Must not mention child abuse in Aboriginal families

The usual unbalanced response to the issue is coming from the Leftist Aboriginal industry.  The official policy is to leave abused black children with their families and if that does not work the kid is left with other black families, usually relatives. Where all that has been tried the kid may in rare cases be fostered by a white family. 

Adoption is usually considered only as a last resort.  Of the four Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children adopted between 2016 and 2017, three went to white families, according to government figures.

The protesters act as if the latest call is to place ALL abused black kids with whites, which is not being proposed at all. The proposal is for the most endangered kids to be placed with white families.  There have been deaths among children whom the authorities have simply shuffled around among black families.

A protester below says: "Aboriginal children are being taken away at exponential rates and these rates have grown every year"  --  as if that exonerates the existing procedures.  Surely it in fact shows that the problem is getting worse and in need of fresh thinking

The real driver behind the protests is of course the strange leftist belief that "All men are equal". Mentioning that child abuse if rife among blacks defies that foolish gospel


[TV program] Sunrise has sparked intense backlash after a commentator suggested Indigenous children should be taken from their families

The comments were made on Tuesday morning as part of the breakast show's 'Hot Topics' segment. Samantha Armytage kicked off the discussion by bringing viewers up to speed on assistant minister for children David Gillespie calling for non-Indigenous families to adopt at-risk Aboriginal children.

"It's a no-brainer", Sunrise commentator Prue MacSween supports federal minister David Gillespie's proposal for white families to adopt at-risk Aboriginal children.

"Post-Stolen Generations there's been a huge move to leave Aboriginal children where they are, even if they're being neglected in their own families," she said.

The Sunrise co-host then asked controversial commentator Prue MacSween and Brisbane radio host Ben Davis what they thought. MacSween made headlines last year after she said she was "tempted to run over" former ABC host Yassmin Abdel-Magied.

McSween claimed there was a "fabricated PC outlook" among some people who believed it was better to leave Aboriginal children in abusive homes than have them adopted by white families.

"It's just crazy to just even contemplate that people are arguing against this," she said. "Don't worry about the people that would cry and handwring and say this would be another Stolen Generation. Just like the first Stolen Generation where a lot of people were taken because it was for their wellbeing... we need to do it again, perhaps."

The comments have been slammed as false and misleading by prominent members of the Indigenous community.

South Sea Islander and Darumbal journalist Amy McQuire said the two minute segment was "packed [with] so many mistruths". "The idea that Aboriginal children are not being placed in white families is a lie," she wrote. "The greater lie is that Aboriginal children are not being taken away and are being kept in dangerous situations for fear of a 'stolen generation'.

"That does not gel with the statistics: Aboriginal children are being taken away at exponential rates and these rates have grown every year since Kevin Rudd gave his apology to the Stolen Generations and promised it would never happen again."

Black Comedy's Nakkiah Lui, meanwhile, has accused Sunrise of "bottom-feeding off people's pain". "If you're talking about the removal of Aboriginal children from their families, communities and culture, maybe speak to Aboriginal children, families and adults that have been affected," she wrote. "Not white people who have zero knowledge."

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Bill Shorten’s ‘left behinds’ actually got ahead

Low-income households have ­enjoyed the biggest improvement in standard of living since the ­financial crisis, challenging Bill Shorten’s claim that inequality is rising and large parts of society are being “left behind”.

The bottom fifth of households ranked by income have had an 11 per cent rise in their living standards since 2007, more than twice as fast as those in the top income group, according to analysis ­undertaken at the Australian ­National University Centre for Social Research and Methods.

A comprehensive analysis of more than 20 different household types found those with incomes made up mainly of social security benefits have enjoyed an 18 per cent jump in living standards since 2007, wage earners enjoyed a 5 per cent jump and those with mainly business income recorded an almost 8 per cent fall.

The analysis, produced by ­researcher Ben Phillips, also shows that even the 20 per cent of households on the lowest ­incomes received on average $110 a year in franking credits in 2016, highlighting the political difficulty Labor faces as it seeks to end cash refunds for franking credits for all taxpayers. “Some low-income households do receive them but they are quite small in the scheme of things, with almost 80 per cent by value going to the top share of households with large portfolios,” Mr Phillips said.

The figures come amid an ­escalating battle between the ­government and opposition about the impact of Labor’s new policy, which the government says will hurt more than a million shareholders, mainly low-income retirees, and have far-ranging unintended consequences.

In a bid to tackle what he described as “the growing inequality in this country, the growing wedge of disparity”, Mr Shorten announced plans to scrap cash ­refunds for tax credits on franked share dividends for those paying no income tax, saying it would save $59 billion over 10 years.

The value of the tax increases combined would provide Labor with a war chest to cut personal income tax for workers, most of whom have experienced zero real wage growth since 2012.

The ANU analysis found that 9 per cent of households in the bottom income quintile received franking credits. The average payment received by that 9 per cent was $1250, with a median payment of $231. Among top-earning households, 38 per cent received credits. Among that group of households, the average payment was $13,300 and the median payment was $870 in 2016.

Mr Phillips said all types of households had “overwhelmingly” enjoyed large increases in their living standards over recent decades, while high-income households had seen “virtually no real growth in living standards since the GFC”.

His new research is based on a series of biennial income and ­expenditure surveys conducted by the ABS of up to 30,000 people.

Labor has announced a controversial swag of tax increases on trusts, high-income earners, multinationals and property investors in recent months. “In 2018, my side of politics is going to lay out our ­vision for that Australia — fairer, stronger, more inclusive — where no one gets left behind,” Mr Shorten said in January, echoing language used by British Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn.

Mr Phillips’ analysis provides a clearer picture of changes in living standards for different groups by comparing disposable income (after tax) with the cost of living. The lowest earners, who tend to spend more of their incomes on essential services, had experienced the biggest cost-of-living increase — 25 per cent since 2007 — but incomes, propped up by a hefty increase in the age pension in 2009, had more than kept pace.

Single, middle-income households aged 50 to 64, in Queensland and South Australia, appeared to have done the worst over the past decade. Single parents with a mortgage, living in ACT or NSW, appear to have done the best, relatively, the analysis suggested. “Middle and higher-income single parents did particularly well over the long term with a strong increase in workforce participation, helped along by changing ­cultural attitudes and increases in family payments as part of the Hawke government poverty-­alleviation measures,” Mr Phillips said.

When grouped according to age, households over 65 enjoyed the most rapid growth in living standards, up 16.5 per cent or almost three times that of those under 35 over the past decade.

“The main driver here has been a more generous taxation system for older Australians and large pension increase in 2009 under the Harmer review,” he said.

The new analysis reveals how previously booming resource states were now struggling. Western Australia was the only state or ­territory where households went backwards since 2007 while Queenslanders’ living ­standards rose 1.2 per cent — masking sharp surges and retractions in income. By contrast, real incomes in the ACT and the NT, which have relatively large government sectors, rose 14 per cent and 11 per cent, more than any others.

Against a backdrop of sluggish wage growth and high house prices, Mr Phillips showed living standards for all Australians had still risen substantially since the last recession in the early 1990s.

“A key point is that overall living standards, which are defined as income growth adjusting for cost of living, have increased dramatically since 1988, rising around 68 per cent, ” he said.

He noted they had risen more slowly in the past decade.

“Lower-income single parents have not fared so well over the past decade following cuts to welfare payments by the Howard government in 2005 and Gillard government in 2013,” he said.

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Marginals pain for Labor as tax grab hits thousands of voters in key electorates

Bill Shorten has risked igniting a backlash in key election battlegrounds, with official data revealing that almost 90,000 voters across 13 of the most marginal seats in the country would lose an average $2000 a year in refundable tax credits under his policy.

As the Labor leader yesterday defended the $59 billion tax grab amid pressure from pensioner and retiree lobby groups, Treasury analysis of tax ­office data reveals seven marginal Labor seats could be vulnerable at an election.

Those seats have an average of ­almost 6000 voters who would lose thousands of dollars of income a year under the Labor plan.

In the country’s most marginal seat of Herbert in north Queensland, which Labor won at the 2016 election by only 37 votes, there are 4700 people who on average ­receive $1994 a year in refunds on tax credits from share dividends.

The ATO data suggests that the issue could also be a deciding ­factor in tomorrow’s by-election in the suburban Melbourne seat of Batman, which Labor is at risk of losing to the Greens, with 5284 voters receiving an average of $1471 a year in refunds. The same scenario could play out in the Queensland seat of Longman if Labor were forced to a by-election over questions about ALP MP Susan Lamb’s citizenship, with 5491 people collecting $1563 annually. Labor won the seat by just 1390 votes.

Treasurer Scott Morrison told The Australian: “Labor were hoping they would get away with it and try and slide this past hundreds and thousands of pensioners who depend on their tax refund to pay everything from their power bill to their grocery bill.

“Either Bill Shorten didn’t know, or he didn’t care. But either way he is going to pocket the tax refunds of pensioners and ­retirees.”

Mr Shorten and his Treasury spokesman Chris Bowen yesterday briefed opposition MPs about the details of the policy shake-up in a 30-minute phone hook-up of the Labor caucus after MPs were inundated with feedback from concerned constituents. The Australian understands that no one spoke out against the shake-up, but some were drawing up case studies to help explain the impact of the policy. “They went through the policy and we all had a chat,” a Labor MP said. “We have to ­explain it to the community and what the benefits are ... there were a number of people who were asking questions.”

Mr Shorten, speaking in Melbourne with the Labor candidate for Batman, former ACTU president Ged Kearney, branded government attacks on Labor’s plan a “ hysterical scare campaign”. But Ms Kearney was forced to back away from earlier comments that the plan could be reviewed, instead attempting to talk down the tax grab’s impact.

Greens leader Richard Di Natale moved to exploit Labor’s confusion ahead of the Batman by-election, saying the proposals “look like they could have a range of very serious unintended consequences”.

“It’s very clear here that we have a situation with Bill Shorten who is quite rightly raising the issue of inequality,” Senator Di Natale said.

“The Greens are very concerned that these changes could hit struggling pensioners — pensioners with low income, low assets — and make their lives harder.

“The Greens will do everything that we can using our power in the Senate and our numbers in the House to ensure that we scrutinise every aspect of Labor’s policy.”

In Batman, the ATO data shows it is home to 1052 pensioners receiving tax refunds.

Mr Morrison took aim at Mr Shorten after the Opposition Leader denied that he would seek to provide additional compensation to low-income pensioners who lose their refunds, following a report in The Australian revealing it was being considered.

“We’ve seen the circus of yesterday. They (Labor) are saying, ‘we’ll be compensating pensioners’. And today they say they won’t be compensating pensioners. They have no clue,” Mr Morrison said.

Tony Shepherd, who headed the Abbott government’s National Commission of Audit and is a ­former president of the Business Council of Australia, also spoke out against the dangers of making one-off ­alternations to the tax and superannuation systems. “There is considerable room in Australia for taxation reform but that must be done on a comprehensive basis with a thorough examination of the consequences,” Mr Shepherd told The Australian.

The ATO data shows about 84,000 NSW pensioners stand to lose money. Nearly 8000 of them are in the marginal seats of ­Gilmore, Robertson and Page, and 40,000 live in ALP seats.

More than 20,000 pensioners living in Labor seats in Victoria and almost 10,000 in Labor-held seats in Queensland would also lose out, according to the data.

The data shows that six Liberal and LNP-held marginal seats, which the government would ­likely lose in an election based on current polling, had similar numbers to the Labor marginal seats of pensioners and retirees who would be affected.

In the Queensland seat of Forde, which the LNP won by 1062 votes, there are 4074 voters receiving an average refund of $1604 while, in the central Queensland LNP seat of Capricornia that the Nationals’ Michelle Landry won by 1111 votes, there are 6209 voters ­receiving an average refund of $2079.

Mr Morrison will today visit the NSW south coast seat of Gilmore — won by Liberal MP Ann Sudmalis by 1503 votes — where there are 10,903 voters who receive an average refund of $1397.

The other marginal Liberal seats most affected by the policy include the central Queensland seat of Flynn — where there are 5939 voters receiving an average refund of $2461 — and the NSW central coast seat of Robertson where there are 9331 voters ­receiving an average refund of $1799.

The second-most marginal seat in the country — the Labor-held ­Adelaide electorate of Hindmarsh — has 8850 voters who receive an average refund of $2140.

Labor has warned that the value of the refunds at $6bn a year is unsustainable and will claw back $59bn in revenue over the decade by scrapping the measure initially introduced by the Howard government in 2001.

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Australia bans bolt action rifle because of its scary 'appearance'



Gun owners often argue that “assault weapon” is just a term made up by politicians to ban guns that look “scary.”

The designation is made up, they say, to confuse consumers into thinking that machine guns are available off the shelf at local sporting goods stores. The so-called assault weapon, they say, is simply a semi-automatic rifle with certain cosmetic features.

Australia's government is giving ammunition to this argument by beginning to confiscate rifles simply because they look scary. The Australian Border Force ordered its citizens to turn in a bolt action rifle, 7 News Brisbane reports, “due to the firearm being substantially the same in appearance as a fully automatic firearm.” In other words, the guns are now illegal because they look like so called assault weapons.

This is, of course, ridiculous.

The rifle in question is a Riverman Operator Assisted Firearm. It cannot fire fully automatic. It cannot even fire semi-automatic. It is a bolt action rifle, meaning that a shooter has to manually chamber a cartridge before taking each shot. Aside from its pistol grip, tactical stock, and scope, it has more in common with Lee Enfield rifles of the Second World War than M16s or AK-47s of today’s conflicts.

But because looks can be deceiving, the gun has become illegal.

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"Ping Pong" is racist?

A new Asian-themed gastropub called Hotel Longtime has sparked outrage on social media, with critics calling its name and theme racist.

The owners, married couple Alex Fahey and Tin Chu, have denied the Adelaide pub is racist, and said their Ping Pong Club Room has nothing to do with sex shows.

Critics slammed the pub's name, which they say references a scene from the movie Full Metal Jacket in which a Vietnamese prostitute says 'Me love you long time'.

They claimed the Ping Pong Club Room was prostitution-themed, referring to 'Asian strippers performing demeaning acts', as was a 'brothel madame' poster.

Vietnamese-born co-owner Ms Chu said their critics made associations that were never imagined when Hotel Longtime was designed, The Advertiser reported.

'It is worth remembering that I am a director of this licensee company and I am a proud Asian woman who has worked hard to build my business,' she said.

'There is nothing in our name which is in any way intended to insult or offend women. If anyone has felt that, then we humbly apologise.'

Mr Fahey denied the Ping Pong Club Room was a deliberate reference to sex shows involving ping pong balls, and said the name means 'stay for a long time'.

'It's meant to be like a clubroom, like a football clubroom, where you go and have a drink after playing ping pong. It's nothing to do with the Thailand ping pong shows,' he said.

Alice Whittington - who started a petition on Change.org demanding the pair change the name of the pub - said the theme perpetuated negative Asian stereotypes.

'All I wish for on behalf of Asian people and in particular women, is a change of venue name, as well as the acknowledgement that this name and concept blatantly reaffirms the stereotype.

'I too am a proud, half-Asian woman born and bred in Adelaide. Here and around the world, I have been subject to horrific slurs and racial and sexual harassment directly related to the quotes that are associated with the film Full Metal Jacket.'

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Posted by John J. Ray (M.A.; Ph.D.).    For a daily critique of Leftist activities,  see DISSECTING LEFTISM.  To keep up with attacks on free speech see Tongue Tied. Also, don't forget your daily roundup  of pro-environment but anti-Greenie  news and commentary at GREENIE WATCH .  Email me  here