So shall we add human rights to the long list...

[i-need-a-martini]

...of stuff ups made by the Abbott Government?

The government has appointed (without any recruitment process, merit considerations, interview and even without the GG approval which is the usual process) the anti Human Rights Commission advocate, Tim Wilson as the (and this is truly true) Australian Human Rights Commissioner.

In case you don't know who Wilson is, I can fill you in just a little -

• has campaigned for years to have the AHRC disbanded. And lo and behold, here he is RUNNING it. Go figure.
• right winged extremist who is obsessed with left winged so-called communist activities and thinks all Labor supporters have a communist hiding under their bed. 
• Thinks that health warnings on cigarettes are "nanny state" (his favourite term) politics
• is a vehement 'free speech' advocate
• yet for some reason believes that the family and associates of bikies should not have their 'rights' infringed upon by police wishing to interview them after a crime is committed.
• Climate change talk is all a lie and the CT is a threat to our sovereignty

He is a prolific writer on all things right winged with ridiculous views. A good example is an article in the Australian last month titled: "Who's on first, gay black man or disabled Muslim woman?". The article itself isn't worth reading as it is full of garbage but I think you can get the general gist of this guys attitude from the title.

And his first published article after the appointment? Did it mention human rights for our indigenous people? Or our disabled people? Or asylum seekers being held in detention centres? Nope. He mentioned 2 specific bugbears of his - firstly, that the police have no right to interview family members of bikies and secondly, the innappropriateness of unions (an allegation only BTW) to donate to the cause of same sex marriage.

This person is now head of human rights in Australia.

[newstart2380]

---

@just_me_karen wrote:
It always amuses me when I read a thread without logging in, so I see posts with completely contradictory siggies 😄

Newstart, why on earth would a declared labor supporter offer any positive comments about this appallingly embarrassing failure of a govt?

You support this govt, so how about you add a positive comment? Sixth time lucky...can you tell us a single positive thing this lib govt has done?

I nearly found one this week...the proposed easing of bureaucracy on international adoptions. Then I discovered abbott had disbanded the international adoption advisory board just two weeks ago, so the whole exercise was nothing more than incompetence framed in a media blitz.

---

Unlike you and others I am not so one eyed that I cannot see positive things that even the labor governement achieved in the last six years. NDIS was one of the most outstanding things labor introduced but there have also been so many negatives.

This country MUST run in surplus so the money is THERE now to spend as needed, ongoing borrowing to cover debts is not possible because like any business it can borrow but the debt MUST be repayed at some stage and the interest mounts daily. I run a small business and if i dont pay my debts I will go "belly up" and guess what this will happen to our country if debts are not repayed like Greece as an example.

if business's run at a profit they will emply more people so more jobs, if businesses run at a loss like HOLDEN they will fold or go elsewhere, simple maths.

We need stability, security and common sense and hopefully given time this present government will produce all three.

[freddie*rooster]

If he is I bet he's in line for a new appointment, maybe he could be Chrissie Pyne's PA.

[just_me_karen]

No you don't.

But besides that, I still can't see any positive comments about the current govt lmao. There are none, obviously.

[cherry*135]

newstart.. comment on the topic in the OP, don't complain about the opening poster. You also posted your sold your business recently.

Aust deficit 3 % and debt 16% of GDP.

Spain deficit 16 % and debt 100% of GDP

Don't make out Australia is ready to go down the gurgler.

[izabsmiling]

This man wants to help Andrew Bolt 

Human rights commissioner calls for repeal of law banning offensive speech

Tim Wilson says free speech is 'being neglected' and he supports scrapping of s18C of the Racial Discrimination Act

• Paul Farrel Wednesday 18 December 2013 12.09 AEST

Wilson, who has also resigned from the Liberal party to take on the role, argued free speech was “being neglected” and he would be focusing on aspects of individual freedoms. He said he supports the full repeal of s18C of the Racial Discrimination Act which deals with offensive behaviour.

“The most obvious freedom of speech issue this parliament will face is the Coalition's promise to repeal section 18C of the Racial Discrimination Act. Section 18C has recently been controversial because of the Andrew Bolt case but, as its supporters are first to say, it has been used against many other Australians.”

But Stephen Blanks, the secretary of the NSW Council for Civil Liberties, said Wilson's focus overlooked more serious human rights breaches.

"They are issues which can be focused on, but they're not the most important issues a human rights commission should be addressing at this time. Australia has plenty of other breaches of fundamental human rights," he said.

"The arbitrary detention of people on national security grounds with adverse ASIO security assessments without any proper review process is obviously the most serious breach of fundamental freedom that could be imagined."

Blanks also questioned Wilson's commitment to pushing for the full repeal of s18C of the Racial Discrimination Act.

"Repealing the section altogether would be throwing the baby out with the bathwater. We need strong laws which prevent Holocaust deniers from going about their trade and other people that want to attack people on purely racial grounds and stir up racial violence," he said.

http://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/dec/18/human-rights-commissioner-calls-for-repeal-of-law-banni...

Who's less free: Andrew Bolt, or children in detention?

Over 1,000 children are still locked up. They are more in need of the attention of the Australian Human Rights Commission than a powerful commentator

Andrew Bolt is not the most aggrieved victim of human rights abuses in Australia. He is freer than most. To highlight his racial vilification case as a significant violation that merited more attention from the human rights community, as incoming human rights commissioner Tim Wilson has done, does a disservice to all those who suffer real rights abuses.

Why not mention Lex Wotton, the Aboriginal community leader who is not permitted to attend public meetings without government approval and who is prohibited from speaking to the media?

 http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2013/dec/19/whos-less-free-andrew-bolt-or-children-in-deten...

Championing human rights in the wrong way

Date December 19, 2013

• Ben Saul

Don't believe the spin: George Brandis' plan to restore balance on human rights will just give more power to the power

The Attorney-General George Brandis is waging an ideological war on human rights while pretending to defend them. His view that human rights have blown off course in Australia is not based on evidence or a coherent understanding of rights. It is also an attempt to divert attention from the government's own serious rights violations.

Brandis wishes to ''restore the balance'' because ''traditional rights, freedoms and privileges'' have been ''unnecessarily compromised''. Already he has announced a law reform inquiry and made an unusual appointment as Human Rights Commissioner, by installing Tim Wilson, a former policy director of the free market think tank, the Institute of Public Affairs.

Among Brandis' highest priorities are defending an absolutist idea of free speech (so as even to protect hate speech against minorities) and loosening corporate, environmental and industrial regulations that impair rights.

 Read more: http://www.theage.com.au/comment/championing-human-rights-in-the-wrong-way-20131218-2zl91.html#ixzz2...

His priority as far as human rights go is so  not right ..

[newstart2380]

---

@just_me_karen wrote:
No you don't.

But besides that, I still can't see any positive comments about the current govt lmao. There are none, obviously.

---

No you dont what ?

Positives - business confidence is growing and the result MORE jobs which is what we all want.

Illegal Boat arrivals are declining so not as many drownings or refugees forced to live like animals in unhygenic conditions.

Carbon tax hopefully abolished so business will grow and again MORE jobs.

Mining tax abolished so again business will grow and again MORE jobs.

The more people employed the more tax the governemnt can collect, the more tax collected the more the government will have to spend on essential services, why is it so hard to comprehend.

We all want great quality of life and services but we have to pay for it otherwise go back to dirt roads, dunnies emptied by the s - - t cart weekly, no garbage collection etc etc.

[newstart2380]

---

@am*3 wrote:

newstart.. comment on the topic in the OP, don't complain about the opening poster. You also posted your sold your business recently.

Aust deficit 3 % and debt 16% of GDP.

Spain deficit 16 % and debt 100% of GDP

Don't make out Australia is ready to go down the gurgler.

---

And where did you see that I sold my business ? show me the post.

[cherry*135]

Searching now.

This thread is about the appointment of Human Rights Commissioner, if you want to discuss every other thing imaginable in politics, you could start your own thread.

[***super_nova***]

---

@am*3 wrote:

newstart.. comment on the topic in the OP, don't complain about the opening poster. You also posted your sold your business recently.

Aust deficit 3 % and debt 16% of GDP.

Spain deficit 16 % and debt 100% of GDP

Don't make out Australia is ready to go down the gurgler.

---

The labor debt is due to government investing money in projects which are needed and will pay off if the LNP does not scuttle them.  Just about every business borrows money to become more competitive. 

Subsidising Holden (and others) is much cheaper than the cost of them closing down.  Not just the unemployment benefits for all those workers but loss of tax revenue.  Yes, times are a changing, and we do need to look for new jobs to replace those that are becoming nonviable, but it needs to be done gradually; loss of such a huge company ( and those that in one way or other depend on Holden) is going to be very damaging.

[newstart2380]

---

@am*3 wrote:

Searching now.

This thread is about the appointment of Human Rights Commissioner, if you want to discuss every other thing imaginable in politics, you could start your own thread.

---

Sorry am*3 but the question or comment about my business was addressed to me and I did not introduce it to this thread but out of curiosity i asked where the rumour originated.

I guess the WW or NI mags got hold of it somewhere LOL