Just as well the Commonwealth Government Budget wasn’t tabled last week – that would have been too much of a mixed message. A nation’s budget is all about redistribution of wealth, a concept worth keeping in mind at a time when £100 million of British taxpayers’ money was spent on an unnecessary coronation pageant. As has been repeatedly pointed out, Prince Charles became King by default on September 8, 2022, on the death of his…
Today’s headline about homeless people could well be an urban myth; that is, a story people tell each other, swearing that it’s true. The housing crisis in Australia – a combination of unaffordable housing and scarce rental properties – is forcing people to live in their cars. I’ve done a bit of fact checking on this, but hang around while I relate this story from Tasmania. We’d stopped at Scottsdale, a high country town in…
I visited my local library last week for the first time in months and noticed that public internet access (computers, desks and chairs), had been removed. Desks, tables and chairs had also been removed from the reading room, where one could sit for hours browsing newspapers and magazines or working on jigsaw puzzles. “That’s not very fair on people who don’t have a computer or access to WIFI,” said She Who Believes in Equality. A…
The first time I thought of Homelessness Week 2016 (August 1-7) was when a young family member posted something on Facebook, aiming to raise funds for a St Vincent de Paul homeless charity, Fred’s Place. Alice took part in a community sleep out on Thursday night, raising funds to keep Fred’s Place operating. Vinnies operates a few such sites across Australia. This one in Tweed Heads offers a home and support for people experiencing homelessness…