For those that fear coming to Australia!

[Gwiwer]

13 hours ago, billbedford said:

 

Lucky you, it could have been Sonia

 

10 hours ago, St Enodoc said:

I believe that she lives on the LUL Northern and Piccadilly line stock...

 

3 hours ago, billbedford said:

 

Still gets on ya nerves. 

Sonya does indeed survive and yes she still get Sonya nerves. 
 

I was amused by this which arrived this morning. 
 

 

[kevinlms]

Well here's another woman conspiracy theorist. She has already had a window smashed, by the police!

 

https://www.news.com.au/national/victoria/news/conspiracy-theorist-eve-black-dramatically-arrested-in-melbourne/news-story/6b526b5f9e2b27f1fcfd111f96770c20

[kevinlms]

PLEASE KEEP HIM!

 

https://www.theage.com.au/world/europe/abbott-s-new-british-trade-role-called-into-question-as-gig-exposes-european-jaunt-20200827-p55pp2.html

[Barry O]

27 minutes ago, kevinlms said:

PLEASE KEEP HIM!

 

https://www.theage.com.au/world/europe/abbott-s-new-british-trade-role-called-into-question-as-gig-exposes-european-jaunt-20200827-p55pp2.html

No thanks..we have enough snouts in the trough in the UK as it is...

[monkeysarefun]

 

He was born in the UK and anyway you lot sent us Leo Sayer.

[kevinlms]

16 hours ago, Barry O said:

No thanks..we have enough snouts in the trough in the UK as it is...

As a former Australian MP and PM, Abbott is on the trough for the rest of his life anyway. Since he had to give up his British citizenship, you can send him back at any time. Hence why I pleaded with you to keep him!

[DavidB-AU]

21 minutes ago, monkeysarefun said:

 

He was born in the UK and anyway you lot sent us Leo Sayer.

 

Fun fact. I just happened to be in Commonwealth Park on Australia Day in 2009 and came across a citizenship ceremony. The then Governor-General, Prime Minister and Chief of the Defence Force were all there. One of the new citizens was Gerard Hugh Sayer.

 

 

Cheers

David

[rockershovel]

On 27/08/2020 at 23:48, monkeysarefun said:

 

He was born in the UK and anyway you lot sent us Leo Sayer.

 

Not the spiders, though. Those are all yours. 

[rockershovel]

On 26/07/2020 at 21:34, Gwiwer said:

Very similar to England where my microcosmic view of recent daily events suggests that the newly-enacted mandatory face-coverings in all enclosed spaces is largely being adhered to.  A few people don't seem to know, a few don't care and a few are genuinely caught out especially at this early stage.  There are a few "Covidiots" who try to get smart but the ones who offer a genuine apology having forgotten (it is a very new thing in a fast-changing environment, after all) seem to be accepted at face value.  

 

Police are not, on the whole, issuing fines for non-compliance.  They are - if they are present at all - offering advice, reminders and - if necessary - warnings.  

 

Given that in the UK it is thought that 15-20% of people would be exempt from face-coverings under government guidelines it would seem that a good many exempt persons are covering up anyway when they can.  

 

My friends in Greater Melbourne and regional Victoria tell me much the same story but with the usual Aussie "larrikin" attitude rather more prevalent than it is in the UK.  

 

Went to Tesco yesterday. Around 25% of those present, not wearing masks at all; at least 25% wearing them “half mast” around their chins, or slung rakishly from one ear. Various families with either the children wearing masks, or the adults, but not both. Police, nowhere to be seen. Similar experience in town, earlier in the week. There particularly seems to be a common view that masks aren’t required inside shopping centres, just in the actual shops, which is not what the regs say at all. 

 

Had lunch in a local pub pub last week, few obvious signs apart from the Perspex screen by the till. Masks not worn, including serving staff. Tables a bit wider apart, although there is usually a fairly wide spacing there anyway. 

 

Had a walk at Ferry Meadows. This can be a rather tiresome experience, my good wife zig-zags from verge to verge as she seeks to be one of the six or so people observing “social distancing” in a busy 300 acre park...still it’s good for her recorded distance on her Fitbit. The cafe on the verandah at the Boat Club was busy, with a general consensus that once you have sat down, that’s it; masks aren’t required till you leave, if then. 

 

 

I’d tend to agree that the English don’t tend to show the Australian “larrikin” style, but they DO tend to be extremely stubborn once they get hold of an idea. The impression I get is that increasing numbers of people are losing patience with the whole business. 

[Gwiwer]

1 hour ago, rockershovel said:

The impression I get is that increasing numbers of people are losing patience with the whole busines

That would be a fair call from where I sit. 
 

In most areas infection rates are down and falling; nationally they are holding steady even with more intensive testing. UK-wide mortality is in single figures most days. 
 

There is a sense of boredom, a sense of “I’m on holiday - rules don’t apply” and of “emergency over”.   Boredom and frustration are understandable. The others are simply untrue. 

[rockershovel]

22 minutes ago, Gwiwer said:

That would be a fair call from where I sit. 
 

In most areas infection rates are down and falling; nationally they are holding steady even with more intensive testing. UK-wide mortality is in single figures most days. 
 

There is a sense of boredom, a sense of “I’m on holiday - rules don’t apply” and of “emergency over”.   Boredom and frustration are understandable. The others are simply untrue. 

 

I’d say, more a case of loss of credibility. Six months into the whole business, a very large majority of the population have had no contact at all with the disease. There’s an increasing sense that this simply isn’t viable and can’t continue. The weather has turned now, and that can’t help. 

[Gwiwer]

17 minutes ago, rockershovel said:

 

I’d say, more a case of loss of credibility. Six months into the whole business, a very large majority of the population have had no contact at all with the disease. There’s an increasing sense that this simply isn’t viable and can’t continue. The weather has turned now, and that can’t help. 

It is said to be spreading among the younger sections of the population.  In other words those who have always been less cautious and sometimes carefree with regard to viral precautions.  Those who, when about in gangs, will adopt an attitude and use the numbers in the gang for "safety" in their misguided ways.  It takes significant police resources to manage such things - resources which they don't have.  

 

The weather has turned Autumnal in the UK and we shall soon be both indoors far more and with the kids back at school.  Both are potentially high-risk scenarios which the government will be watching carefully.  

 

The UK (i.e Westminster) government made a hash of the early stages of this pandemic but has got to grips and learned fast.  They are probably doing as good a job as anyone now and better than many.  That wasn't true in February or March when things went pear-shaped overnight and we had far more infection than we knew about.  

 

Many people have had no close contact with the virus and know of no-one who has had it.  What they may be unaware of is that they themselves and their friends and family may have had it - and may still have it - without symptoms.  This is especially true of under-30s who so far have shown few and very mild symptoms when infected and are far more likely to shrug of such things as "just a bad day".  I refer to my opening paragraph; it is this very section of our population who must be tackled and must be persuaded to comply with the requirements to wear face-coverings in those locations where they are required.  And ideally when out and about anywhere in any numbers.  

[PhilJ W]

1 hour ago, Gwiwer said:

That would be a fair call from where I sit. 
 

In most areas infection rates are down and falling; nationally they are holding steady even with more intensive testing. UK-wide mortality is in single figures most days. 
 

There is a sense of boredom, a sense of “I’m on holiday - rules don’t apply” and of “emergency over”.   Boredom and frustration are understandable. The others are simply untrue. 

I can't see any tinfoil hats.

https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/thousands-anti-lockdown-protesters-gather-22597555?utm_source=facebook.com&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=sharebar&fbclid=IwAR1oelFEZqDiyCeMl343Z5AGb56fgCNa8swi4HeLQeXiwvrBxm0l8fZtZ9o

[monkeysarefun]

From The Guardian..

 

While the Covid-19 pandemic has disrupted the national economy and plunged many into unemployment, there’s one little industry expecting to boom – snake catching.

Melbourne’s Raymond Hoser has been catching snakes professionally since the 1970s and says he’s about to be busier than ever.

“Because people are at home and they’re not out and about ... we’ve got a perfect storm where people will see more snakes,” he said.

Pictured with live Queensland taipans in 2011

 

The snake expert who runs Snakebusters based in Melbourne’s east says whiling away the hours in lockdown by mowing and gardening will increase the likelihood of spotting unwelcome reptiles.

 

“Everyone’s gardens look more immaculate than ever but the flip side is, in long grass, you won’t even see the snake,” he said.

The sunny weather on Saturday brought snakes out of hibernation and Hoser was unusually busy.

He was called out for tiger snakes in seven suburbs – Warrandyte, Eltham, Diamond Creek, Northcote, Abbotsford and Kew and for a brown snake in Avondale Heights. He picked up a blue-tongue lizard at Avondale Heights.

The snake-catcher expects call-outs to increase from now on, peaking at 20-30 call-outs a day by October.

Business was also unusually busy in March as lockdowns began and before winter had warded off the snakes.

Most snakes in Melbourne are deadly so Hoser urges caution.

“If you see a snake don’t go near it. Nine times out of 10 if they’re in your garden they’re passing through,” he said.

“If you get bitten, bandage on your arm, straight to hospital.

“Without treatment you’re likely to die. With treatment you probably won’t die.”

 

Edited August 30, 2020 by monkeysarefun

[manna]

G'Day Folks

 

 

[kevinlms]

An expensive day out for this pair! Multiple charges each.

 

https://www.theage.com.au/national/woman-tries-to-cross-into-nsw-from-victoria-in-car-boot-20200906-p55suv.html

[Gwiwer]

4 minutes ago, kevinlms said:

An expensive day out for this pair! Multiple charges each.

 

https://www.theage.com.au/national/woman-tries-to-cross-into-nsw-from-victoria-in-car-boot-20200906-p55suv.html

There's always one.  

 

Not a million miles removed there has been a steady procession of younger persons here heading to Thorpe Park for entertainment since it re-opened.  Many do not have tickets.  Many are persons of the BAME community.  Many travel in groups.  Many do not wear face-coverings and refuse to do so when reminded.  

 

Train arrives; several groups of the above pile on gesturing their indifference with displayed middle fingers in our direction.  Doors lock closed.  The British Transport Police reveal themselves and commence a full check of the train!!!  £20 penalty fare for no valid ticket (plus the standard fare from origin to intended destination) and £100 for failure to wear a face-covering without adequate reason.  That's a fairly expensive start to a day out.  We heard later that the entire train-load was also refused entry to Thorpe Park for refusing to wear face-coverings and many were served ASBOs by the local police for refusing to disperse and go home and instead being rather obnoxious.  

 

 

[kevinlms]

18 minutes ago, Gwiwer said:

There's always one.  

 

Not a million miles removed there has been a steady procession of younger persons here heading to Thorpe Park for entertainment since it re-opened.  Many do not have tickets.  Many are persons of the BAME community.  Many travel in groups.  Many do not wear face-coverings and refuse to do so when reminded.  

 

Train arrives; several groups of the above pile on gesturing their indifference with displayed middle fingers in our direction.  Doors lock closed.  The British Transport Police reveal themselves and commence a full check of the train!!!  £20 penalty fare for no valid ticket (plus the standard fare from origin to intended destination) and £100 for failure to wear a face-covering without adequate reason.  That's a fairly expensive start to a day out.  We heard later that the entire train-load was also refused entry to Thorpe Park for refusing to wear face-coverings and many were served ASBOs by the local police for refusing to disperse and go home and instead being rather obnoxious.  

 

 

120 pounds each for a start off -pfft nothing!

 

Driving without a licence in Victoria, is at least $750

No valid permit into NSW, I think is $1000

Dunno about carrying passengers in locations without seatbelt access - probably at least $300

Running a red light I think is around the $500 mark.

 

So that's heading towards $4000 between the pair! I'm sure two different police services can come up with more, without trying hard.

[monkeysarefun]

8 hours ago, kevinlms said:

120 pounds each for a start off -pfft nothing!

 

Driving without a licence in Victoria, is at least $750

No valid permit into NSW, I think is $1000

Dunno about carrying passengers in locations without seatbelt access - probably at least $300

Running a red light I think is around the $500 mark.

 

So that's heading towards $4000 between the pair! I'm sure two different police services can come up with more, without trying hard.

 

$4000...  Queensland either reckons we  NSWelshpersons are all harbourside mansion owning  millionaires which we are , or really hates us and wants to send us broke..

[Gwiwer]

But we all know Australian police are merely government revenue-raisers.  Only said partially in jest.  Why else would fines be set so ridiculously high that they require a mortgage to pay off - it's cheaper to put someone in the slammer for a week.  £100 here seems like a slap on the wrist but it's affordable (by many) and while a few see it as aright of passage they need to remember that the fine doubles on each subsequent offence.  Mostly it's taken on the chin.  

 

I had heard about VicPol (specifically - I only ever lived in Vic but visited most other states / territories) and their revenue-raising antics before ever setting foot in the country.  When I saw them in action I realised the truth of it.  Rookie recruits fresh from training school are posted in some numbers to a city intersection and book every single jay-walker.  It's only $76 but that is an expensive trip across the road.  In almost any other nation jay-walking is at your own risk rather than a blatant revenue-raiser.  And that's just one example.  

[kevinlms]

4 hours ago, Gwiwer said:

But we all know Australian police are merely government revenue-raisers.  Only said partially in jest.  Why else would fines be set so ridiculously high that they require a mortgage to pay off - it's cheaper to put someone in the slammer for a week.  £100 here seems like a slap on the wrist but it's affordable (by many) and while a few see it as aright of passage they need to remember that the fine doubles on each subsequent offence.  Mostly it's taken on the chin.  

 

I had heard about VicPol (specifically - I only ever lived in Vic but visited most other states / territories) and their revenue-raising antics before ever setting foot in the country.  When I saw them in action I realised the truth of it.  Rookie recruits fresh from training school are posted in some numbers to a city intersection and book every single jay-walker.  It's only $76 but that is an expensive trip across the road.  In almost any other nation jay-walking is at your own risk rather than a blatant revenue-raiser.  And that's just one example.  

A lot of it is interstate rivalry.

 

One of the worst 'crimes' in NSW is to do a 'U' turn at a set of traffic lights, unless specifically allowed by signage (which apparently virtually doesn't exist).

In Victoria, the opposite rule applies, you can do a 'U' turn at a set of traffic lights, unless signage specifically bans it. Thus its common for Victorian drivers to fall foul of this law and no doubt NSW police see it as easy pickings and a cheer from regular motorists, who see a Victorian plated car pulled up.

Mind you we get them back for not doing 'Hook Turns', but these are only in some roads with tram crossings.

 

In Victoria, the high fines started with drink driving, because back in the 1970s the death toll was shocking, over 1000 per year in a population of around 3 million back then.

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_motor_vehicle_deaths_in_Australia_by_year

Note how deaths per billion km travelled has fallen

 

[SRman]

Queensland has the same rule as NSW for U-turns at traffic lights. I forgot this once when visiting Rockhampton after many years in Melbourne, and performed a U-turn with a Queensland friend on board. The accompanying gasps alerted me to my gaff. Fortunately there were no police around at the time.

Mind you, when I last lived in Rockhampton, they only had one set of traffic lights in the whole place.

Edited September 7, 2020 by SRman

[monkeysarefun]

You never got away with speeding in Victoria in the 70s, not with that bloke from matlock police on your tail..

(Oh, except for this one time..)

 

 

Edited September 7, 2020 by monkeysarefun

[SHMD]

..and just how I remembered the 70s - smudged/washed-out TV programs on a small Black & White Telly!

 

Was that a Ford Falcon chasing?

 

 

Kev.

 

[Gwiwer]

13 hours ago, kevinlms said:

A lot of it is interstate rivalry.

It pays to remember that Australia, whilst politically a single nation (at least on paper ) behaves as though it were still a collection of separate ones.  Rules, laws and traditions differ across state borders including the U-turn rule mentioned above.  

 

It does get a trifle tedious when the border runs through the middle of town.  The joint city of Albury - Wodonga lies either wide of the Murray River with one set of laws applicable in Albury to its north and another in Wodonga to its south.  A drive to the shops doesn't have to be an inter-state trip but it often is.  The same is true of the much smaller Echuca-Moama where Echuca is Victorian and Moama the far side of the bridge it New South Welsh.  

 

But the worst by far must be Tweed Heads where the single town has the NSW / QLD border running right through the middle.  "South Tweed Heads" is technically the NSW part but this throws up all manner of inconsistencies.  I worked in insurance for some time out there.  If one had a car accident in Tweed Heads then if your car was registered in NSW and your policy therefore a NSW one you came under NSW process where ever you were in the town and would have the vehicle assessed by a NSW business.  If your car was a QLD plate because you lived that side of the street then you came under QLD process and had to be assessed at a specialist centre in Nerang if the accident was in QLD but under a different interstate agreement if in NSW!  If you needed a tow then a NSW driver in NSW called the NRMA, a QLD driver in QLD called the nearest available tow-truck, a NSW driver in QLD called the NRMA who transferred the job to an agreed QLD towie and a QLD driver in NSW required RACQ membership for reciprocal towing rights by the NRMA otherwise it would cost a lot.  And no-one was allowed to tow across the border meaning you often didn't go to the nearest repairer.  

 

And then there's Broken Hill.  In NSW but so far removed from anywhere else in that state and so far west that it adopts South Australian (Adelaide) time and for insurance purposes is dealt with as a SA location despite being closer to the Victorian border which would have it in the same time zone as NSW! 

 

Don't get me started on what beer glasses are called nor what the "correct" name is for a deep-fried and battered slice of potato.   

Edited September 7, 2020 by Gwiwer