Party in the 1950s.

The fight is not over. Parliament can repeal laws. Powers can be limited. Safeguards can be restored. But only if Australians speak now.
Sign the petition to repeal these laws.

The oil crisis has not only caused petrol prices to soar, it has revealed just how little competition there is among the big oil companies. A couple weeks ago the ACCC announced that it would be looking into uncompetitive behaviour by petrol companies in the rural areas.

The article shows how petrol price rises have been affected in different parts of Australia.

https://thepoint.com.au/news/260327-petrol-prices-are-soaring-in-sync-collusion-or-coincidence

The government does not nominate a specific wage increase figure, but its recommendation for a real wage rise points to a lift above inflation, which is tipped to climb as high as five per cent in the second quarter.

“Workers are doing it tough right now and that’s why we think they should get a sustainable real wage increase,” Dr Chalmers said.

Ms Rishworth pushed back at the suggestion a real wage rise would add to inflation, claiming wages were not a key driver of recent inflation pressures.

Lower-paid workers were more exposed to unexpected financial shocks and experienced greater financial hardship, she said.

I'm glad they are looking into this. Children are so vulnerable in situations where there is more isolation.

[Hastie] said social media was full of “strong and pronounced” anger about corporate profits, from all sides of politics.

Pointing to Norway’s sovereign wealth fund – the largest in the world, with assets worth more than $US2.2tn ($A3.2tn) – Hastie said Australia needed to better plan for its own economic future.

“I’d love to see an Australian sovereign wealth fund that sets us up for generations to come."

Nice to hear something positive from the Opposition.

Public schools ask parents to make voluntary contributions because they need the funds...

State governments have consistently not met their funding targets for public schools. On current timelines – and provided future governments deliver the funds – schools will not have their full funding entitlements until 2034.

This puts school principals in a very difficult situation. Their schools are not properly funded by the government and there are limits to their ability to seek additional funds from parents.

2034? Do they really want our public education to fall further behind? I don't understand how they can justify this.

Larissa Waters also points out that our govt is aiding in the war without either parliamentary or Australians' say.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L11FZ_gYVuE

https://npq.org.au/plants-markets/ First plant market for 2026 is in Samford in March.

There will be a huge range of native plants to suit any garden, plus many highly knowledgeable people to answer all your native plant questions.

Open to all (indoor event so no pets allowed). Details are as follows:

✅ Low prices direct from growers ✅ Tubestock to larger plants ✅ Fantastic range for all gardens (water-wise plants, bush foods, bird/bee/butterfly-attracting plants, PLUS rare and unusual plants) ✅ Food, drinks and snacks are available from the onsite cafe. ✅ Cash and EFTPOS available. Location: Samford Showgrounds, 38 Showgrounds Dr, Highvale Date: Saturday 28th March, 9am to 3pm Cost: Free entry & parking!!

All times and locations listed.

If I’d driven to Woolworths and bought imported or industrially grown vegetables wrapped in plastic, flowers flown in from Kenya, and produce grown with synthetic fertilisers and pesticides, that would count as a positive contribution to Gross Domestic Product. The packaging counts. The freight counts. The retail transaction counts. The profit counts. Even the pollution and waste generated along the way are often folded into “growth” in the system.

But stepping outside to pick lunch and dinner from the garden, and cutting flowers for the kitchen table doesn’t. That should tell us something.