Quote:
Originally Posted by strongmanmike
Outside? so this 1.3 Billion are now "outsiders" oh I see, trash, meaningless non Aussies, who cares huh?
But you are absolutely right on this sad state of affairs with our indigenous poeple Marki...but none of these genuinely disadvantaged Australians are on this thread in an astronomical Web community of Naglers, Digital focusers and I-Pads complaining about their increased power bills...are they..?
Mike
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In relation to the aussie tax dollar you are dead right, the 1.3 billion don't matter. People who get on their soapbox and preach differently are obviously blind to what is happening in their own back yard especially when political agenda's are at its heart. Now I earn well above the "average wage" whatever that may be and price hikes would have to be large to affect me in any way so why should I care? As part of my job description I am required to coordinate 1475 students in community outreach. As part of the WA curriculum high school kids are required to complete a number of hours community service helping those less fortunate than themselves. This means I have to keep close relationships with agencies like the Good Sammy's, Salvo's, Vinnies etc etc. It also means I have to participate myself in fundraising events, house visits, soup kitchens, emergency aid and so on as I need to provide the kids with as many opportunities as possible. In short I get to see much more than I would like and the situation is desperate for so many people who are not able to cope even though it is often kept in house with most of the general public having no idea. Whats more we have a boarding program where 40 indiginous kids from the far north of WA (Tanami desert) are invited to attend the college for the full 6 years of high school, most are illiterate. A number of these kids are left to their own devices by alcoholic and drug abusing parents from as young as 5 years old. They arrive riddled with health problems such as scabbies, nits, rotten teeth,
malnutrition, eye and ear infections (some are deaf in one ear) and so on. Some are habitual glue/petrol sniffers and also have drug addictions. The first year their stomachs struggle to deal with 3 square meals a day and they are often complaining about the pain. Many spend their lunch time in my office which I share with the assistant principle in charge of boarding. Many a time I have gone to write on the white board with my markers only to find the tips missing. So addicted to solvent abuse these kids pinch them whilst I am not looking and chew the ends to get the ethanol (there tounges are blue, red, green etc). They also have a strong addiction to aerosol, mortien included and we must supply roll on deordourants and the like to avoid the temptation. Worst of all when it all gets too much they first fight each other and when that does not resolve the problem they tie a rope to the nearest convient object and try to hang themselves. I am not being frivolous in saying the 1.3 billion don't count, I just think we need to fix our own house first. A good Gov't could do a lot more than we are currently experiencing by taking responsibilty for the fundermental utilities and making sure all have equal access to this countries success. Yes I do care but home first as many of the countries with large numbers of poor (e.g. india) have enough resources of their own if only they had the will.
Mark