Have we got a deal for you
By 2353NM
There is a conspiracy theory that suggests that birds (in the USA at least) aren’t real. The claim is that all the birds in the USA were hunted down by the government between the late 50’s and early 70s and replaced with bird like drones to spy on you. According to the theory President John F. Kennedy was assassinated because he didn’t support the program to replace birds with surveillance drones. Before you get too concerned, the kookaburra or cockatoo sitting in the tree watching you is not a drone and neither are any ‘drone birds’ in the USA because
The conspiracy theory powered by Gen Z was started by a man named Peter McIndoe. He told The New York Times last year the movement began at a women’s march in Memphis, Tennessee, in January 2017. Counterprotesters supporting former President Donald Trump also attended the event, and when McIndoe saw the group he wrote “Birds Aren’t Real” on a poster as a joke.
“It was a spontaneous joke, but it was a reflection of the absurdity everyone was feeling,” he told the Times.
He continued to joke about the idea of the conspiracy at the rally, and a video of him went viral on Facebook. The claim spread among teenagers in the area, and McIndoe told the outlet that he and a friend, Connor Gaydos, wrote a fake history of the conspiracy, coming up with more jokes and fake details.
“It basically became an experiment in misinformation,” McIndoe said. “We were able to construct an entirely fictional world that was reported on as fact by local media and questioned by members of the public.”
There is a serious side to satirical movements such as Birds aren’t Real or the Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster (go here for their ‘real’ history) and that is to draw attention to the absurd and ridiculous that some believe to the exclusion of reality. Unfortunately others believe conspiracy theories that are anything but harmless. For example when you have a current President of the USA claiming that the election was rigged and polling officials were substituting votes, there is a certain percentage of the population that will swallow the claim without question. They already feel so isolated from the system due to earlier pronouncements by the same President and his supporters they will follow anyone who offers an alternative. The January 6 riot in Washington DC is a demonstration of the power of conspiracy theories.
For those that believe it couldn’t happen on this side of the Pacific, think again. It’s pretty obvious why the Federal Government commissioned a report into why former Prime Minister Scott Morrison thought for a nano-second that ‘shadowing’ various Ministers of the Crown that he appointed was anything like a clever idea. The reason wasn’t political payback, although requesting the response by 25 November 2022, leading into the last week of Parliament for the year as well as being the day before the Victorian State Election could have been. The reason the report was commissioned was to ensure that there were processes in place to stop the next Prime Minster with an overinflated sense of their own importance from effectively being able to overrule decisions of the various Ministers of the Crown as well as understanding the role of Parliament in our system of governance.
Over the years, the various Parliaments of Australia have delegated authority to make decisions to various Ministers of the Crown in the belief the decision maker was responsible for that area of government. The minister would be answerable for those decisions to the people of Australia through our Parliamentary representatives. The Prime Minister, while leader of the government probably doesn’t (and arguably shouldn’t) have the access to all the necessary information and is responsible for the policy of their government to the people of Australia, again through our Parliamentary representatives. There is also the practical problem around if the decision impacts a multi-billion investment decision that is going to be made – such as a new mining venture – is the Minister the ‘decision maker’ or is there another undisclosed ‘decision maker’ above the Minster?
Justice Bell was requested to investigate what went wrong and what measures could be put into place to make sure it doesn’t happen again. Her report was scathing and delivered on time. The Prime Minister’s website states
The unprecedented and inexcusable actions of the former Prime Minister were emblematic of the culture of secrecy in which the previous Government operated.
The Bell Inquiry confirms the Solicitor-General’s conclusion that the principles of responsible government were “fundamentally undermined” because Mr Morrison was not “responsible” to the Parliament, and through the Parliament to the electors, for the departments he was appointed to administer.
Justice Bell found the secrecy around the appointments was “apt to undermine public confidence in government” and was “corrosive of trust in government.”
The report shreds any last remnants of credibility the former prime minister might have in regard to his disdain for proper process and in the way he treated his colleagues and the public.
Justice Bell doesn’t call the prime minister a liar, but dances splendidly through a range of creative terminology which doubts the reliability of what he said, in writing, through his lawyers, in response to her questions about the circumstances of him appointing himself to no less than six of 14 government departments (not including the one he considered adding to the collection, but subsequently did not act upon).
It further documents what can only appear to be an exceptionally sneaky way of going about running a government.
“Mr Morrison’s assumption that all the appointments were notified to the public in the Gazette is not easy to reconcile with his conduct at the time or with his public statements when the appointments came to light,” Justice Bell writes
Justice Bell also found there is a process in place to transfer responsibilities should a Minister become suddenly incapacitated, so Morrison’s claim that the ‘shadowing’ was only done to ensure continuity in the event of incapacity are marketing hype and spin – not based in reality. There are 6 recommendations in Justice Bell’s report which unsurprisingly, the Albanese Government has committed to implement.
Morrison’s past history really isn’t that impressive. While a background in marketing and leading the government tourism agencies in Australia and New Zealand sounds impressive, the reality is far less so when it is considered that both governments (and a Coalition one at that in Australia) terminated his employment early for undisclosed reasons but plenty of chatter suggests that process, policy and good governance were not followed. There was also some concern about the way Morrison managed to reopen the preselection for the seat of Cook, not to mention the way he claimed he became Prime Minister, riding in on his white charger to save the Liberal Party from former Prime Minister Turnbull and current Opposition Leader Dutton.
Maybe the Liberal Party has fallen victim to the biggest conspiracy theory this side of the Pacific in the last 20 years by believing the hype around Scott Morrison, generated by the same Scott Morrison. They sadly haven’t realised their gullibility yet as demonstrated by mostly voting against the censure motion brought to the House of Representatives when the real adults in the room. The ALP, Greens and Independents called his behaviour out for what it really was – a messiah complex combined with a confidence trick.
The snake oil salesmen of the early 20th Century would be proud of him.
What do you think?
This article was originally published on The Political Sword
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16 comments
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margcal
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New England Cocky
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Phil Pryor
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Alotl Axolotl
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calculus witherspoon.
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Terence Mills
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Henry Rodrigues
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Roswell
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leefe
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Clakka
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Harry Lime
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Michael Taylor
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calculus witherspoon.
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Terence Mills
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calculus witherspoon.
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GL
Return to home pageIt’s hardly surprising that Justice Bell found, after examination, what Blind Freddy knew by gut instinct when Morrison’s “extra portfolios” were first discovered.
The question remains, what is the point of a Governor General if, regardless of protocols and expectations, on seeing something wrong, and continuing to be wrong, he doesn’t say something about it to someone? To allow a wrong to continue is surely not acceptable.
Put very simply, Scummo, ably assisted by GG David Hurley, successfully laid the foundations for the first democratically elected, regally approved, fascist theocratic dictatorship in Australia overlorded by Scummo, Chosen by the Eagle to bring Australia to G*d under the Hell$inger$ Cult for buying your way to heaven now.
What stopped him?? Nothing!!
What have been the repercussions?? None!! Have either Scummo or Hurley been held to account?? No!!
Given that the late Betty Windsor or Charlie Chuckles did nothing to prevent this abuse of power perhaps it is time for Australian voters to seriously consider that we need an Australian borne Head of State for the Australian republic.
Let us call out ignorance, subservience to shitskulls like Morrison, obedience to pretentious defectives like a “king,” or a pope, or an imam, or a dogshit dictator wannabe, or a poxed potato, or a country party pissheaded porker, or grovelling to sickskulled mediocrities who only and really want to pose, profiteer, prance, and generally ponce away remorselessly, at our expense. Let us now be what we really are, a nation of formerly displaced and betrayed folk who want a distinct, free, unfettered GO at being as GOOD as we can. AND, a FAIR Go is our subliminal motto, our best aim, our future, regardless of the horrible conservative parasites..and, no ties to enslaving and uncaring allies who will sell us OUT, First….
I just want to see Smirky McHairplug in gaol.
Nothing more-nothing less.
Yeah, cummon AIM.
Where is the long awaited article on RC into ROBOdebt?
Calculus
Scott Morrison appears before the Robodebt Royal Commission tomorrow, Wednesday 14 December.
Terence….. Thanks for that piece of delightful info. I’m dropping all my plans for tomorrow just so I can watch the scumbag try to wriggle and squirm and gesticulate in court just to present his ‘defence’ and miserable pathetic excuses, why he’s such a bastard.
I can’t wait. Dropping all other plans.
Ooooo, tomorrow promises to be an entertaining day.
The history of the Crown, its representatives and bands of corsairs is appalling by any account. Through internecine calculus, on brutality, revenge and acquisition, it is either silent, or under the cover of bling and schmooze extolling them as acts of virtue by the people. The Crown and its retinue are masters of convenient revisionism.
That’s not to say that over the millennia it wasn’t an almost universal practice driving ‘development’. However by way of evolution, it went from a primitive mania, to random acts of the blessed, then an industry taken global mainly by the British Crown. An industry to which all other industries are beholden, and in turn, for both, the theatre of parliaments of convenience devising the scripts and making the writs to align the people’s desires to demands for the technologies and products of the mill.
That is, until those industries, saturated by the hubris of power, locked-in by the writs, and beguiled by their own quest, begin to eat each other. As it turns to a feast; La Grande Bouffe, the people watch-on, existing on the crumbs.
Here in Oz, as convicts, settlers and gold-diggers, folk were well used to being lied to and brutalised. Witness to the irrelevant emissaries of Europe, and ruled by the mostly bellicose, drunken and incompetent dregs despatched from the table of the Crown.
A fair land if respected, but to the arrogant, brutal and to be brought to the heel of the empire. Wronged, discontent and dubious, there was little for most to do but go it alone, setting a foundation formed by lessons from the land.
Is that our story of Oz? Rejecting the panoply of the west, its churches, and the Crown? The origin of our great fairness?
Stories of convenience usually have some alloyed truths. Made to afford cover for the polished-up descendants and newcomers. As we moved from subsistence to enterprise, we of course instituted and occupied our own parliament. Titivating the same old decrees as we welcomed the carpetbaggers, the corsairs and agents of the elite and their bags of ill-gotten gains. All to furnish a selective prosperity.
In the name of trade they accelerated the invasion and reaping of the land, and the subjugation of its nature and inhabitants. And even as a duty in return, sent the hard toilers off as canon-fodder across the globe. The industry was set, with the rules paving the way for endless sophistry and corruption.
It started. The schemozzle of labour vs capital.
Then came Ming. Did they know what would happen through the 1st entitlement?
Then came Gough. Did they know what would happen until the weilding of capital?
Then came Mal. Did they know the 2nd entitlement till the lights went out?
Then came Bob & Paul. Did they know the reign of change, and the opening till the wolf-whistle of debt & deficit?
Then came Little Johnny. Did they know of the 3rd entitlement, the great pork barrel and the choices?
Then came Kev & Julia. Did they know the world pressed as we herded cats trying to keep the ducks in a row? Then the decade of sundry pretenders. Hate peddling & squinting as the world caves around the 5th entitlement.
The advent of Scotty, the GG & the entire circus. The 6th & ultimate entitlement. Nothing doing, nothing to see here.
After reaping the proceeds of the 6 entitlements and the world going to hell in a handbasket, they head for cover and cause to recall the story of Oz.
What a bunch of bastards. Given the Albo, clueless, they squawk and protest, citing the great fairness in hope of another entitlement.
Send ’em dispossessed to the back of beyond. Bring on the Voice and fashion a republic.
Clakka, I don’t know what you’re on,but don’t give it up.I wholeheartedly don’t disagree.
Worth a smile.
Ternce Mills, too true. Will he carry on as dreadfully as those who have come before him?
A while now and still waiting for one of them to tell the truth without a metaphoric gun pointed at their heads.
calculus
This will be a case study in narcissism keenly followed by students of personality disorders.
Signs and symptoms of narcissistic personality disorder
Grandiose sense of self-importance. ...
Lives in a fantasy world that supports their delusions of grandeur. ...
Needs constant praise and admiration. ...
Sense of entitlement. ...
Exploits others without guilt or shame. ...
Frequently demeans, intimidates, bullies, or belittles others.
That’s our Scottie from marketing.
Terence Mills, a marvellous comment. It is the callousness and even obviously enjoyed. cruelty that will stay inside this writer’s memory.
I expect Scummo to go into full on “No one can (except for dog that is) judge me.” liberally, no pun intended, layered on with his usual smirking, sneering, arrogance, petulance, ducking and weaving and blaming everybody else.