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This is us, in tool manufacturing not just selling globally. Locally, despite everyone having to isolate we could not physically keep up with demand for screws, bolts, guns to fire them, hammers to hit them, drills, drivers, wrenches and things to clean up and service whatever you ten demo in whatever environment you are in.

We broke monthly records for a fortune 500 company globally, only our end it was 3 months in a row whilst some of us were only being paid for 2 days a week.

Meanwhile, my sister in hospitality got told to GTFO and "maybe we'll have a job for you at a drive through" and drastically reduced all the things at the drop of lockdown. And sure, we scrimped and saved and shedded things in some sectors, but overall did well, hospitality got smacked hard.
We are getting hammered a bit in Manufacturing. 60 percent of our jobs are to the likes of Jayco. They're currently going gangbusters after being closed bit a chunk of last year.
 
We are getting hammered a bit in Manufacturing. 60 percent of our jobs are to the likes of Jayco. They're currently going gangbusters after being closed bit a chunk of last year.


I heard that, caravans are going nuts.
 
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I heard A B Original's song Call em out on radio yesterday, they had Lang Hancock and others talking about Aboriginals sampled over the song. I had to Google the lyrics to see who said it. It's ******* nuts that it wasn't that long ago that people could be overtly racist and not even face scrutiny.

"Herd the worst of the Aborigines into one area, then put a chemical in their water that sent them sterile
In time, there'd be none of them left
The ones that are no good to themselves, can’t accept things, the half-castes—and this is where most of the trouble comes—I would dope the water up so that they were sterile and would breed themselves out in future, and that would solve the problem"

"The do-gooders came along and they
These bureaucrats and the rest of them who would write great theses on things down South
And they decided that they better go and civilise these savages of ours, so they brought 'em into the towns"

"Now I wouldn't mind, Philip
If it was just the blacks, the true Aborigines
But there are so many hybrids
And they are nearly white, and this is where it hurts me"
 
Interesting take on the Facebook v Australian Government from Crikey.



Big Wreck Be careful what you wish for: government-mandated theft backfires as tech giant pulls pin
Bernard KEANE
The government’s news media bargaining code was always based on a lie — one devised and disseminated by News Corp — that big tech platforms steal content and must be made to pay for it.
It was also based on ignoring an important distinction between the two intended targets of the theft — Google and Facebook.
Google serves users results, including news items, based on its own crawling of the internet. Media companies could prevent Google from searching their sites with a trivially small adjustment to the code of their websites. The fact that they fail to take this simple step illustrates the truth of the relationship between media companies and the search giant — the former obtain enormous benefit from it.
Facebook is entirely different. Media companies actively take the decision to create their own Facebook pages and post news articles on them. Users choose to share links to articles on their own pages. Yet this was supposedly content theft too.
If it was ever content theft, the big media companies should be pleased that, as of this morning, they can no longer post Australian news of any kind on their Facebook pages. Nor can users share links to their content. Loudly proclaim that you’re the victim of theft and you want it to stop — and be careful what you wish for.
Google Australia boss Mel Silva’s threat in January to remove its search function from Australian users was met with widespread derision from Australia politicians and its mainstream media. Google was evidently bluffing and would fold before the might of Australian lawmaking.
And anyway, who needed Google when you could use the product of another tech monopolist, Microsoft? When Google began agreeing deals with media companies — albeit for a small fraction of the billions touted by big media companies, and for less than what they were publicly claiming — the mainstream media and the government thought they had achieved victory.
That’s all a smoking ruin this morning, as media companies examine bare Facebook pages and blocks on posting content. And by no means just media companies. Bloggers, NGOs, local government pages, literary journals, the Bureau of Meteorology, sports organisations like Cricket Australia, and the South Australian Health Department have all been caught up.
Why such a broad net? That might have a lot to do with just how broadly the government drafted its bargaining code legislation, defining news as “issues or events that are relevant in engaging Australians in public debate and in informing democratic decision-making; or current issues or events of public significance for Australians at a local, regional or national level”.
And it doesn’t have to be produced by a journalist. It was defined that way to prevent the tech companies from arguing they weren’t carrying news content. So, here we are.
All the result of a staggering miscalculation by a government that thought it could run an extortion racket at the behest of the Murdochs on the widely reviled big tech companies. A government that insisted it had had “constructive” talks with Facebook executive chair Mark Zuckerberg — indeed, was still insisting so this morning after the shutdown.
Except Facebook now holds the whip hand in any such discussions. Politicians and the media assumed it could never withdraw its platform, but the company went right ahead and did it.
To reverse its decision, Facebook will demand substantial changes to the appalling media bargaining code — especially the absurd bargaining provisions which are heavily tilted in favour of local media outlets with a “take it or leave it” arbitration mechanism.
The real victims, however, will not be the Coalition, or the big media companies. Those with an established brand, well-known mastheads and incumbency in the media market will, if anything, benefit from the impact as smaller competitors, small and medium publishers, regional media, and niche publications that rely heavily on social media to share content and attract eyeballs lose one of their key platforms. Advertisers who use them to reach particular target audiences will also suffer.
The shutdown is potentially disastrous for those companies and for media diversity in Australia. Audiences will suffer.
The point of the extortion racket was always to drive windfall revenue to News Corp and Nine — thereby indirectly strengthening their position in a shrinking market. That will continue to be the case while smaller publishers are preventing from using Facebook — if anything, more so.
It’s not the way it was intended to be by the government that has stuffed this up so badly, but Mission Accomplished anyway. The rest of us just have to count the cost of yet another rotten media policy driven by the demands of moguls.
Private Media, the parent company of Crikey, is a participant in the Google Showcase program. Content from Crikey and other Private Media brands is featured on Showcase as part of a commercial partnership.
 

Baldur

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Interesting take on the Facebook v Australian Government from Crikey.



Big Wreck Be careful what you wish for: government-mandated theft backfires as tech giant pulls pin
Bernard KEANE
The government’s news media bargaining code was always based on a lie — one devised and disseminated by News Corp — that big tech platforms steal content and must be made to pay for it.
It was also based on ignoring an important distinction between the two intended targets of the theft — Google and Facebook.
Google serves users results, including news items, based on its own crawling of the internet. Media companies could prevent Google from searching their sites with a trivially small adjustment to the code of their websites. The fact that they fail to take this simple step illustrates the truth of the relationship between media companies and the search giant — the former obtain enormous benefit from it.
Facebook is entirely different. Media companies actively take the decision to create their own Facebook pages and post news articles on them. Users choose to share links to articles on their own pages. Yet this was supposedly content theft too.
If it was ever content theft, the big media companies should be pleased that, as of this morning, they can no longer post Australian news of any kind on their Facebook pages. Nor can users share links to their content. Loudly proclaim that you’re the victim of theft and you want it to stop — and be careful what you wish for.
Google Australia boss Mel Silva’s threat in January to remove its search function from Australian users was met with widespread derision from Australia politicians and its mainstream media. Google was evidently bluffing and would fold before the might of Australian lawmaking.
And anyway, who needed Google when you could use the product of another tech monopolist, Microsoft? When Google began agreeing deals with media companies — albeit for a small fraction of the billions touted by big media companies, and for less than what they were publicly claiming — the mainstream media and the government thought they had achieved victory.
That’s all a smoking ruin this morning, as media companies examine bare Facebook pages and blocks on posting content. And by no means just media companies. Bloggers, NGOs, local government pages, literary journals, the Bureau of Meteorology, sports organisations like Cricket Australia, and the South Australian Health Department have all been caught up.
Why such a broad net? That might have a lot to do with just how broadly the government drafted its bargaining code legislation, defining news as “issues or events that are relevant in engaging Australians in public debate and in informing democratic decision-making; or current issues or events of public significance for Australians at a local, regional or national level”.
And it doesn’t have to be produced by a journalist. It was defined that way to prevent the tech companies from arguing they weren’t carrying news content. So, here we are.
All the result of a staggering miscalculation by a government that thought it could run an extortion racket at the behest of the Murdochs on the widely reviled big tech companies. A government that insisted it had had “constructive” talks with Facebook executive chair Mark Zuckerberg — indeed, was still insisting so this morning after the shutdown.
Except Facebook now holds the whip hand in any such discussions. Politicians and the media assumed it could never withdraw its platform, but the company went right ahead and did it.
To reverse its decision, Facebook will demand substantial changes to the appalling media bargaining code — especially the absurd bargaining provisions which are heavily tilted in favour of local media outlets with a “take it or leave it” arbitration mechanism.
The real victims, however, will not be the Coalition, or the big media companies. Those with an established brand, well-known mastheads and incumbency in the media market will, if anything, benefit from the impact as smaller competitors, small and medium publishers, regional media, and niche publications that rely heavily on social media to share content and attract eyeballs lose one of their key platforms. Advertisers who use them to reach particular target audiences will also suffer.
The shutdown is potentially disastrous for those companies and for media diversity in Australia. Audiences will suffer.
The point of the extortion racket was always to drive windfall revenue to News Corp and Nine — thereby indirectly strengthening their position in a shrinking market. That will continue to be the case while smaller publishers are preventing from using Facebook — if anything, more so.
It’s not the way it was intended to be by the government that has stuffed this up so badly, but Mission Accomplished anyway. The rest of us just have to count the cost of yet another rotten media policy driven by the demands of moguls.
Private Media, the parent company of Crikey, is a participant in the Google Showcase program. Content from Crikey and other Private Media brands is featured on Showcase as part of a commercial partnership.

So if big media succeed in their extortion, they win. If they fail, they win. Alphonse John Gangitano would have been ever so jelly.
 
More on the Google/Facebook v Australian Government battle. A good plumbing analogy in this article which despite being from the Chaser is actually a serious moment from them. I love my analogies.

  1. Introduced a mandatory code of conduct to force companies like Google to pay hundreds of millions of dollars to large private news companies (but not ABC news nor independent news, nor the Chaser). Google currently drives over 3 billion clicks per year to Australian news companies. Therefore this is like a local plumber demanding that the Yellow Pages pay the plumber for the act of directing plumber-seeking customers to the plumber. This will also undermine the fundamental principles of the web itself, according to its inventor. The laws are written based on the incorrect assumption that news makes up 10% of Google searches when it’s only 1%. source source source source source source
 
Dec 4, 2000
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So, I am no tennis fan and was very angry the govt actually bent over backwards to have the AO on, AT A HUGE RISK TO THE COMMUNITY.

I am now convinced that tennis supporters are unmittigated f**kwits. What type of moron boos vaccines? Yeah ok boo the govt, that happens at all sporting events even though in this case they were the ones that made sure these idiots could go to the tennis.

The entitlement of these fools is unbelievable. We are all put at risk for this boring sport full over paid prima donna's. It seems their fans are as stupid and entitled as the players.
We, the Victorian community, risked a lot so these people could hit a ball across a net, and to have these idiots s**t on us like this is the final straw with this garbage sport.
Hope Tennis Australia goes broke and everyone in the crowd comes down with covid. Tosspot clowns :rolleyes:
 
my mum spent many years collecting first Day covers. ia couple of weeks ago i went to stamp collectors shop to see if they can be sold, the guy said they are worthless. you might as well given them away. how sad for all the money that my mum put in, and noone want s them.
 
Dec 4, 2000
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my mum spent many years collecting first Day covers. ia couple of weeks ago i went to stamp collectors shop to see if they can be sold, the guy said they are worthless. you might as well given them away. how sad for all the money that my mum put in, and noone want s them.

Is that the point though sammm? The value was in the pleasure and love your mum put in doing it. In the end everything we do in life is worthless. Don't judge it on monetary value.

I watch Antiques Roadshow (yes I am an old kent) and we marvel at these Poms who have had something in the attic for years bringin it out and it is worth 10,000 pounds. They put in no time or effort or love into it, they just get a monetary reward.

my point is, don't be sad, you mother derived pleasure and fulfillment from her pursuit. In the scheme of things worth more that any pieces of paper you get in return for them.
 
I am now convinced that tennis supporters are unmittigated f**kwits. What type of moron boos vaccines? Yeah ok boo the govt, that happens at all sporting events even though in this case they were the ones that made sure these idiots could go to the tennis.
People who support Dojkovic tend to beleive his wank about vaccines and other conspicacy crap.
 
Is that the point though sammm? The value was in the pleasure and love your mum put in doing it. In the end everything we do in life is worthless. Don't judge it on monetary value.

I watch Antiques Roadshow (yes I am an old kent) and we marvel at these Poms who have had something in the attic for years bringin it out and it is worth 10,000 pounds. They put in no time or effort or love into it, they just get a monetary reward.

my point is, don't be sad, you mother derived pleasure and fulfillment from her pursuit. In the scheme of things worth more that any pieces of paper you get in return for them.


I agree with you, its just i got to do something with them. anyway, its amongst a bunch of other stuff we have to think about what to do with.
 

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bergholt

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Mar 14, 2007
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I heard that, caravans are going nuts.

Here's the thing about overseas travel.

It's massively overrated in this country.

People save thousands of dollars to go to Europe because they think they should, then they find the churches and museums super boring so they end up drinking a bunch of cheap beer in foreign pubs pretty much the same as the ones we have here.

People think it somehow "expands the mind". For 95% of people it really doesn't.

I think it's ******* great that people are going to be forced to travel around Australia for the next couple of years. This is a great country with way more stuff in it than any of us could possibly see in our whole lives.

And all the dollars you spend travelling locally go towards making jobs for your fellow Aussies.

I really hope this makes us all quit our overseas travel obsession.
 
Djokovic has supporters? I've never met anyone who likes him

As a tennis player I prefer him to other alternatives.
As a person, whilst you could do worse, it's not by much.

You can still respect people as a sportsperson whilst not liking them as people, I mean, Rafa built a career out of picking his arse FFS.
 
Here's the thing about overseas travel.

It's massively overrated in this country.

People save thousands of dollars to go to Europe because they think they should, then they find the churches and museums super boring so they end up drinking a bunch of cheap beer in foreign pubs pretty much the same as the ones we have here.

People think it somehow "expands the mind". For 95% of people it really doesn't.

I think it's ******* great that people are going to be forced to travel around Australia for the next couple of years. This is a great country with way more stuff in it than any of us could possibly see in our whole lives.

And all the dollars you spend travelling locally go towards making jobs for your fellow Aussies.

I really hope this makes us all quit our overseas travel obsession.

Cant agree, sorry. I don’t want to be “forced” to travel anywhere if I wish to go elsewhere.

I love history and studied art, hence my love of Europe. I love travelling and I’m very lucky (read work damn hard and save a lot) to have done a lot of it. I get different things from the different places I visit and have learned a lot. I’m not sure how you can quantify that 95% learn nothing from it.

Aside from that, I have siblings in the States and cousins other places and when I visit them I like to go to new places as well.

As far as being forced to travel around Australia, well I’ve booked and have had to cancel 2 trips to see my son in Perth in the last six weeks. It’s not as easy as it sounds.

Each to their own.
 
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As a tennis player I prefer him to other alternatives.
As a person, whilst you could do worse, it's not by much.

You can still respect people as a sportsperson whilst not liking them as people, I mean, Rafa built a career out of picking his arse FFS.

Paul MacNamee says he is very much misunderstood. He also apparently donates millions every year to charities and donated to the Bushfires fund last year. You don’t have to agree with every decision he makes, but he is an unbelievable talent, brilliant to watch and personally, I like him. Glad he won.
 
Paul MacNamee says he is very much misunderstood. He also apparently donates millions every year to charities and donated to the Bushfires fund last year. You don’t have to agree with every decision he makes, but he is an unbelievable talent, brilliant to watch and personally, I like him. Glad he won.


Others say he's a two faced campaigner though.
 
Others say he's a two faced campaigner though.

Well obviously I don’t know him, but he’s here to entertain us with his tennis, and that he does, unbelievably well - and that’s all I’m asking.
Not looking for any sports star ( or movie star 🙄) to be my moral compass.
 
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bergholt

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Mar 14, 2007
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I love history and studied art, hence my love of Europe. I love travelling and I’m very lucky (read work damn hard and save a lot) to have done a lot of it. I get different things from the different places I visit and have learned a lot. I’m not sure how you can quantify that 95% learn nothing from it.

I guess you’re in the 5% who get something out of it, congrats!

Clearly I can’t quantify it exactly, but based on a straw poll of fellow travellers, friends and acquaintances, etc.

I’ve been to Egypt, Turkey, Russia, China, all of Europe, the US multiple times.

Fundamentally life is about the people for me. Most people when they travel only get surface connections with the people there (certainly true of me). Travelling to relatives is obviously an exception to this.
 
Dec 4, 2000
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How anyone can speak for the whole of the international travelling public has got me beat.

I have travelled extensively through Asia Europe and the Pacific since the 1980's and while drinking took precedence when I was younger, travelling to Europe for extended times was no easy thing and no 'gap' year. We went, worked in low paid jobs, and travelled when we could afford it to different spots.

Since the kids have grown we have been through Asia, walked the great Wall, travelled on a slow boat down the Yangtze River, been on Safari in Sri Lanka, walked the 1110 vertical steps of Sigiriya, seen the majesty of Great cities like Tokyo, Hanoi, Prague, Budapest, Dublin, Shanghai, Vienna, Kyoto, Hong Kong.
Have been sitting in 47 deg heated water in an Onsen in the mountains of Shikoko, have seen the remnants of great empires, have been to Auschwitz in Poland, have been to the Cavern in Liverpool, travelled the whole of Ireland, hav stood on deck of the Victory where Nelson was shot, have been to Anzac Cove.

This is from the top of my head and it is not bragging, I know and appreciate how fortunate i am. Haven't even mentioned the museums, galleries, palaces and cultural events I have been to. Every one an experience in learning. Not always pleasant but travel is not just for fun, if you have the opportunity and fortunate enough to be able to, it is a wonderful thing to do.

So I love travelling OS. Can't wait to get back to Europe, but in the meanwhile I am so excited that I am travelling in my own country in June from Darwin to Broome. Again a learning experience to learn about a part of the country I have never witnessed and more on the indigenous people who are custodians of much of the land. I am looking so forward to seeing Kakadu, and the Kimberley, the awesome scenery, gorges, mountains and desert.

Travelling within your own country or overseas is not mutually exclusive. I feel pity for anyone with such a small minded and xenophobic view. It is just sad and ignorant in my view.
 

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Thinking about heading over to Phillip island
 

Mowman

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In all seriousness when and if we get back to normal the wife and I will definitely be doing some overseas travel. Out of all the people I know not one has said they didn’t enjoy it or wouldn’t do it again
 
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