The Guardian reports Essential Research’s latest weekly round of coronavirus polling includes the pollster’s monthly leadership ratings, which have Scott Morrison’s approval at 64%, gaining a further five points after his 18-point hike a month ago. Anthony Albanese is down two to 42% — we must await the full report later today to see their disapproval ratings. Morrison holds a 50-25 lead as preferred prime minister, out from 46-27 last time (UPDATE: Full report here; both are at 27% disapproval, which is a four point drop in Morrison’s case and a two point drop in Albanese’s).
The most interesting of the latest tranche of coronavirus questions relate to other countries’ handling of the crisis, with 79% rating New Zealand’s response very good or good, whereas (if I’m reading this correctly) the United States’ response is rated very poor or poor by 71%, and the United Kingdom is similarly rated by 48%. Another question finds 57% support for maintaining Newstart either at its current level “after the current crisis passes” or aligning it with the rate for single pensioners, with only 28% in favour of returning it to its earlier level.
The poll also finds growing appetite for easing restrictions, with 37% now saying it is too soon to do so, down from 49% a fortnight ago, and 36% wanting restrictions eased over the next month or two, but still only 10% wanting them gone as soon as possible. Respondents were also presented with a series of propositions about school closures, which found 45% sayig schools should reopen, “half” saying schools should teach students remotely until the outbreak passes, and 41% saying they would keep their children at home even if schools reopened.
The latest news on the by-election front is that NSW Nationals leader John Barilaro has announced he will not run in Eden-Monaro, and Senator Jim Molan has likewise withdrawn his intention to pursue Liberal preselection, with both allowing a clear run for Andrew Constance, NSW Transport Minister and member for the seat of Bega, most of which is within Eden-Monaro. The by-election now looms as a straightforward contest between Labor and Liberal, with the Nationals sure to be only a minor presence in Barilaro’s absence, if indeed they run at all.
Constance was the subject of sympathetic media attention after nearly losing his Malua Bay house in the summer bushfires, a particularly helpful asset given the federal goverment’s handling of the fires loomed as its main liability in the campaign. He revealed in March that he would be quitting politics when the bushfire recovery was complete, albeit without making clear when that might be. The by-election that will now be required in Bega will thus be less disruptive than one in Barilaro’s seat of Monaro would have been, and the seat is also at less risk of being lost by the government. No indication so far as I can see as to who might be in the running in Bega.
Itza,
Please do not stop posting. I am busy with too much work (what is new really), but when I skim the blog I always look for your name.
Everything you post is scientifically based, and gives me insights about what to make of this weird new world in which we find ourselves.
I also miss RH Wombat, but I guess he is incredibly busy, and decided that arguing with people who will not engage with his scientific expertise was just a waste of time 🙁
So, and now for something completely different, my travels once took me to Staunton, Virginia. Had a great meal in an Indian restaurant, and decided to buy a takeaway beer on the way home – after 8 pm at night, forget it.
I then found this “speakeasy” full of African American blues players, and asked if they could give me some takeaway – no problem at all. I felt like I had strayed into a Blues Brother’s set. I had to get up early the next morning, and so like a good girl I took my couple of beers and went to bed, the Bates motel.
I should have just called in sick! It was during the 2012 shutdown anyway. I could have had the best night there.
So: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g22l1hnAnlA. (sorry about the ads)
p
A ‘tre’ and a ‘zac’.
Time for bed. Good night all. Sweet dreams.
beguiledagain
A well deserved and earned ‘top up’. Should happen everywhere. Great idea.
Has much changed in NSW Labor since 2011 when this article was written?
——
State of NSW: Labor reaps what it sows after attacking the working class
https://theconversation.com/state-of-nsw-labor-reaps-what-it-sows-after-attacking-the-working-class-329
poroti @ #2843 Friday, May 8th, 2020 – 9:45 pm
Thanks, poroti. It’s just that Saturday is a big day usually and I’d like to get an early start. 🙂
Rakali
It ain’t that with a Kiwi accent 🙂
“Is it true the “Groupers” were not ‘purged’ from NSW Labor ? If they weren’t it would explain a lot.”
I will answer on Clem’s behalf. Some of them were but a lot stayed in. Hence, the right narrowly kept control of the NSW ALP and then rapidly consolidated over the next few years. This contrasted with Victoria where all the Groupers were expelled or left voluntarily. Qld split later and while it was not a grouper vs anti grouper fault line, in practice most of the groupers also left.
Supposedly the NSW situation was influenced by a more pragmatic view by the NSW catholic hierarchy and a pretty skilful State Premier who wanted to keep his job. The Victorians were just dogmatic and moralistic on both sides. The Queenslanders just stupid pig headed bastards. In short, little has changed
C@tmomma
BK may be back patrolling the dawn tomorrow. For some people maintaining normality is a good way of coping with a loss like that, for others they need time out. Whatever BK chooses it better be what is best for him. His mother was responsible for producing a quality product. ( a nod to BK’s QA/QC background)
poroti
It ain’t that with a Kiwi accent
———-
Sorry, After i posted i thought, maybe in NZ it was thruppence 🙂
Chris Haviland, a former Federal MP. He is a 40-year member of the ALP
Lavarch review: It’s time to fix NSW Labor
https://independentaustralia.net/politics/politics-display/lavarch-review-its-time-to-fix-nsw-labor,13308
“However, this review must examine more than just specific incidents in the past few years. The fact that incidents of this nature continue to occur within the party in NSW point to not only systemic administrative failures but an ongoing structural and cultural problem in the NSW branch.
It will be claimed by some that recent problems are a “one-off” caused by a “few bad apples”. This neither identifies nor addresses the real problem.
It has been 65 years since the current regime that controls NSW Labor has been in place. The absolute control of the dominant Right faction over 65 years has led to a succession of scandals and a total lack of accountability, transparency and integrity.”
poroti @ #2858 Friday, May 8th, 2020 – 10:08 pm
I’ll rest on my haunches waiting for the call to spring into action then. 🙂
Too good.
A bit of a purple patch in British visual art right now.
C@t,
Thanks for your good wishes about my health. I appreciated your post, because I have very similar symptoms to you, without going into too much detail.
It is weird, and has been going on for 5 weeks. I have a few days of feeling quite unwell – the symptoms differ each time, but I would say a scratchy throat and a low grade fever are present each time, plus extreme fatigue, and aches and pains. I seem to get better after about 48 hours, but it never quite goes away. Then, after about 7 – 10 days, it all comes back again.
This last episode has been by far the worst. I got tested for COVID-19 on Wednesday, and am still waiting for the results.
My daughter woke up really sick today, and so I took her to the same drive through testing facility in Rozelle that I visited on Wednesday. Not sure when we will get the results, but none of us will go out until we do.
I also understand well why people may work with minor symptoms. Tuesday I was really not well, and put off all non-urgent appointments like the virtual staff meeting.
My apology was met with scepticism – how can you catch something when we are all self isolating?
D&M
My friend on the Sunshine Coast had something bad some weeks ago. Wanted to get tested but couldn’t thanks the restrictions on testing. Eventually got tested. Turned out to be a bacterial form of pneumonia. She is fine now, He’s still not great.
Its good that people are getting tested no matter what the symptom. I just hope that people don’t get apathetic about it too soon. Scomo should be running a lottery to encourage perfectly healthy people to get tested – rather than selling the lie that we’re totally safe.
C@t
I liked what UK toonist Steve Bell latched on to in the early days as his caricature of Bojo.
Douglas and Milko,
It’s a medical conundrum, to be sure. Though I still don’t know with this particular Coronavirus whether you can test negative but still have a mild case of the damn thing. That SA case of the guy who tested negative, then 6 weeks later tested positive, haunts the back blocks of my mind.
Suffice to say, the shortness of breath appears to have dissipated. The funny thing with that was that, even though I had shortness of breath enough to make me dizzy when I walked up a gentle incline, my body still had the requisite strength in the muscles to keep me going where I wanted to go, so it wasn’t strictly debilitating.
I didn’t much like the magnified pain response either. My son tapped me on the top of the foot once and I nearly went through the roof! That is much better now as well. And I am no longer getting tired and collapsing in a heap at 8 o’clock at night.
So I reckon, if your test comes back negative, as mine did, you either have influenza, as I was told I had, or, as I believe, a very mild case of COVID-19. And thank god for that!
poroti,
I bet, even as we speak, the Tories are devising some Public Order legislation that will outlaw depicting the Prime Minister in such a way. They are that thin-skinned!
C@t
the original
GIN AND THE UPPER CLASS IN THE 18TH CENTURY
https://www.cabinetrooms.com/gin-in-the-18th-century/
I see Dotard as changed his slogan from Keep America Great – to his old motto of Make America Great Again.. he has a lot of ground to make up after these dreadful numbers…
“U.S. employment hit 14.7% in April, with 20.5 million unemployed.
The Labor Department said Friday that the economy shed more than 20.5 million jobs in April, sending the unemployment rate to 14.7 percent — devastation unseen since the Great Depression.
The report underscores the speed and depth of the labor market’s collapse as the coronavirus pandemic took a devastating toll. In February, the unemployment rate was 3.5 percent, a half-century low. And even since the survey was taken, millions of people have filed claims for jobless benefits.
The April job losses alone far exceed the 8.7 million in the last recession, when unemployment peaked at 10 percent in October 2009. The only comparable period came when the rate reached about 25 percent in 1933, before the government began publishing official statistics.
If anything, the report understates the damage. The government’s definition of unemployment typically requires people to be actively looking for work. And the unemployment rate doesn’t reflect the millions still working who have had their hours slashed or their pay cut.
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/05/08/business/stock-market-coronavirus-jobs-report.html?action=click&module=Spotlight&pgtype=Homepage
poroti,
These days they’re just drunk on power and money.
Heads up on the Peter Fitzsimons’ piece tomorrow. It’s a cracker!
‘What about my Rights!?!’
Fitzsimons: ‘What about your Responsibilities!?!’
BoJo has a 5 point plan to something
https://pbs.twimg.com/media/EXcNa0cWAAY70NP?format=jpg&name=4096×4096
My sincere condolences to you and your family, BK.
Probably just his normal whingeing and moaning C@t.
poroti says:
Friday, May 8, 2020 at 10:03 pm
Rakali
thripence!
It ain’t that with a Kiwi accent
————————————————-
Ah the Christmas pudding and hoping for the thrippence or the zac. Cant understand why we werent rushed to the E.R. to extract the swallowed treasures.
Burnside and Kooyong
The result was deceptive because both Burnside and Yates were strongest in the same parts – Hawthorn and Kew so they cancelled each other out. The ALP ran one of their better campaigns in years but went backwards because of competition from Burnside and Yates. Kooyong could be worth watching next election because Frydenberg is on 6% and will be marked for his handling of the economy.
Nath
That is a seriously nice island bench.
Dr Wombat disappeared on the very day in March (I think it was) that an article from the New England Journal of Medicine was published, and linked here (by me), reporting that the coronavirus could likely be transmitted via aerosol (as distinguished from droplet transmission), being g no different from other corona virus types in that regard.
Up to that point Wombat had been advising us here that aerosol transmission was impossible. He produced a Lancet article from January to back up his advice.
My personal interest in this was that he used this incorrect understanding of how the virus could be transmitted to “prove” that anyone who thought differently to him was a “yammering” racist, i.e. they were using the possibility of aerosol transmission as a cover, or excuse for their racist refusal to attend certain ethnic precincts.
At the time it was originally Chinese precincts, but nowadays it’s everywhere a crowd might gather: restaurants, sports events, cinemas, cruise ships, even audience participation in TV programs like Q&A. They’re all potentially infectious hotspots, and presence at them is now banned by law.
The evidence is overwhelming that Dr Wombat had been wrong in his dangerous advice that aerosol transmission was impossible and, speaking personally, I’d like to think he slunk away in shame.
I have no doubt he’s a brilliant person, but his advice regarding the coronavirus was dead wrong, as has since been established.
I knew the US unemployment rate was bad but this is a disaster
https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2020/05/08/business/economy/april-jobs-report.html
Gobsmacking. I think this is means Trump will not be re-elected. The Democrats will get control of the Senate too.
Just surreal in the extreme. All those poor people. I will not be surprised at rioting.
My view on aerosol transmission of covid19 is best summarised in a Conversation article written by an Engineer (why, because aerosols are important to Engineering too).
https://theconversation.com/coronavirus-drifts-through-the-air-in-microscopic-droplets-heres-the-science-of-infectious-aerosols-136663
My take on this? If you’re talking about genuine aerosols (droplets under 5 microns) then transmission is possible but not as likely as that from non aerosol droplets in close proximity. However, a number of cases of transmission by aerosol are documented and some are mentioned in that article. It does happen. Its also apparent to me that its a lot more risky in a confined space where there is recirculated air.
That’s why I’m amazed at how cavalier the authorities have been about the prospect of having crowded trains. Those things are designed to pass air from one infected person past many other people.
Also, leaving aside the rather arbitrary distinction between aerosol and non aerosol (fine droplets of a few tens of microns do get carried some metres by air currents before dropping out – its a continuum, not a dividing line), its also worth noting that fine droplets (tens of microns) can quickly become even smaller droplets by virtue of evaporation. There’s also other aerosols in the air (dust, pollution, tiny particles rubbed from clothes and train seats) and those can act as carriers. I could cough or sneeze, the droplets could land on the floor and someone could scuff the floor with his shoes and that action alone generates aerosols. They’re virtually ubiquitous (try designing air filtration equipment – I have).
Anyhow, its a real danger. Its not a huge danger outdoors or in well ventilated spaces, but on a train? No fucking way would I take that risk.
And even if you totally buy into the “it will only spread a couple of metres” argument. If you literally apply the one person to four square metre rule you get 20 people per train carriage. Anything more than this and they are flaunting the same rules being applied to shops and cafes.
Cud
When I have to use public transport I will be wearing a mask. So far I am looking to August for that. By that time hopefully things will have sorted themselves out.
https://www.cnbc.com/2020/05/08/vice-president-mike-pence-staffer-tests-positive-for-coronavirus.html
guytaur
Either it will get better by then.. or much worse.
That’s the thing about the virus. It either dies out exponentially or grows exponentially. Having R(eff) at precisely 1.0 is an almost impossible equilibrium.
It will only take one outbreak on a train to have a dozen cases a week later. Why? Because we’ve eased restrictions and reset R(eff) back to well above 1.0. And because we’ve had few cases up to that point, we’ve bought our way into a false sense of security and over-eased. One accident under those circumstances and by the time we see a dozen cases, there’s the better part of a hundred more cases in the pipeline. A weeks hesitation and we are back to where we were mid March.
And even if we survive that outbreak, there’s going to be a fucking huge run on face masks. Its better that the government buy a mega shitload of masks so people on trains can buy one at their corner store. Are they doing this?
guytaur
All the President’s men? lol
“I will not be surprised at rioting.”
This is as I predicted here on PB. The charity food banks are running out of food and money and you can bet Trump won’t give them the emergency cash they need.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P8DQlqemkcQ
Cud
Very good questions.
I am just glad I have left over masks from the bushfire smoke.
I hope a lot of other people have this too.
If not Pauline Hanson will have to get used to the Yassar Arafat mask look.
guytaur
Twiggy and Clive shoulda gone and bought a mega shitload of masks.
Cud
Yes.
Meanwhile things are moving rapidly in the US. Kamala Harris is introducing legislation for a temporary $2000 per month payment.
That’s a first. Andrew Yang is being vindicated big time.
Guytaur
Americans do an actual count of the unemployed while the ABS does a phone survey.
Awww pweedy..
https://phys.org/news/2020-05-south-africa-meerkat-mystery-x-galaxies.html
Mexican
It’s under reported still. That’s how shocking those unemployment numbers are.
I am still coming to terms with it. It’s looking like a Greater Depression.
https://edition.cnn.com/interactive/2020/05/business/april-jobs-report-unemployment-rate/
Ah, we now have the New Liberals running in Eden Monaro.
https://www.thenewliberals.net.au/candidates-for-2022/
Guytaur
Remember the saying
“When America sneezes, the rest of the world catches cold”
I shudder to think what our unemployment numbers are like
The Dawn Patrol will be in operation this morning.
This has the almost overwhelming stench of corruption and graft about it.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/investigations/white-house-pandemic-supply-project-swathed-in-secrecy-and-exaggerations/2020/05/08/9c77efb2-8d52-11ea-a9c0-73b93422d691_story.html
Good morning Dawn Patrollers. I’m back with a vengeance with this Saturday minster!
Peter Hartcher says that as the country moves from a national mobilisation to stop the virus to the next phase, Australia can take a moment to take note of its success. This worth reading and to reflect upon.
https://www.smh.com.au/national/three-decisions-and-a-two-point-plan-how-australia-got-on-top-of-covid-19-20200508-p54rag.html
George Megalogenis explains how this recession has and will affect women disproportionally.
https://www.smh.com.au/national/keneally-has-picked-the-wrong-fight-for-this-pink-collar-recession-20200508-p54r0p.html
Paul Bongiorno explains how we have an economy on life support.
https://www.thesaturdaypaper.com.au/opinion/topic/2020/05/09/economy-life-support/15889464009809
While hibernation is a comforting metaphor for what’s happened to our economy during the pandemic, there’s no guarantee we’ll emerge from the cave in the same shape as we went in says Ross Gittins.
https://www.smh.com.au/business/the-economy/economic-managers-bank-on-us-being-as-smart-as-the-average-bear-20200508-p54r31.html
Gladys Berejiklian has a roadmap to freedom but stressed that the onus is on everyone to keep their distance if they want restrictions gone for good reports Alexandra Smith.
https://www.smh.com.au/politics/nsw/berejiklian-s-roadmap-to-freedom-in-nsw-20200508-p54r4v.html
Australia’s economic recovery now hinges on the premiers and chief ministers. In coming weeks they will face intense political pressures to ease the worst economic crisis in 90 years, notably the laggards Dan Andrews and Gladys Berejiklian writes self-proclaimed expert, Pontificating Paul Kelly.
https://www.theaustralian.com.au/nation/politics/coronavirus-scott-morrisons-hands-over-to-premiers-all-eyes-on-daniel-andrews-and-gladys-berejiklian/news-story/c3462057971d1619fbd7dc41e75d2a2c
Australia starts to re-open, but the premiers have the whip hand on timing says Michelle Grattan.
https://theconversation.com/australia-starts-to-re-open-but-the-premiers-have-the-whip-hand-on-timing-138218
While the medical prognosis looks less alarming, the economic prospect is as grim as ever. The Reserve Bank has done what it can, now it’s up to the government, writes Stephen Grenville.
https://www.afr.com/policy/economy/normality-is-at-least-a-couple-of-years-away-20200507-p54qvr
Australia is emerging from enforced hibernation with fewer structural problems than many feared, largely because the shutdown has been shorter than expected writes the AFR’s Andrew Clark.
https://www.afr.com/policy/economy/how-australia-can-move-from-pain-to-gain-20200507-p54qvh
Shane Wright writes that hundreds of thousands of unemployed Australians face a huge cut in their incomes just before Christmas as the Morrison government prepares to wind back income support.
https://www.smh.com.au/politics/federal/temporary-lifeline-hundreds-of-thousands-face-pre-christmas-income-hit-20200508-p54r67.html
Unemployment will be at 9 per cent at Christmas while the business sector could take years to fully re-start its investment plans, the Reserve Bank has warned in some of its most dire economic forecasts.
https://www.theage.com.au/politics/federal/rba-releases-dire-forecasts-tipping-christmas-jobless-rate-of-9-percent-20200508-p54r3v.html
The machinations over Eden-Monaro not only shows the deputy PM doesn’t control his party room, but also why the National Party will be a big problem for the PM’s reform agenda says Laura Tingle.
https://www.afr.com/politics/federal/why-the-national-s-rump-are-morrison-s-menace-20200507-p54qxa
According to Kevin Rudd News Corp is campaigning full-bore for the US president, with reports of a Wuhan lab ‘intelligence’ dossier being seeded across its empire
https://www.theguardian.com/media/2020/may/08/murdoch-media-china-coronavirus-conspiracy-trump-kevin-rudd
Max Opray reports that the federal government pushes for schools around the country to reopen, many teachers are concerned about poor communication and fear for their health and safety.
https://www.thesaturdaypaper.com.au/news/politics/2020/05/09/teachers-fear-health-and-safety/15889464009794
Australians trying to access their superannuation funds early to make ends meet could face delays after the scheme was temporarily frozen yesterday.
https://www.theage.com.au/politics/federal/super-scheme-frozen-as-afp-investigates-alleged-attack-on-tax-agent-database-20200508-p54r76.html
David Crowe reports that Australians are being warned to expect new coronavirus outbreaks as the nation emerges from sweeping shutdowns in a three-stage plan to restore 850,000 jobs by July.
https://www.smh.com.au/politics/federal/there-will-be-outbreaks-morrison-warns-australia-as-economy-reopens-20200508-p54ra7.html
Eryk Bagshaw tells us that Scott Morrison will marshal a group of leaders known as the “first movers” to ramp up pressure on the World Health Assembly for an independent inquiry into the origins of the coronavirus.
https://www.smh.com.au/politics/federal/morrison-urging-first-movers-to-push-coronavirus-inquiry-20200508-p54r83.html
Matt Wade explains how since Australia’s last official recession in the early 1990s there’s been a growing recognition that traditional economic indicators are an inadequate gauge of our collective welfare. He says NAB’s wellbeing survey, which was conducted as pandemic restrictions were introduced in March, revealed a disturbing jump in anxiety.
https://www.smh.com.au/business/the-economy/the-hidden-costs-of-the-pandemic-20200508-p54r9a.html
The coronavirus epidemic has changed world views about how we should live and govern suggests Jim Bright.
https://www.smh.com.au/business/workplace/utopians-and-dystopians-debate-the-new-normal-20200505-p54pv2.html
If companies want a glimpse at the reputational cost of treating customers poorly, look no further than Members Equity Bank says Adele Ferguson.
https://www.smh.com.au/business/banking-and-finance/me-bank-s-epic-pr-fail-results-in-policy-reversal-20200508-p54r9g.html
Winter’s first frost reminds Elizabeth Farrelly that each night 105,237 Australians are homeless, some 28,000-odd in Sydney. At the same time, another multi-billion-dollar Sydney development on public land is nearing approval with not a single subsidised dwelling on offer. Not one, she laments.
https://www.smh.com.au/national/here-we-go-again-sacrificing-the-soul-of-our-city-for-more-towers-of-power-20200507-p54qr7.html
The SMH editorial warns that NSW must be cautious in following the national COVID-19 road map.
https://www.smh.com.au/politics/nsw/nsw-must-be-cautious-in-following-national-covid-19-road-map-20200508-p54r82.html
David Crowe describes Morrison’s 3-step roadmap to recovery as being merely a menu for the states.
https://www.smh.com.au/politics/federal/morrison-s-3-step-roadmap-to-recovery-is-merely-a-menu-for-the-states-20200508-p54r8j.html
Kirsten Lawson says Morrison has thrown off the doona to embrace the danger.
https://www.canberratimes.com.au/story/6750819/morrison-throws-off-the-doona-to-embrace-the-danger/?cs=17318
As our government pushes for us to return to work, it’s clear that issues faced by Indigenous Australians are being overlooked, writes Paul Dutton.
https://independentaustralia.net/politics/politics-display/plan-to-return-to-work-doesnt-look-after-indigenous-australians,13872
More than 70 tonnes of medical equipment flown in from China’s Wuhan more than a month ago is yet to clear Australian customs reports Richard Baker.
https://www.theage.com.au/politics/victoria/wuhan-cargo-flown-in-by-cedar-meats-linked-trader-yet-to-clear-customs-20200508-p54r78.html
A senior NSW harbourmaster has told the special inquiry into the Ruby Princess he “did not understand” the contents of a critical email that revealed fifteen cruise ship passengers had been tested for COVID-19 when the ship sailed into Sydney Harbour on March 18.
https://www.theaustralian.com.au/nation/coronavirus-harbourmaster-didnt-understand-critical-email-ruby-princess-inquiry-hears/news-story/08499b4f678d3cf5520eb7066f2790ec
https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2020/may/08/sydney-harbour-master-tells-ruby-princess-inquiry-he-did-not-understand-nsw-health-email
As five separate inquiries examine how the ship became Australia’s largest source of Covid-19 deaths, the messy arrangements at our borders are now under intense scrutiny writes Karen Middleton.
https://www.thesaturdaypaper.com.au/news/health/2020/05/09/what-happened-with-the-ruby-princess/15889464009789
Adele Ferguson reveals that the Tasmanian hospital complex at the centre of one of the country’s worst coronavirus outbreaks was battling staff shortages and concerns about personal protective equipment (PPE) weeks before it was shut down and the military took control of its emergency department.
https://www.theage.com.au/national/tasmanian-ruby-princess-hospital-hit-by-covid-19-outbreak-warned-of-staff-ppe-shortages-20200507-p54qrj.html
Some lawyers have warned that employers could face serious legal trouble if they don’t follow social distancing guidelines or provide hand sanitiser.
https://www.theage.com.au/national/employers-could-be-held-liable-for-workers-who-contract-covid-19-20200508-p54r7e.html
Nick Bonyhady reports that cases at the Fair Work Commission were up 40 per cent in April as unemployment soared on the back of the pandemic.
https://www.theage.com.au/politics/federal/unfair-dismissal-claims-inundate-workplace-tribunal-20200508-p54r81.html
Chief Scientist Alan Finkel explains how he has reconciled his desire for privacy with using the COVIDSafe app.
https://www.smh.com.au/national/i-m-the-chief-scientist-and-privacy-matters-to-me-and-here-s-why-i-ve-got-the-covidsafe-app-20200508-p54qzs.html
The coronavirus crisis has sent the US unemployment rate surging to 14.7 per cent, a level last seen when the country was in the throes of the Depression and President Franklin D. Roosevelt was assuring Americans that the only thing to fear was fear itself. There’s really nothing for them to worry about though. They have a wonderful leader now in Trump.
https://www.smh.com.au/world/north-america/us-unemployment-surges-to-a-depression-era-level-of-14-7-per-cent-20200509-p54rc0.html
Matthew Knott writes that America is preparing for a brutal coronavirus slow burn as it heads into what has been described as “genocide by default”.
https://www.smh.com.au/world/north-america/genocide-by-default-america-prepares-for-a-brutal-coronavirus-slow-burn-20200508-p54qzc.html
The Catholic Church is facing hundreds of civil claims by victims of clerical sex abuse, bolstered by the royal commission’s findings about Pell’s role in the “catastrophic failure of leadership” in the Ballarat diocese. They can’t say they weren’t warned.
https://www.smh.com.au/national/catholic-church-s-legal-deluge-compounded-by-damning-pell-findings-20200508-p54r9p.html
The former Fairfax religious editor Barney Zwartz writes that Pell is leaving a legacy of shame and failure. He concludes that now that Pell leaves his public ministry a vastly diminished figure, his reputation ruined, it is hard not to conclude that he was the architect of his own demise, and for precisely the reasons that the royal commission identified.
https://www.smh.com.au/business/workplace/utopians-and-dystopians-debate-the-new-normal-20200505-p54pv2.html
The editorial in The Saturday Paper unleashes a few “cardinal truths” following the release of previously withheld sections of the child sexual abuse Royal Commission’s report.
https://www.thesaturdaypaper.com.au/opinion/editorial/2020/05/09/cardinal-truths/15889464009802
And Andrew Tate graphically tells us about the horrors that the church and George Pell let slide.
https://thenewdaily.com.au/news/george-pell/2020/05/08/royal-commission-george-pell-peter-searson/
The diligent Paul Karp reveals that the prime minister’s office asked Bridget McKenzie to seek Scott Morrison’s “authority” for intended recipients of $100m of sports grants and coordinate the announcement with Coalition campaign headquarters.
https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2020/may/08/bridget-mckenzie-was-told-to-seek-scott-morrisons-authority-for-sports-grants-program
Kaye Lee writes that the hypocrisy of ScottyFromMarketing’s hairy-chested approach to an investigation into the origins of COVID-19 and China’s response was highlighted this week when Border Force Tsar Michael Pezzullo refused to guarantee that his empire would co-operate with the investigation into the Ruby Princess debacle.
https://theaimn.com/scottys-shirtfronting-sophistry/
Banks and financial services institutions have been granted a reprieve from banking royal commission recommendations amid the coronavirus pandemic. Josh Frydenberg said on Friday the industry had been granted six-month deferral to give it breathing space to focus its energy on “planning for the recovery and supporting their customers and their staff” during the COVID-19 outbreak.
https://thenewdaily.com.au/finance/consumer/2020/05/08/banking-royal-commission-delay/
Canada has become the latest country to refuse pandemic bailout money for tax dodgers. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau joins leaders of Denmark, Poland and France in axing financial aid to corporations registered in offshore tax havens. Noel Turnbull reports.
https://www.michaelwest.com.au/should-tax-dodgers-get-taxpayer-funded-covid-19-bailout/
The Institute of Public Affairs is determined to go against public wishes and needs and privatise the ABC, writes Mark Buckley.
https://independentaustralia.net/business/business-display/the-abc-is-on-the-ipas-hit-list,13874
Mike Seccombe goes in to bat for the ABC as it looks at sacking hundreds of staff as a result of continued funding cuts.
https://www.thesaturdaypaper.com.au/news/politics/2020/05/09/hundreds-facing-the-sack-with-abc-cuts/15889464009792
Rod Meyer explains how the latest numbers reveal how super funds are faring during the coronavirus crisis.
https://thenewdaily.com.au/finance/superannuation/2020/05/08/super-fund-returns-coronavirus/
Lisa Cox tells us that the federal government has stopped listing major threats to species under national environment laws and plans to address listed threats are often years out of date or have not been done at all.
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2020/may/08/australian-government-stops-listing-major-threats-to-species-under-environment-laws
With the aged-care watchdog looking into the Covid-19 cluster that has claimed 16 lives at Newmarch House in Sydney’s west, systemic flaws are being exposed. But what comfort is that to the distressed families of residents askes The Saturday Paper’s Rick Morton.
https://www.thesaturdaypaper.com.au/news/politics/2020/05/09/the-newmarch-house-covid-19-cluster/15889464009797
Peter FitzSimons has a message for the NRL meatheads who won’t have their flu shot.
https://www.smh.com.au/sport/bring-it-in-tight-you-ignoramuses-cut-the-crap-and-get-the-jab-20200508-p54r7c.html
UK Government scientific advisers are furious at what they see as an attempt to censor their advice on government proposals during the Covid-19 lockdown by heavily redacting an official report before it was released to the public, the Guardian reveals.
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/may/08/revealed-uk-scientists-fury-over-attempt-to-censor-covid-19-advice
Britain was led by Churchill then — it’s led by a Churchill tribute act now says Jonathan Freedland.
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/may/08/commemorating-ve-day-during-coronavirus-lockdown-somehow-the-quiet-made-it-louder
In TERRIBLE news, Rupert Murdoch gives up his bonus as News Corp loses US$1bn in three months.
https://www.theguardian.com/media/2020/may/08/rupert-murdoch-bonus-news-corp-loses-1bn-three-months
Quillette has a decent essay on COVID-19 conspiracists and their discontents.
https://quillette.com/2020/05/07/covid-19-conspiracists-and-their-discontents/
Six months out from polling day the US is a country sliding towards the brink, torn apart by economic, political and health factors that are increasingly slipping beyond its control.
https://www.afr.com/world/north-america/inside-america-s-pandemic-six-months-from-polling-day-20200508-p54qzw
This Sydney doctor has earned today’s nomination for “Arsehole of the Week”.
https://www.smh.com.au/national/nsw/police-dossier-alleges-sydney-gp-exchanged-certificates-for-drugs-20200508-p54r8c.html
Cartoon Corner
David Rowe
Alan Moir
Sean Leahy
John Shakespeare
Jon Kudelka
Matt Davidson
Matt Golding
Oslo Davis
Andrew Dyson
Jim Pavlidis
Simon Letch
Joe Benke
Glen Le Lievre
Johannes Leak
https://cdn.newsapi.com.au/image/v1/ca1d19500c02672acb6e63993b660650?width=1024
From the US
For the US this is not an ordinary crisis!
Yay! BK’s back!