(no subject)

[hnpcc]

Dear Federal Politicians,

Just call the damn election already. I'm sick of this bullshit and it looks like at least another two months to go. I don't care who leads your tiddliwinks team, I just want to go and vote and then rail against you for the next four years - but at least I'll be spared your "look at us, we are the bestest ever government" ads.

Yours sincerely,

a pathetic voter.

Comments

[undergroundsea.livejournal.com]

*this is the sound of talking online*

[hnpcc]

Ever get the feeling our politicians have no clue what this newfangled interwebby thing is?

Not to mention - I love the ads with the kids and the voiceover "every child is one click away from inappropriate images". OK, it may just be me, but I've never managed to end up on a porn site from an innocuous query. Quite seriously never. (Obviously my search terms are far too specific or something). I just love the implication that this interwebby thing is chock full o'porn, waiting to pounce on your sweet, innocent children (who wouldn't deliberately have typed that stuff in, hell no.) Which does make me wonder what politicians are using it for...

It's a bit like TV in some respects - supervision is everything (MHOO, YMMV etc).

[undergroundsea.livejournal.com]

Yes, I mean I find porn pretty easily and that's only via Google image when I switch off their safe filter. I also expose myself to it when I visit hacker/crack sites. But it's the price you pay *s*

I also don't see what the problem is with children having a slight exposure to porn by accident, I mean I think a level of sexual curiosity in a kid is fine. Before the net, there were magazines in the newsagent and late night films on SBS you'd watch when your parents were out.

From some of the images I've seen online, I don't think that most kids would look at it and go "give me some of that". They're more likely to think "gross".

The only problem I have with porn is that it may give children weird body/sex issues; and a disrespect for women. Then again I have similar issues with magazines like Dolly & Cosmo!

For me the internet safety ads are just another example of the Government scaring people for political game. I can't think of one Howard ad on tv right now that isn't designed to inform us about a threat to our way of life.

[hnpcc]

For me the internet safety ads are just another example of the Government scaring people for political game.

Basically. I mean, pre-WorkChoices union heavies used to come into my office all the time and start beating up managers. *eye roll*

[hnpcc]

Actually, my favourite stupid government ad on at the moment is the "Since WorkChoices 30,000 new small businesses have started up..." which does beg the questions - how many started up in the 3 months prior to WorkChoices? Is that more than normal, less than normal, the same as normal? How many closed? How many normally close? Did WorkChoices have any impact on people starting small businesses? Does anyone care?

[kirstenfleur.livejournal.com]

I think you ask too many questions. You'll have government heavies coming into your office any minute now. ;-)

[undergroundsea.livejournal.com]

And I love how big beer-gutted men who look as if they've just come out of a mine walk into a fashion design firm because I'm sure that's exactly who the union sends to sort out those pinky dressmakers *s*

[hnpcc]

OK, now I'm laughing more. After using one actor who was previously a painter and is now being done for ripping off his teenage workers, they've managed to use two two guys with criminal convictions to play the union heavies. I think the government/Australian Business Council needs to look at changing their advertising agency, this is doing nothing to convince anyone of the benefits of this legislation.

On the other hand, it does kind of prove that you can actually get acting work no matter how fugly you look in Australia. It'll just be limited to Crimestoppers and WorkChoices ads.

[undergroundsea.livejournal.com]

I saw a bit of that on the news last night! But to be honest my first thought was "why does that matter? whose business is it what past those men had?". I mean I understand the implications but I also feel sorry for the men who've had their criminal past alerted to the entire nation.

[hnpcc]

Oh nobody's business. And to be honest the Business council probably thinks it's entirely appropriate for union heavies to have criminal convictions - after all, unions are run by the mafia, just ask anyone. *sigh*

I still find it funny though. Especially the painter one, which was just ridiculous. If they're going to keep running massively over the top ads to convince me of things then they're going to have to put up with people scrutinising the hell out of them, including who the actors are (and, completely by the by, it's incredibly inappropriate of the cops to tip off the newspapers about the two to start with. As they allegedly did. At least the painter one was the aggrieved and underpaid apprentice doing the whistleblowing!)

[undergroundsea.livejournal.com]

All those ads are the biggest load of brainwashing. I personally am getting even more angry by the day at those "two blokes in a pub" ads where one guy claims to have got more money from his AWA because his employer was desperate to keep him.

[hnpcc]

Oh that one I find amusing.

"There's an undersupply of trained workers, so they're hanging out to keep me and giving me great pay and conditions!"

Yeah, think 5 years ahead guys. I dunno, for some reason 1990-1993 springs to mind.

one guy claims to have got more money from his AWA because his employer was desperate to keep him.

And naturally that's been the case all over the country! Spotlight? The factories up in NSW? All the other well reported cases of conditions and pay being cut with new AWAs? Aberrations, the lot of them. A "small minority" of large chain stores. Most people of course are doing far better under AWAs! No union people beating them up and demanding money with menaces for starters! Naturally if you're not, the problem is you. Everyone else can negotiate more money! You must be defective. ;-)

Although I notice a certain John Howard hasn't managed to negotiate his salary upwards despite this shortage of skilled workers. Still, he can always go up north and mine.

[undergroundsea.livejournal.com]

And there's that one about some young lad who is on an AWA at his chicken shop or something daft and now wants to move out of home, because clearly he can afford high rentals on his super generous casual wage!

What I liked best about public service is that there was a collective agreement that people who know what they were doing had negotiated on my behalf to ensure I was protected and I was equal with the person sitting next to me. Now if I got a job there I'd go straight on an AWA and not being at executive level the chances of me being able to negotiate something would still be rubbish. At best you can get things like study leave, study grants, gym memberships and parking spots.

For me, I just think the reality is that you go for a job and you take whatever contract the employer gives you; otherwise he can just turn around and give it to someone who wants less.

[hnpcc]

What I liked best about public service is that there was a collective agreement that people who know what they were doing had negotiated on my behalf to ensure I was protected and I was equal with the person sitting next to me.

Which is why I don't think unions are in their death throes yet, despite what certain parts of Australian politics may think. If there's one thing that annoys people, it's finding out that they're doing the same work for less money. Or even (as in Newcastle) more senior work for less money.

And there's that one about some young lad who is on an AWA at his chicken shop or something daft and now wants to move out of home, because clearly he can afford high rentals on his super generous casual wage!

Hell yeah! Maybe he gets Austudy and/or Centrelink benefits as well, that'd be a good reason to move... ;-)

For me, I just think the reality is that you go for a job and you take whatever contract the employer gives you; otherwise he can just turn around and give it to someone who wants less.

At the low end of the scale that's pretty much the case all the time, which is why the WorkChoices legislation annoys me. Yeah, sure, if you're going in at a senior level you can negotiate to a deal you're happy with, if you're going in to clean floors they don't need you anywhere near as much as you need them.

[undergroundsea.livejournal.com]

I also feel sorry for the out of work actors that did that domestic violence campaign because I'm sure there's people out there who still think they're not really actors and do horrid things to their ladypals!

[hnpcc]

Heh, there was a story like this a couple of years ago. A guy walked into a bar, and noticed he was getting some odd looks. He thought nothing of it, met up with his friend and was chatting when two divvy vans of cops rocked up, walked over to the bar staff, who pointed out this particular guy.

The cops then came over en masse, surrounded him and very politely asked to see his ID.

He pulled out his ID... then thought for a sec and also pulled out his Equity card. He'd played an armed robber in a Crimestoppers segment filmed two weeks earlier and it had aired about 5 minutes before he walked into the bar. The entire bar had recognised him from it. Heh.

[undergroundsea.livejournal.com]

Wow, what are the odds. Recently I saw some really bad tv, extreme makeover, where they made-over a criminal. He was falsely accused of murdering a barmaid and reckons that his snaggle-toothed smile and general bad looks had played a major part in his conviction. I think they have proven through several studies that pretty people do get lighter sentences and acquittals more than ugly people, but this guy's story was extreme!