Australian Politics
Friday, October 01, 2021
Theme park boss is forced to apologise after 'fat-shaming' kids by WEIGHING them on scales before they step onto a water ride
There probably are safety reasons for excluding fatties but I guess it could be done discreetly
A Perth theme park boss has issued an apology after 'fat shaming' customers by forcing them to weigh in on a public scale before riding on the water slides.
Adventure World sparked outrage after introducing a 'weigh before you play' rule at the beginning of the school holidays, banning anyone heavier than 90kg on one ride and 180kg on another.
Scales were erected at the entrances of rides and customers were asked to weigh in to 'avoid disappointment', with a light visible to other patrons flashing green or red to signify if they passed or failed the admission requirements.
The policy was quickly slammed by furious customers who accused the Bibra Lake theme park of 'fat shaming' children, with one mother reporting her 13-year-old daughter was turned away from a ride after stepping off the scales.
Adventure World CEO Andrew Sharry on Thursday issued an apology acknowledging the rule had caused 'distress' to customers.
'In our efforts to introduce important systems to better manage safety on some of our waters slides, we have handled the communication of these new water slide systems poorly and we have upset our guests and members. This is the last thing we wanted to do,' he said.
'I am genuinely sorry that we have caused this distress to our guests and members. Our purpose is to create happiness and magical memories. We have not achieved that on this occasion and I acknowledge that we can do better.'
Hockeyroo Georgia Wilson was one of the most vocal critics calling on Western Australians to boycott the business and for Mr Sharry to resign unless he met with eating disorder sufferers.
In light of the backlash, Mr Sharry said he met with an expert on body image and eating disorders this week and had personally apologised to a family whose daughter was forced to do a 'walk of shame'.
'I can now see how these water slide safety systems would be received as traumatic and upsetting for some of our guests and members,' Mr Sharry said.
'I have spoken with the family involved and have personally apologised for the hurt that we have caused.'
The apology comes after mother claimed her 13-year-old daughter was publicly rejected from a ride after weighing in and forced to walk back down the stairs.
'Once at the top she was stopped and asked to stand on a weigh machine. The lights flickered green and then red and then green again,' she said, Perth Now reports.
'The operator then walked over to an electrical box and looked inside it, and then came back to her and said sorry, you weigh this amount and you can’t go down.'
'I was angry and disappointed in Adventure World. We’ve enjoyed these rides for years and now all of a sudden we weren’t able to.'
Mr Parry said the park is investigating alternative slide safety options but did not confirm whether or not the scales would be removed.
'I am in the process of taking advice from a body image and eating disorder specialist who has met with me on site to review the new safety systems installed on four of our water slides,' he said.
'We are in the process of identifying changes that will cause less impact on our guests and members, whilst also meeting our safety requirements.'
It is not the first time the theme park has come under fire over its controversial policies.
In 2019, the park sparked fury after banning women from wearing skimpy swimwear, such as g-string and Brazillian-cut bikini bottoms.
The request to 'choose appropriate swimwear' ignited immediate backlash, with customers telling the park it did not have the right to advise women on what they could wear.
Adventure World later issued an apology on Facebook for causing offence, but stood by its decision to maintain a 'family friendly' theme park.
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Real estate agent sends warning letter to 300 homes saying new housing block for the homeless and 'disadvantaged' will hurt their property values
Must not tell the truth
A real estate agent has spammed 300 households with a letter warning them their property values would plunge when a public housing block was built nearby.
Harcourts salesman Chris Parsons claimed many of his clients in Mandurah, south of Perth, planned to sell up rather than have 100 'socially disadvantaged' new neighbours.
Mr Parsons said he and other residents were concerned about the $28.1 million development's 'obvious effect on property values'.
The document, bearing the Harcourts Mandurah letterhead, asked if the home owner had been informed of the new building in their suburb.
'I am writing to you directly due to your close proximity to the upcoming development of a 50-apartment complex that will house up to 100 homeless and 'socially disadvantaged' residents,' the letter sent on Monday began.
'Many of my previous clients have already come to me with intentions to move out of the area after hearing of what is coming.
'I personally live in and own a home close to this planned development and have my own concerns, including the obvious effect on property values.'
Mr Parsons wrote that he met with the developers and discovered that due to council zoning rules, 'little to no' community consultation was required.
He told residents to call or email him to find out more about 'what this could mean for the future value of your home'.
Outraged recipients posted the letter on local social media groups, speculating that the letter was really a ploy to drive sales.
'To me it looks like a scare tactics letter for him to get you to sell your house. Do your homework. Plus this if it is true is a great project that will help so many less fortunate have a safe, warm place to live,' one local wrote.
After recipients complained, Mr Parsons wrote a grovelling apology and handed it out to the same 300 homes on Wednesday.
'I would like to apologise for any concerns this has caused, as a resident of this neighbourhood and a local real estate agent I have had discussions with members of the public around this topic and I was looking to gather further information, so that I could be in a better position to assist home owners where I can,' he wrote.
'It was not my intention to generate negativity around this development but instead to get a better understanding of the community sentiment in a small sample area within close proximity to the site.'
Mr Parsons added that he was confident the facility 'will be of benefit to the community' and be well run and maintained by local and state governments.
He wrote that Harcourts Mandurah had collected donations for a homeless support group in the area for more than 10 years.
The company said the initial letter was a case of Mr Parsons 'flying solo' and that it did not believe he was acting with any malice towards homeless people.
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Terrifying warning from top doctors that Australians are dying from 'everyday conditions' thanks to hospitals being FULL of Covid patients
Top doctors have warned Australians are dying from treatable conditions because already overburdened hospitals are being hit with a surge in Covid cases.
In recent months, paramedics have had to X-ray and treat patients in car parks and hospital corridors while they wait for space to open up in emergency departments.
When states reopen, experts now fear hospitals could be further overrun because - even at 80 per cent double-jabbed - there will still be five million unvaccinated Australians.
A discussion paper voicing concerns was drafted by leading doctors from four states and was this week presented to an urgent meeting of health ministers.
The paper warned hospitals were struggling to cope with the combination of Covid cases and routine care - causing treatment delays for non-urgent conditions that can then turn deadly.
The health ministers were told urgent measures must be put in place to support hospitals.
The specific requests made in the discussion paper include that GPs be redeployed to emergency departments to ease the workload.
Also suggested was giving funding for GPs to work nights and weekends to deal with indirect Covid impacts in the community away from hospitals wards and ICUs.
That thousands of patients with less-serious conditions be transferred out of hospital beds and into at-home treatment where they can be visited by a GP is another option.
Another was to dramatically increase immigration intake for skilled health workers coming from overseas, including doctors and nurses.
As well as a spike in Covid cases courtesy of large-scale outbreaks of the Delta strain in NSW and Victoria - where there have been hundreds of cases per day - hospitals are also dealing with staff shortages.
Frontline staff have been diverted to Covid testing and vaccination centres across the country, while others have been resigning because of burnout dealing with Covid.
When National Cabinet meets on Friday, a plan to deal surge capacity for ICUs as state open up will be on the agenda.
'The health system doesn't just look after Covid and it's already full. We're seeing... a perfect storm and it's causing the hospital system it to overflow,' Australian Medical Association deputy president Chris Moy told The Australian.
'What happens is people either don't get care or it gets displaced. Diagnoses are made at much later points, and people get worse or they die,' Mr Moy said.
Both the NSW and Victorian health ministers have said there needs to be an increase in funding for hospitals.
'The past 20 months have seen all of the existing problems in our health care and in our hospital system amplified to the level where the system is in crisis like it's never been, in every state,' Victorian health minister Martin Foley said.
President of the Australian College of Emergency Medicine John Bonning agreed saying the overcrowding of hospitals was putting patients at risk.
'Patients are being treated in corridors. People with pneumonia, complications of diabetes, patients with strokes, patients with heart attacks, patients with trauma are sometimes struggling to get a bed for as long as 24 hours. It is dangerous' he said.
The federal government defended its backing of the public healthcare system ahead of Friday's National Cabinet meeting.
Federal Health Minister Greg Hunt said health system funding had more than doubled to $30billion a year since 2013.
He added state and territory health ministers had recently signed a five-year deal which guaranteed $35billion in finding and that $6billion had also been funded to hospital since March 2020.
In 2020 the federal government agreed to support the healthcare system in every state and territory by helping with costs incurred through Covid outbreaks.
The Commonwealth currently pays 45 per cent of the costs incurred but the states want this increased to 50 per cent.
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Brisbane named among top cities in the world for students
Despite the international education sector being hit hard by the pandemic, Brisbane is still one of the best cities in the world for students according to a major new study.
Brisbane has been named as one of the top 10 cities in the world for students thanks to its reasonably priced rent, young population and safety in a new international study.
The Best Student Cities in the World index for 2021 has been released by international student company Studee, and named the River City at No.9 in the world, ahead of fellow Aussies cities including the Gold Coast (14), Canberra (16) and Sydney (18).
Researchers found Brisbane scored above average in six of the nine categories which were analysed, including on the costs of rent and living, food options, free speech and safety.
But Brisbane was trumped by Melbourne at No.2 – which was applauded for its exceptional food scene, cheap technology and safety – along with Adelaide (5) and Perth (7).
Japan’s Tokyo came in at No.1, thanks to its high number of world-class universities, high internet speeds, and high levels of free speech.
Canada’s Quebec and Montreal also made the list, along with Seoul, Houston and Pittsburgh.
Studee president Jihna Gavilanes said deciding where to study was a huge decision for prospective international students.
“With so many options available, choosing where to study can feel overwhelming, especially if you're moving away from home for the first time,” she said.
“The things that are important to one student won’t be to another, so our ranking system uses several factors that actually make a difference to students.
“You’re not just choosing where to study, you’re picking the place you will call home and the neighbourhood where you could start your career.”
Researchers also took into account a city’s internet speeds – for which Brisbane was rated among the lowest of the top cities – as well as the cost of a MacBook and what percentage of the population was aged between 15 and 24-years-old.
“When choosing where to attend university or college, you need to consider everything that could impact your experience,” Ms Gavilanes said.
“Your surroundings, the cost of living, and your social life are all factors you should think about before deciding where to enrol.
“Getting an education can be expensive so you must find the right place that works for you for the next few years and beyond.”
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Also see my other blogs. Main ones below:
http://dissectleft.blogspot.com (DISSECTING LEFTISM -- daily)
http://antigreen.blogspot.com (GREENIE WATCH)
http://pcwatch.blogspot.com (POLITICAL CORRECTNESS WATCH)
http://edwatch.blogspot.com (EDUCATION WATCH)
http://snorphty.blogspot.com/ (TONGUE-TIED)
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Evelyn Rae, a 
Sahara Ray is undoubtedly a good-looking woman. Since she is Australian-born there is even a possibility that we may be distantly related
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