Riverina Press Release

Australia First Riverina commends Daryl Maguire on his recent victory in the Liberal Party pre-selection ballot for the 2015 State election. We are overjoyed that we will be facing him as an opponent in the 2015 State election and not Mr Negline whom we consider a far more difficult adversary.

We did, however, receive a tip off as to a number of vocal supporters in Mr Maguire pre-selection plight and have decided that a closer inspection may be warranted.

A more detailed analysis of the support offered by Bishop Hanna of the Catholic Church and John Keyes of the Wagga RSL Club are in order. It seems that the Liberals can now claim to have the Catholic vote as we are sure in payment for Daryl's excellent work with the Catholic private healthcare system. As to Mr Keyes it seems he speaks on behalf of all 22 000 members of the RSL in claiming that he supported Mr Maguire on their behalf. What a wonderful gesture yet a very bold claim to make.

 

We should also note that we are not surprised Mr Negline was side swiped, as yes he is a Liberal by name, but he has proven to be a man of some integrity and honesty and the Maguire "backers" with  their own personal and lucrative self interest agendas around town, do not want to jeopardise the "status quo".

Medical Racketeering ?

http://australiafirstparty.net/

Wagga Wagga Cancer Care Centre – misappropriated non-service to the public?

by the Australia First Party investigations team

In a letter written to the Wagga Wagga Daily Advertiser (“Misinformation addressed, cleared” Sep 26th 2013) Joe Schipp, Chairman of the Riverina Cancer Care Trust, ‘attacked’ one of our members.
Shipp denounced our man’s statement concerning an under-the-surface seething by the public in relation to having to pay for cancer treatment at the Riverina Cancer Care Centre (RCCC), given their perception it was a public hospital; Shipp said everyone just had it wrong.
Shipp’s comment was made after a number of concerned locals made reference to having made donations towards the construction of our cancer care facilities whilst under the belief it was to be a public facility where treatment would be 100% bulk billed. They were later to learn that they would, in fact, be substantially out of pocket for treatment.
It would appear that it is a service provider that serves only those who can really afford it.
Australia First has done research on the facility and as a result has found some interesting facts. It seems there are many questions raised by the alliances that were formed to bring about the construction of the RCCC. There is also some question as to who is making what from this most profitable of medical services?
A partnership was formed with the Little Company of Mary (Calvary Hospital) which leases the land, The Riverina Cancer Care Community Trust, which raised money for the building through public donations and Cancer Care Associates Pty Ltd, which is responsible for the running and ongoing maintenance of the Centre.
This is the sticking point in our minds, as we cannot see why the public were asked to raise over $4 million to build a medical facility that was privately operated. Not only that, but a private Cancer Care Centre that makes a profit for a private company!
So let’s get this straight.  The public donated a huge amount of money and continues to do so to this day. We would also have to assume that those raising money and involved in the Trust would also be entitled to some ‘compensation’.
Then at the same time, the Little Company of Mary makes a return on the lease of the land. But to top it off, you then have a private company making a return for the maintenance and staffing of the Centre.
Just how much they make is anyone’s guess but when you understand who owns that company it is easy to see that they would not be there unless they were making a big profit.
The Director and Secretary of Cancer Care Associates is a Mr Tony Hassan Noun.  We shall say “Mr” as he was using the title of ‘Dr’ until he was chastised by the AHPRA for having no formal medical qualifications…

What’s up, Doc?

“The weird, limo-riding father of spoilt, blonde, Veruca Salt-like princess, Beckaa Noun, in Channel Ten’s failed ”dramality” series The Shire is facing a different dose of dramality.

Businessman Tony Noun, inset, has been repeatedly mistaken for a doctor, with the use of the title ”Dr” on official documents under question.

According to reporter Ilya Gridneff, the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency online national register has no listing for a Dr Tony Noun.

And when contacted and asked if he was a doctor, as referenced in three separate documents obtained by S, he said: ”This is a lovely witch-hunt, trying to have a go at the people in The Shire,” adding, ”I have done some work in healthcare. [But] no, I am not a doctor. I am not portraying myself as anything.”

When asked why several documents referred to him as ”Dr”, Noun explained: ”When you are a director or working in a particular field, people make assumptions. You’ll make your own assumptions about this and write what you want.”

An AHPRA spokeswoman says: ”It contravened the national law for someone to hold themselves out to be a registered practitioner if they were not. There are clear guidelines in relation to the use of ‘Dr’.”

Read more:   http://www.smh.com.au/lifestyle/celebrity/power-couple-20120922-26dfe.html#ixzz2n9e3qPoL

It is also not irrelevant to note that Tony’s daughter Rebecca of the TV program “The Shire” is well accustomed to the high life bragging about paying up to $10 000 for a handbag. See: http://www.realityravings.com/2012/07/23/the-shire-now-we-know-what-beckaas-dad-does/

The matter of daughter Rebecca indicates that Mr. Noun has the Edelsten touch about him and family indulgences come first. Indeed, Rebecca has the ambition of becoming Miss Lebanon and had plastic surgery with that in mind.
The scale of the indulgence might be gained from the following link where the arrogance of lifestyle is clear.  Of course, we hardly claim that Tony Noun makes all of his money through the RCCC, as it is clear he also owns a number of other companies including a company called Inventis.
However, given he leads a lavish lifestyle and would not be involved in any business or investment unless he was to receive a handsome return. You can also imagine our shock when we found that a local and prominent Wagga doctor was a very large shareholder in Inventis.
The RCCC scam demands a people’s campaign of public exposure and action to get a little justice.
The Riverina Cancer Care Centre Pty. Ltd. has its offices in solid Liberal territory – at Sutherland. We know that Mr. Abbott has met Tony Noun and it is understood that Immigration Minister Scott Morrison – has too. With these connections, it would not be hard to imagine local Riverina Liberals being on good terms with him.
We demand action in the people’s interest not the politicians’ interest. Not only should the donated money be returned to the defrauded donors, but those responsible for the implementation of this deception should be held to account before the appropriate court and such other prominent persons who had knowledge of this whole scam should equally be brought before the appropriate court as accessories to that deception.
We would find it unbelievable that all our political representatives (Council, State, Federal) had no knowledge of this fraud. Some must have known.
Remembering that this Cancer Centre was promoted to the public as a treatment centre for the public – ie; not a private profit driven enterprise – many donors have announced their rage and feel deceived.  All felt that the Centre was to be a great leap forward in care for people throughout our region.

Some questions present themselves:

 
Question:  is this the only block of land this Cancer Centre could have been built on and was there no other vacant land in Wagga except this CATHOLIC owned property?? Perhaps the Council could have donated the land slated for the would-be Chinese Trade Centre???
 
Question: who decided the CATHOLIC Church should gain a profit from this deception? Where was the propriety of these politically prominent leaders around town when this obvious scam was engineered and executed?
 
Question: have any of these private companies connected to the RCCC money-spinner donated to local political figures?
 
Question: what was the tendering process for the building works for RCCC?
The people of the Riverina demand answers. They will find the truth

Adelong progress ?

Contribution (received 19.7.2013)

After the attack on the Australia First Candidate for the Riverina, (Lorraine Sharp) by James Hayes & "friends", I made contact with Lorraine (who I had never met or spoken to before) and Lorraine informed me that James Hayes had told her that she "must have got her information regarding the curfew from myself or Bunny Brown". This is not true, although not surprising James Hayes would accuse me as Hayes form over time has shown he is no stranger to bullying and undermining people who dare to disagree with him.

Now that I have communicated with Ms Sharp, I was informed by Ms Sharp that 'gang' leader James Hayes had engaged his 'mongrel pack of attack dogs' to contact and intimidate her about a contribution Ms Sharp made to the Tumut & Adelong times on the issue of the curfew. They were incandescent with rage (not as much as the truckies who travel at least an extra 2 hours over a dangerous road because of people like Hayes).

Now that Hayes and his attack dogs have implicated me Ms Sharp is finding out a hell of a lot more about the curfew issue.

There is the issue of the "sham curfew meetings" run by James Hayes where the sole purpose was to bully, but pretend to be neutral and allow people to vote who lived nowhere near the highway, people from Ellerabie, Batlow and others miles away voted, the meeting was held at a time and place where truckies could not get there, (Hayes usual style).

Hayes and his 'friends' say the town would be nothing without the Progress Association - I make the following points since Hayes and Stephanie Smyth took over the Progress Association.

1. The only service station in town closed down.
2. One of the only two cafes closed down.
3. The post office was set to close (the only reason it stayed open was because of money from my company (Bendigo Bank and volunteers).
4. One business has reduced staff.
5. Not one new job has been created - NONE for young people.
6. The town is growing older, anyone with an education or people who really want a job leave.
7. No trucker (external income source)will live there because of the curfew - they won't come to Adelong.
8. Because the Progress Association wouldn't support Tom Wiles to have the 100 year deflection wall at the unique historic gold reef area reinforced - a very important part of the river was washed away. James Hayes turned up at a meeting between council and Mr Wiles (but when Hayes saw me there and realised he couldn't bully, he left before the meeting).
9. The Progress Association refused to support the removal of the log jam in Adelong creek, when the flood came it washed down against the bridge; formed a 'dam' and directed the flood down the main street of Adelong - this is why the town flooded.
10. The Progress Society refused to get council to build a protective wall on the creek bank next to the caravan park, Paul Mullins had the protective trees on the bank removed and the second flood cut into the wall again and a permanent cabin had to be removed. As of two months ago the Progress Society refused to contact council about it.
11. The Antique fair (the major income earner for the town) has broken away and formed their own organisation. Stephanie Smyth and James Hayes never helped, but decided they would make all the decisions and control the money.
12. Adelong is known throughout Australia as the town hostile to truckies, thanks to Hayes and this organisation. They are quite happy to put lives at risk on the dangerous Gocup Rd.
13. Adelong has been on the 10 most deprived town list in NSW for years, and the Progress Society have done nothing.
14. The Progress Society are council "bum lickers" what ever the anti-Adelong Tumut Shire Council decides the Progress Society promote in Adelong.
15. The Progress Society do not represent the people of the town and ignore any problems individuals have. A long time ago people have given them up (I walked away from them shortly after Stephanie Smyth became involved).
16. The one and only member who has been part of the organisation since its inception (the 1990's), is ready to walk away, because they do nothing.
17. The Progress Society know that the Tumut Council want Gocup Rd fixed, so they can promote it as the major entrance into the Tumut Shire and exclude Adelong from traffic into the Shire, but have done nothing, it seems as if they want tot further destroy Adelong.
18. The Mayor of the Tumut Shire Council, Trina Thomson has stated she wants the curfew to stay - to force the state and federal government to pay to have Gocup Rd fixed.
19. When the Tumut Council 'misled' and told them they couldn't afford the initial $100,000 needed to get grants for the swimming pool - this was 'accepted' and the money was 'sourced' from the bank (over $10,000 was my money). In other words the progress Society donated $100,000 to the Shire.
20. Three out of 7 councillors voted for Adelong to have a heated pool (they needed one more after the election). they followed James Hayes in actively campaigning against these people. Hayes would get in - they caused Adelong to miss out on a heated pool.
21. The Progress Society never complained when Councillor James Hayes did a 'backflip' (so he could become Deputy Mayor) and supported the worst possible outcome for Adelong. A six lane rather than a 7 lane pool that the Adelong Swimming Club wanted - these people took over the swimming pool committee then sold the people of Adelong out.

I could go on ....

This organisation is not the Adelong 'progress' association, it's aim is to destroy the fragile town of Adelong. James Hayes and Stephanie Smyth are leading the gang that are destroying Adelong.


If these folks are so concerned about maintaining the curfew why have they not reported the Toll trucks that cart for Visy (breaking the curfew all the time)? They are hypocrites who attack only the owner/driver and small business.

Graeme Crain
Adelong

The Underclasses

Contributed:

 

 

The Department of Housing (Wagga Wagga Office), requested that I attend their office today to pick up the keys for my Daughters flat and remove the contents of the said flat.

 

I attended the D.O.H Office at approximately 9.45am and collected the keys. D.O.H Client Service Officer instructed me to attend the said location and remove the belongings, once the contractor had removed the security board from the doorway.

 

Myself and another Daughter attended the said location at approximately 11am, from the onset we were set upon by Mr J. P, who continually walked past yelling out and intimidating us. On several occasions Mr P walked up to the door of the flat looking in (in contravention of a current enforceable AVO for that location and DOH regulations relating to him and the said location). We ignored Mr P's behaviours and continued to pack up the flat as quickly as we could, so we could leave the location. As we were leaving the location at approximately 12.30pm Mr P started yelling threats at us, Mr P said "I'll smash your head in" and "why don't you go and have a whack with my Mum, she's in there" (pointed to a flat ). Mr P then said "I'm going to shoot P.W and your whole family, P.W's a dog crying to Police because my Mum scratched his face". At this point I became concerned for our safety and said to my Daughter "let's go, I'll call the Police". I called 000 at 12.36pm to report the situation and requested Police attend. I also called DOH to notify them of the situation at their premises. An hour later Police still had not attended, I called Wagga Police Station and spoke to a Cst Burmeister and he said "a job was on the system but Police are busy". At 3.01 pm I called Wagga Police again, as Police had still not attended and Sheree answered and said she knew nothing of the matter. At 3.20pm DOH called me to see what the situation was, I told them and they said you need to call the Police, I said I had but they were too busy to assist me. At 5.19pm I called Wagga Police again (as they still had not attended) and Cst Burmeister informed me Police were still busy, but should be there soon. I told Cst Burmeister, I had to attend the said flat again to pick up remaining items, as I was required to return the keys to DOH the following morning as the contractor would be boarding the doorway again, Cst Burmeister told me "now would be a good time to go back to the said flat as the Police had J P in custody on other matters and his Mother (K.P) was also in attendance at the Police Station as his support person.

 

At 5.40pm I returned to the flat with P.W and started removing the remaining items from the flat, at 5.45pm K. D B approached me at the said flat and told me she was going to bash my head in and also stated she was going to bash my Daughter, K.DB was screaming and yelling in a highly aggressive, threatening and frightening manner. K.DB's Mother K P then came to the door of the said flat (albeit Ms P has bail conditions not to approach me). Ms P said "fuck them, they'll call the police, the dogs". (truth is, K.P & co are a constant menace to society always calling Police telling lies about innocent people and threatening all and sundry with violence, they are notorious around Wagga yet nothing is ever done about these folks) K.DB and Ms P then left screaming and yelling. I called Police again 000 at 5.50pm, as at this point I was in fear of being assaulted. I also pointed out to the 000 operator I had first contacted Police regarding this matter at 12.36pm and Police had not attended. I ran to my car when I could not see K P and K. DB out the front and drove home in a terrified state. I again called Wagga Police Station and spoke to a Cst Whithers and asked him if Police were going to attend over this ongoing and frightening matter, Cst Whithers said "Police are just doing change over now, they should be there sometime soon". It is now 10.00pm and still no Police in sight.

 

I believe this is a politically motivated, deliberate failure of duty of care and absolute dereliction of duty on Police behalf, as I and my family have recently been victims of actual violence and attempted home invasion at the hands of these people. My daughter has been a victim of ongoing extreme violence at the hands of J P and my young son has been traumatised and suffering stress as a result of K P's recent unwanted, unprovoked and uninvited violence at my property.

 

Ironically the original arrangements were for DOH Client Service Officer to meet me at the said flat and provide me with the keys, these arrangements were changed as the Client Service Officer said she had to think of her personal safety around "those sort of people" and would need Police to attend with her, so it would be easier if I attended the DOH Office and collected the keys there. Nice, my personal safety is of no concern only their own ? Clearly by Police response or total absence of, my safety as a "regular" citizen is of no significance (obviously I'm not a part of the privileged or protected class around town). If the public are to be subjected to this real danger without protection by the law, when going about their everyday business, then the time has come for the public to have the means to protect themselves. As an older Woman I cannot accept this situation as any sort of notion of safety while out in public, where Police ignore attacks on vulnerable woman at the hands of notorious wild animals!

 

We wonder if the privileged class around town were subjected to this type of terrifying behaviour, would the Police ignore them ?

 

Further,it would have been common courtesy for Cst Burmeister to call me and notify me that K P was no longer at Wagga Police Station, had I known that I would have immediately left the said location and therefore been able to avoid the second incident of the day.

12.30am, Police finally arrive, Sgt Reardon, proceeds to tell me that she has spoken to K.P and she is telling her a "different" story, (what a surprise K.P a compulsive liar is telling her a different story). Sgt Reardon insinuates I am "making it up" regarding the first reported issue as J.P was in custody today at Wagga Police Station, I guarantee J.P was not in custody at Wagga Police Station between the hours of 11am and 12 noon today, as he was terrorising myself and my daughter at the said location. Sgt Reardon then reduces herself to a childlike tantrum, as it all seems too inconvenient for her to investigate the matter at hand, she refuses to speak with witnesses and then changes track completely and proceeds to tell me I am a bad Mother unlike her as she knows where her children are at all times, which is more than she can say for me, excuse me, what has Reardon's opinion of me as a Mother (which means nothing) got to do with the reported issue of the day that I have been trying to report for the last 12 hours? Sgt Reardon presumes much considering she knows nothing about me. Sgt Reardon unilaterally decides she is not going to bother doing anything about the reported crime of the day and leaves (and stops her partner taking any notes). Public relations with the Wagga Police have hit new lows, and one wonders what exactly some Police are doing in a Police uniform ? An absolute disgraceful display in Policing, this sort of attitude does nothing for the overall image of the NSW Police Force. As far as the perpetrators of today's crimes (well known vermin in the community), they continue their reign of terror aided and abetted by Sgt Reardon as citizens are denied their rights under law as determined by Sgt Reardon.

 

 

What a disgrace !

What a joke !

 

Sound Familiar ?

The Chinese Want To Spend Billions Constructing A 600 Acre “China City” In New York State

By Michael Snyder, on December 5th, 2013

 

     

The Chinese have made trillions of dollars flooding our shores with super cheap products, and now they are using some of that money to buy land and property all over America.  For example, there is now a proposal to construct a multibillion dollar “China City” that would span approximately 600 acres in a remote area of New York state.  This “China City” (that is actually what it would be called) would be located on Yankee Lake in Sullivan County, New York.  The plans anticipate large numbers of Chinese businesses, plenty of homes for Chinese immigrants, a Chinese high school, a college, a casino and even a theme park.  And the first 600 acres is only for “phase one” of the plan.  Ultimately, the goal is for “China City” to cover more than 2,000 acres.  Those promoting this plan say that it will be a great way for New Yorkers to learn to appreciate Chinese culture.
So should we be concerned that the Chinese want to place a little slice of communist China right in the heart of New York state?
Should we really be allowing other nations (especially ones that publish maps showing what will happen when they nuke us) to be setting up self-sustaining communities inside our own country that have no intention of integrating into the wider culture?
David North of the Center for Immigration Studies is one of those that is sounding the alarm over this project.  According to him, the eventual goal of the “China City” project is to essentially take over two small towns and cover a total of more than 2,000 acres…

The first version of the plan to emerge was a grandiose one. It would cover more than 2,000 acres (more than three square miles) spread over the towns of Mamakating and Thompson. It would include a Chinese theme park, a city full of China-related businesses, a high school, a college, and 1,000 residences. Every province in China would have an office there and the place would be replete with symbols of Chinese culture. For more on these plans see CCOA’s website, festooned with golden dragons and text in both Mandarin and English.  When finished it would be a $6 billion project, its backers say.

But for now, the first phase is only going to cover about 600 acres…

A revised version of the initial offering was proposed later; this would, as a modest start to the broader project, include a college, an urban area, some family housing, and lots of student housing; it would cover less than 600 acres and would all be in the town of Thompson, whose officials, a local lawyer tells me, are somewhat less hostile to the plan than those in Mamakating.

And this is not the first time that this kind of thing has been proposed.  As I reported last year, a different Chinese group has purchased 200 acres of land in a rural area of Michigan and hopes to create a “China City” out there…

A Chinese group known as “Sino-Michigan Properties LLC” has bought up 200 acres of land near the town of Milan, Michigan.  Their plan is to construct a “China City” with artificial lakes, a Chinese cultural center and hundreds of housing units for Chinese citizens.  Essentially, it would be a little slice of communist China dropped right into the heartland of America.  This “China City” would be located about 40 minutes from both Detroit and Toledo, and it would be marketed to Chinese business people that want to start businesses in the United States.

You can read the full article about that project right here.
Most of the time, when the Chinese gobble up our properties they do not do it in such large chunks.  But make no mistake – they are voraciously buying up real estate right now.  In fact, CNN recently published an article about the cities where they are the most active…

New York and Los Angeles top the list of U.S. cities they are most interested in, according to Juwai.com, a website where Chinese buyers browse global real estate listings.
More surprisingly, Philadelphia and Detroit come in at No. 3 and No. 4.
The top 10 list is rounded out by Houston, Chicago, Las Vegas, Atlanta, San Diego and Memphis.
Chinese buyers purchased $8.2 billion worth of U.S. property in 2012, according to Juwai.

It has been estimated that the Chinese are now buying one out of every ten homes sold in the state of California.  And this buying spree actually appears to be accelerating.  The following is a brief excerpt from a recent CNBC article entitled “Chinese buying up California housing“…

At a brand new housing development in Irvine, Calif., some of America’s largest home builders are back at work after a crippling housing crash. Lennar, Pulte, K Hovnanian, Ryland to name a few. It’s a rebirth for U.S. construction, but the customers are largely Chinese.
“They see the market here still has room for appreciation,” said Irvine-area real estate agent Kinney Yong, of RE/MAX Premier Realty. “What’s driving them over here is that they have this cash, and they want to park it somewhere or invest somewhere.”

So where did they get all of this cash?
A lot of it came from us of course.  We have lost tens of thousands of businesses and millions of jobs to the Chinese, and now they are literally buying up little pieces of America with the money that we spent on all of the cheap plastic trinkets that they exported to us.
And they are not just buying up residential real estate.  They are buying lots of commercial real estate as well.  In fact, in a previous article I talked about how one Chinese firm recently purchased one of the most important landmarks in New York City…

Chinese conglomerate Fosun International Ltd. (0656.HK) will buy office building One Chase Manhattan Plaza for $725 million, adding to a growing list of property purchases by Chinese buyers in New York city.
The Hong Kong-listed firm said it will buy the property from JP Morgan Chase Bank, according to a release on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange website.
Chinese firms, in particular local developers, have looked overseas to diversify their property holdings as the economy at home slows. Chinese individuals also have been investing in property abroad amid tight policy measures in the mainland residential market.
Earlier this month, Chinese state-owned developer Greenland Holdings Group agreed to buy a 70% stake in an apartment project next to the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, N.Y., in what is the largest commercial-real-estate development in the U.S. to get direct backing from a Chinese firm.

So where is all of this eventually heading?
Should we all start learning how to speak Chinese?
Please feel free to share what you think by posting a comment below…

https://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=526059207097361434#editor/target=post;postID=7243444098354681309

 

Why People Continue To Vote Liberal Or Labor

http://wakeup-world.com/2013/10/09/the-psychological-state-of-the-state-the-societal-stockholm-syndrome/

9th October 2013

By Lee Maddox and Tim McK

Guest Writers for Wake Up World

With the Australian federal elections over – apart from a few squabbling electorates demanding recounts – Australia’s two-party system has continued to devolve to resemble a mongrel mix of zealous nanny state paternalism and oligopolistic corporatocracy. The mainstream media circus entertains and purports to inform, but presents content within strict boundaries that exclude serious criticism. And when truly independent thinkers occasionally manage to gain a foothold in the system, they are summarily ridiculed with ad hominem attacks in efforts to discredit the person, and by extension, their ideas.

At present Australia has an education system that trains people to fit into the system. While I believe the private education system provides better education than the state one, both still follow the same curriculum because all students still need to attain the same certificate of education. The more elite schools train the managers of society while the others school their students to be employees. There is a bit of crossover, but that is the rule rather than the exception.

 

And do you know what? We accept it! Society as a whole may or may not know of the problems inherent in it, but we love it nonetheless. Of course not those of us reading this, who are awake and have taken action against this system. As for the rest of society, not only do they love it, they develop compassion and loyalty for it … and embrace it. At times they even willingly fight to protect it.

The best slave is one who thinks he is free

Politicians allow the public to think we are free to vote for whomever we like when “democracy” rolls around at election time. Some voters are actively loyal to the Liberal, National or Labor parties, others vote for them as the lesser of the presented evils. So we’re stuck with Tweedle Dee or Tweedle Dum. But is the sun rising and scattering the cockroaches?

A few non-mainstreamers have slipped into the Senate via a flaw in the very system designed to keep them out. So will the major players accept this? Hell no! They plan to change the rules to restore their entitlements to power. These upstarts can’t be thinking there’s hope. Back to the salt mines for you, boy!

The state is adamantly determined to uphold the status quo that they have even convinced the public that it’s no use fighting the system, and to instead embrace our captive society so we don’t allow such incursions by those seeking to instigate real change. I recall my school’s Head of Campus at the end of Year 9 driving home the message “don’t play the system.” That’s verbatim. And this was at a well known school in the ‘elite’ category. The subtext: you can’t change anything, so don’t even try. I’ve forgotten just about every direct quote from a teacher, but that comment stands alone in my memory. As a born contrarian, I have ever since considered it a challenge, not a command.

So what is it then? What is it that urges us to take a stand and resist when it seems everyone else just follows suit? The basis of the Stockholm Syndrome, a term coined by psychologists post 1973 after the bank robbery in Stockholm, Sweden, is that a person held captive has a subconscious need for personal preservation that will drive them to do what it takes to survive, even if it means building a rapport with their captors. Some go so far as to love and even defend those that have them in bondage from the very people trying to rescue them.

How is this paradigm any different today?

It’s not. Societal Stockholm Syndrome (SSS) can easily develop in such a system where people don’t consciously recognise they’re held captive within a certain paradigm. This is because the system can be perceived as acting benevolently towards the public through means such as handouts to people who don’t actually need them, election promises (which frequently go unfulfilled) and the welfare system.

It’s hard to try and wake someone up who is so dependant on the very system that has enslaved them. But there is hope. A global alternative media network is growing exponentially, born out of the need to resist the control of the status quo. And it’s gaining momentum, as it continually unplugs people from the system and wakes them up from their learned helplessness.

The only true way to break free of this SSS is to resist. The very act, nay, even the thought of resisting is in essence resistance itself, because this captive society that has been created around us is fundamentally a mental prison, and any act of resistance has to begin in your mind.

China Takes All

Foreign Investors Push First Home Buyers Out Of The Market

7.30

By Tracy Bowden

     

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2013-11-27/foreign-investors-push-first-home-buyers-out-of-property-market/5120966

There are concerns that foreign interest in Australian residential property is pushing up prices, making it harder for local first home buyers to enter the market.

Chinese interest in Australian residential property is booming, with chief executive of McGrath Estate Agents John McGrath describing it as the biggest surge from an offshore market in his 30 years in real estate.
"In some suburbs 90 per cent of new product will sell to Chinese buyers," he said.
Cashed-up buyers are snapping up everything from luxury harbour-side property in Sydney to apartments bought off the plan in Sydney, Melbourne the Gold Coast and Perth.
Monika Tu from Black Diamondz Concierge Service in Sydney saw an opportunity at the high end of the market.
Ms Tu finds properties for wealthy Chinese clients and helps them settle in to Australia. She will look after everything from housing, to finding schools, to buying investment art.
Ms Tu invited the ABC's 7.30 program along as she showed client Amy Wong a property on Sydney's lower north shore, on the market for $13 million.
"I decided to move family here for the education and for the lifestyle," Ms Wong said.
"This is just a beautiful place to be."
But not everyone welcomes the new buyers. Buyer's agent Patrick Bright says he refuses to help non-residents find property.
"Why should we sell off the farm if you like, or sell off the city," he said.
"It's not like we are struggling for people to buy these properties, because we've got an undersupply, [that] is what all the associations keep telling us."

Foreign investors 'only part of the equation'

Financial analyst Martin North agrees there is a shortage of residential property, which is forcing up prices and making it even tougher for first home buyers.
But he says foreign investors are only part of the equation.
"First home buyers find they can't afford to buy because prices are too high," Mr North said.
"Also when you attend an auction you discover that investors from overseas, local investors and baby boomers are all also trying to buy the same property."
When 7.30 attended the second-stage release of a new apartment complex in Sydney's south, there was a long queue of would-be buyers waiting for the opening of the sales office.
CBRE Real Estate's Tim Rees says they sold 250 units in the first release in three hours.
"Today, we sold another 50," he said.
"We have got first home buyers strong in the market, there are investors, 60 per cent owner-occupiers, 40 per cent investors."
Under Foreign Investment Review Board guidelines, if a developer has pre-approval from the Foreign Investment Review Board, 100 per cent of apartments in a new development can be sold to foreigners.
According to Mr North some developers target the international market.
"In some cases there are developers who are essentially building directly to sell to China and they are advertising on websites over in China and using Chinese connections to sell off the plan," he said.
Mr McGrath believes the business is good for the market.
"I think it is quite centralised in certain pockets, so I don't think it is doing great damage or harming local buyers' opportunities to buy here still," he said.
Mr North believes the key problem is the shortage of residential property in Australia and says there need to be policy changes to ensure that a large group of Australians do not become life-long renters.
"We have five trillion in property in Australia, it is a massive economic engine for us," he said.
"But we need to be clear about how we are going to manage that effectively for the greater good of Australia."

Chinese Sharks In Mt. Druitt Swimming Pools

The article below sets out the basic facts

http://www.usu.org.au/usucampaigns/local-government/save-blacktown-services/626-mt-druitt-pool-closure-the-thin-edge-of-the-wedge-staff-fight-blacktown-council-community-asset-sell-off


Information provided to Australia First has revealed that the Liberal mayor of Blacktown has a Chinese company in mind for the sale. Some 200 units may be constructed.

This changes the nature of the struggle and inevitably the Labor opposition will collapse. Australia First will further investigate the 'conspiracy'. Many local people have already raised their voices against the sale.

Has Gary Knight been white anted again, as alleged in the Dubbo affair and the Wagga trade centre fiasco?

Is Blacktown one of the 'two' councils said to be in the pocket of certain Chinese business people?

http://www.independentaustralia.net/politics/politics-display/blacktown-council-sells-off-the-deep-end,5372


More on this soon....

Community Donations ?

Wagga’s Riverina Cancer Care Centre, a privately operated, but community owned, facility. Really?

 

 

So where does the profit from this private pty ltd go  ?  Does it go back into the community or to shareholders of the private company? How can it be community owned ? Why do the community have to pay to use something they own ?

 

Why do the communities of Tamworth, Albury, Lismore and other comparable sized regional areas have "free" cancer treatment at public hospitals, cancer centres they don't own?

 

The 'new' Wagga Base Hospital will not provide public funded cancer treatment nor palliative care.

 

 

 http://newsmediaiframe.dailyadvertiser.com.au/iframepages/iframeArticle.aspx?id=2494500

 

 

This smells like another  Liberal con to privatise the health system and as a result the Riverina community have been defrauded of $4.3 million dollars plus ongoing donations, all held in trust by Mr Schipp.

 

We say defrauded as many generous donors have contacted Australia First and stated they never, ever would have knowingly or willingly donated a cent to a facility that the community had to pay to use, they feel duped and angry, as they were under the impression the RCCC was going to be a public facility, that local people could use without cost, as is the case in the other regional areas and cities.

We have had a situation reported to us of a woman who returned to work while undergoing treatment at RCCC so she could pay her bill.

 

This is an important point, as our next question is, will this be the same (or similar) situation with the Palliative issue in Wagga? We are mindful the Tamworth palliative care unit is located at the public hospital and free !

 

We say the only way around this issue is for universal state owned and provided health care. The current health care set up in the Riverina serves to plunder the community and give to private providers. Joe Schipp had his chance (recently) to explain to the community the RCCC situation, but SILENCE was all that was forthcoming.

 

Australia First have contacted people in the Tamworth region and they were outraged when told of the situation regarding cancer treatment and palliative care in the Riverina, they could not conceive people actually have to pay for cancer treatment in the Riverina and further bemused when told the community donated $4.3 million dollars towards the centre. . With Liberals in control, our regional 'cousins' should take note of what may well be in store for them, in the not to distant future.

 

 

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2006-02-01/mp-promises-to-lobby-for-cancer-centre-funds/789706

 

It seems to come up Church groups, Liberals and private companies every time in the Riverina.


Fast forward a few years.............

Australians would do well to be mindful of the future GATS agenda on health services too. There is no end to the greed and globalist dominion, all facilitated by our very own 'elected leaders'.

We are at a tipping point, if Australians allow this situation to continue, the dismantling of the public health system, future Australians will not be thanking us, that we can be sure off.

Hello the Third World.............
 

 

 

 

Twelve Years On...What Are The Statistics Now, Does Anybody Know ? Beware When Breathing In Public Places !

Migrants' Diseases Not Followed Up          

• by: Cath Hart
• From: The Australian
• May 18, 2007 12:00AM

Dr Choong - Siew Yong

MIGRANTS with serious illnesses - including lepers and more than 100,000 people with tuberculosis - have been allowed into Australia despite authorities' inability to carry out proper medical supervision. Read the full report

An audit of the Immigration Department has found that it knowingly allows migrants to enter Australia with serious contagious diseases but frequently fails to check up on whether they have sought medical attention.
The Australian National Audit Office revealed yesterday that since 2000-01 more than 100,000 immigrants with tuberculosis had entered Australia on the condition that they submit to medical supervision. The damning report said that, despite imposing the conditions, the department was unable to follow up and check whether the medical advice had been sought.
The report comes just a month after John Howard questioned whether migrants with HIV-AIDS should be allowed to come to Australia.
It said the department admitted its errors and had agreed to overhaul its systems. The audit said the current health screening procedures had "limitations and gaps", which weakened the Department of Immigration and Citizenship's ability to protect Australians from public health threats.
The system relied largely on the honesty of visa applicants to disclose whether or not they had a disease that could be a public health risk, the audit said.
Opposition immigration spokesman Tony Burke said he was shocked by the audit and urged the Government to implement the recommendations quickly.
Australian Medical Association vice-president Choong-Siew Yong said it was "quite concerning" that visa-holders were not complying with their undertaking and urged the Government to do more to address the situation.
Under the Migration Act, visa applicants must meet health requirements that protect the community from public health risks and safeguard Australians' access to health services.
Applicants for permanent visas undergo a medical examination, while short-stay visa applicants - including temporary skilled migrants and holidaymakers - answer a series of questions about their health history and status.
"As a result, DIAC cannot be certain of detecting all people who pose health risks," the audit found.
It was also highly critical of the way the department administered and monitored exemptions from the health requirements which have allowed foreigners with diseases such as tuberculosis, hepatitis B and C and leprosy to enter Australia.
Visa applicants who fail to meet the health requirements can secure an exemption if they sign a "health undertaking" to report to a designated health authority in the relevant state or territory for a follow-up health assessment.
Up to 20,000 undertakings are issued each year - about 90 per cent for people with tuberculosis.
The audit revealed that a quarter of the 5535 health undertakings issued in 2002-03 were non-compliant.
There are no formal arrangements between DIAC and state and territory authorities to check whether people have honoured their commitment to undergo further health checks.
The audit also found that, even when visa-holders were caught breaching their health undertaking, they were still allowed to stay in the country. The audit was also critical of the federal health department for failing to provide DIAC with "timely advice" on potential health risks. DIAC figures contained in the audit show that since 2002-03 nine people with leprosy had signed health waivers and secured visas to Australia. Since 2000-01, 101,468 health undertakings had been given to people with tuberculosis.
The Government agreed to adopt all eight recommendations made by the ANAO including a memorandum of understanding between DIAC and the Health Department.
A spokeswoman for Immigration Minister Kevin Andrews said the Government would also ensure that co-operation across government agencies improved.
http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/nation/migrants-diseases-not-followed-up/story-e6frg6nf-1111113561800
 

Bikie Laws Aren't About Bikies: Mechanisms For Repression Are Now In Place

Draft laws are now before the parliaments in several States and a NSW law has been passed. In the case of the latter, the "Criminal Organisations" Act does not contain a single reference in its provisions to any 'Outlaw Motor Cycle Gang'.

As one pundit told us, these laws should be read in tandem with certain political sections of the Commonwealth Crimes Act where a Supreme Court judge may declare an organisation "unlawful", "criminal", and issue orders to control whom its former members may associate with and even go to and seize the assets of the proclaimed unlawful associations. Similar provisions appear in the "bikie laws". If these statutes in different jurisdictions exist, are they linked?

We are suspicious of these new bikie laws. If some bikies commit crimes, there are detection methods and laws to deal with them. Clearly, some criminal elements within the clubs have found themselves before the courts on various charges. But these laws could just as easily ban a church, a trade union, a truckies lobby and a political organisation.

It is a tenet of Australia First's political logic that those who own and administer the Australian state have no intention of allowing anyone to depose them in an 'election'. These laws are mechanisms of a future repressive attempt to limit freedom of political action. A hard thought? Or just the truth?

We watch with great interest the situation in Greece, another supposed 'great democracy'.




http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-24780379

Two members of Greece's Golden Dawn shot dead

The BBC's Mark Lowen reports on how the drive-by shooting unfolded.

Two members of Greece's far-right Golden Dawn have been killed and a third wounded in a drive-by shooting outside the party's offices in an Athens suburb, police say.

The dead men, aged 22 and 27, were guarding the office.

The attack comes weeks after several members of Golden Dawn, including the leader, were arrested on suspicion of forming a criminal organisation.

The arrests followed the killing of an anti-fascist musician.

A Golden Dawn supporter has been charged over the killing of Pavlos Fyssas, 34, whose stage name was Killah P.

His death sparked protests in Athens and across Greece.
Government vow
The two men who died on Friday were shot at close range from a motorcycle carrying two men, said Golden Dawn MP Georgios Germenis.

"A man got off a motorcycle wearing a helmet and shot them,'' he said.

A third man was seriously wounded, and taken to hospital, said police.

The drive-by shooting comes a week after the Greek parliament voted to suspend state funding for Golden Dawn

Following the shooting, in the Neo Iraklio suburb of Athens, anti-terrorist police wearing riot gear cordoned off the area around the offices.

The BBC's Mark Lowen in Athens says 12 bullets were said to have been found at the scene, from 9mm handguns, and police are surveying CCTV footage from cameras at the party office.

He says the fear now is that an atmosphere of revenge could develop.

"The murderers - whoever they are - will be dealt with unsparingly by our democracy. Let everyone know this," a government spokesman, Simos Kedikoglou, told reporters.

The shooting comes after the Greek government launched a crackdown on Golden Dawn, including raids on the party's offices, followed the killing of Pavlos Fyssas on 17 September.

George Roupakias, 45, who said he was a supporter of Golden Dawn, was later charged with voluntary manslaughter and illegal possession of a weapon.

Meanwhile, the leader of Golden Dawn, Nikolaos Michaloliakos, and two other senior party MPs are currently in jail, awaiting trial on charges of forming a criminal group. They deny the charges.

Last week the Greek parliament voted to suspend state funding for Golden Dawn, which is the third most popular party in Greece.

The new law allows an indefinite freeze on funding for parties whose leadership is charged with involvement in terrorism, or a criminal group.

The Destructive Reality Of Globalism

Who believes that any government has a mandate to sign treaties that take away the rights of Australians and their government? While both major parties have used international agreements to push their own agenda and bypass our rights in the past, this latest move by Tony Abbott is nothing short of insane.   

The Abbott Coalition looks set to sign off on the highly secretive Trans-Pacific Partnership later this month. In fact this gross attempt of Neo Liberalism hands an insane amount of power to foreign corporations and will give companies the right to sue governments for damages should they implement policy that affects their profits? A good example of this would be that if this treaty was signed before plain packaging on cigarettes were introduced, the tobacco companies would have had every right to sue our government for their losses. Of course the taxpayer would be left to foot the bill.

This treaty will have major implications with mining including coal seam gas and could actually force fracking into communities. The TPP also undermines local legal systems and force decisions to be made by specialised investor/state tribunals held offshore.

Other implications could also include the enforcement of free trade agreements over local policy. This could mean that our food quarantine systems and health procedures can be challenged if they prevent the importation of food products from a signatory country. Watch out for the good wholesome food coming from China as local small farmers and economies are destroyed. If you need an example of this you only need look at Mexico and the destruction of its local corn production due to NAFTA.

So hands up all those who voted to give more power to foreign corporations? Who also agreed to allow more mining in populated areas as well as the importation of dangerous and genetically modified food?

The significant point to consider here is that the Labor Party is silent on this issue and also supports free trade. Is it Labor and the Coalition or is it Laboral as we march towards the handing over of more of our country to foreign powers and corporate rule?

 

Craig Hesketh

 

 

http://www.nationofchange.org/trans-pacific-partnership-and-monsanto-1372074730

http://www.independentaustralia.net/2013/business/abbott-set-to-sign-secretive-tpp-agreement-this-month/

http://www.sfgate.com/news/article/Mexico-s-corn-farmers-see-their-livelihoods-2515188.php

 

Who's Killing Amy ?

Contributed:

Has anyone seen Amy ?

Amy is my 15 year old daughter, she is missing in Kings Cross, Sydney.

Amy was a fun loving girl, a top athlete, with a larger than life personality, everyone that met Amy was instantly drawn to her infectious personality and sense of humour. Amy was a well mannered polite girl.

Then.......

Amy went to High School and her sense of adventure and (at that time) innocent mischief was influenced by the "do- gooders" who informed Amy of her "rights", without informing her of her responsibilities. A recipe for the disaster now under foot.

Amy was informed by the do-gooder faction of our society "your Parents can't tell you what to do, the Teachers can't tell you what to do, the Police have little to no power over you, DoCS can't do anything to you and the Court won't do anything", all in the name of the UN "Rights Of The Child".

And so the nightmare begins......

Amy embraced these wondrous rights all the way to Drug addiction and Kings Cross.

Currently Amy is still missing in Kings Cross and not one Authority or Agency will lift a finger to do anything about the danger Amy is in.

Amy has run away to Kings Cross on about 6 occasions, she has been returned twice, including myself and my eldest daughter driving to Kings Cross to pick Amy up. My eldest daughter was frightened by the scene of human tragedy when we arrived there. DoCS flew Amy back once. On two other occasions Amy was taken into custody for committing crime and returned by Juvenile Justice, only to be immediately released by the local Magistrate at Wagga Wagga (again). Amy has committed many serious crimes (over a period of time) but the NSW Attorney General doesn't see these issues as worthy of incarceration, nor does the local Magistrate at Wagga Wagga, so it's back to Kings Cross again and again.

Juvenile Justice Wagga Wagga Office inform me "we do not lock children up for their own protection, we are bound to follow the UN CROC". Amy cannot be forced into a drug rehabilitation centre, as it is "voluntary", Amy must agree to go, or it's no go. I as Amy's Parent have no power or rights under law to commit Amy to a drug rehabilitation centre. I as Amy's Parent have no rights to do anything to protect my child, in fact I was warned by Juvenile Justice, if I go to Kings Cross and try and bring my daughter home against her will, I will face serious criminal charges. In other words my 15 year old daughter Amy has the "human right" to destroy herself with drugs, associate with dangerous people and live in the streets of Kings Cross and not one NSW government agency will lift a finger to do anything about the dire situation.

After applying constant pressure to Juvenile Justice Wagga Wagga office, they finally issued a breech of Amy's probation bonds to Wagga Wagga Court. This action should have resulted in a Warrant for Amy, which would have given Police the power to pick Amy up, as matters stand without Amy (being caught) committing further crime, the Police have no power to pick Amy up off the streets of Kings Cross and return her to Wagga Wagga. Of course the usual disappointment prevails from Wagga Wagga court again and the Magistrate does not issue a Warrant for Amy, rather Amy is free to remain in extreme danger on the streets of Kings Cross.

Who is killing Amy ? ............

The Sydney police have called me to convey their serious concerns for Amy's life and the extremely dangerous environment Amy is in, I have taken their concerns to authorities in Wagga Wagga, but no action is forthcoming.

Amy's last stint in Kings Cross ended when she was to witness someone being shot in a drug house, none of these issues appear to concern the Magistrate at Wagga Court, or any of the other useless government departments around town.

So the current situation is, if I as Amy's Parent intervene I will be arrested and no government agency, not DoCS,  Police, Juvenile Justice, or the Magistrate will intervene. Seemingly we have an over abundance of civil servants who get paid a handsome salary to do nothing.

At the end of the day the very system that refuses to act to protect our children blames the victims, the child is blamed for making "poor choices" (how can a child with an underdeveloped mind that is brainwashed to do as it wants and heavily drug affected make a rational and informed decision ? ) Or the Parent is told they should take more responsibility (how can they do that in the absence of Parental rights and under the threat of being jailed if they intervene ?).

I demand the Attorney General of NSW reinstate immediately my parental rights and authority over my child and the introduction of compulsory drug rehabilitation for youth.

A group of distressed and despairing parents around the country are currently organising to change these laws, that currently allow the government to destroy our children, our families and our communities.

All enquiries for the Parents Action Group

froybee.js@gmail.com

To save our families and our children we must unite.

Abbott Set To Sign Highly Secretive TPP Agreement This Month

http://www.independentaustralia.net/2013/business/abbott-set-to-sign-secretive-tpp-agreement-this-month/

The Abbott Coalition looks set to sign off on the highly secretive Trans-Pacific Partnership later this month, but what will it mean for ordinary Australians? Dr Matthew Mitchell reports.

Initial nations involved in the TPP; it may include more later.

WHAT SORT of “Trade Agreement” manages to both criminalise internet use and force coal seam fracking onto communities?
The answer to this is the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), a pact that has the ominous potential to achieve both these corporate objectives — and many more.
Of course, we cannot know the exact effects of the TPP, as the negotiations over the past few years have been held in secret.  However, two leaked chapters – out of the 26 or more under negotiation – have caused more than their fair share of concern.
One of these chapters threatens to undermine both our existing domestic and international legal systems, throwing away the protections and rights achieved over hundreds of years.
How? Through tribunals linked to a system of International Investor-State Dispute Settlements (ISDS). The one in the TPP led to an open letter signed by prominent Australian judges, lawyers, politicians and academics insisting that the government should not sign an agreement that includes ISDS. The letter states:

‘…the increasing use of this mechanism to skirt domestic court systems and the structural problems inherent in the arbitral regime are corrosive of the rule of law and fairness.’

But ISDS is most definitely included in the proposed TPP put forward by United States negotiators.

The Gillard government made it clear that Australia would not sign another trade agreement that included international dispute settlement by tribunals. This followed Australians being burnt by an agreement that has allowed Phillip-Morris to take Australia to an international tribunal over its plain packaging laws, even though our own High Court already decided against Phillip-Morris.
Other countries are experiencing equally serious consequences.
The North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) is being used by gas and oil company Lone Pine Resources to sue Canada over Quebec’s moratorium on fracking. A trade agreement was also used to sue Ecuador for USD $1.77 billion.
The Coalition’s trade policy document indicates that Abbott’s government will sign the TPP with acceptance of ISDSs because the Coalition is

‘…open to utilising investor-state dispute settlement (ISDS) clauses as part of Australia’s negotiating position.’

Not only that, but it says it will

‘…fast track the conclusion of free trade agreements.’  

Tom J. Donohue, CEO and President of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, told CNBC that the TPP deal will be completed in a month.
Added to the threat of ISDSs are many other concerns, including those raised by the leaked chapters.

For instance, based on the leaked IP chapter, Aaron Bailey of OpenMedia.ca is concerned about the new powers that may be given to massive international media organisations [IA emphasis]:

The TPP seeks, among other things, to rewrite the global rules on intellectual property enforcement that would give Big Media new powers to lock users out of our own content and services, provide new liabilities that might force ISPs to police our online activity, and give giant media companies even greater powers to shut down websites and remove content at will. It also encourages ISPs to block accused infringers’ Internet access, and could force ISPs to hand over our private information to big media conglomerates without appropriate privacy safeguards. You can see a more complete list of new restrictions below, but it appears that the TPP would turn all Internet users into suspected copyright criminals. In fact it appears to criminalize content sharing in general.

A statement by a U.S. trade representative at the recent ASEAN meeting in Brunei said that the TPP Ministerial Meeting held at the APEC meeting in Bali in early October would be a “milestone” and that the aim was to finish the TPP agreement “by the end of the year“.
President Obama is scheduled to address the APEC leaders, including Tony Abbott, on October 7.
Before Prime Minister Abbott signs this agreement, Australians deserve to know what rights we may be signing away.
Upcoming Information sessions on the TPP:

• Melbourne, Oct 15. Hosted by Swinburne University. See here for details.
• Sydney October, 22. Hosted by AFTINET.  12-2pm Macquarie Room, NSW Parliament, 6 Macquarie Street, Sydney. RSVP by Oct 21: campaign@aftinet.org.au

Beware Of F.T.A's, Whatever Your Industry, Farming, Manufacturing, Trades Services, Small Business, You're In Real Trouble.

Detroit City The NAFTA Disaster

Posted by IQ Unlimited.org on June 11, 2013 in Life | 3 Comments

What was once upon a time a thriving, wealthy city built on blue-collar manufacturing and hard work, has today been decimated into Americas capital of crime, unemployment, school dropout and house foreclosures that leave streets looking like ghost towns, what has happened to Detroit?
What started with president George H Bush in December of 1992 ended with president Bill Clinton on December 8, 1993. In his remarks before he signed the North American Free Trade Agreement into law Bill Clinton said that NAFTA would promote “more growth, more equality, better preservation of the environment, and a greater possibility of world peace”.
He also said it would create 200,000 jobs, he didn’t say in which country. He also failed to mention what would happen if he was wrong.
What if NAFTA lost American jobs instead of creating them like Bill Clinton said? About ten years after NAFTA was signed by Bill Clinton The Economic Policy Institute published a report by Robert E. Scott that documented 879,280 jobs were “displaced”. That would mean instead of adding 200,000 jobs like Bill Clinton said more than 4 times that many jobs have been lost.
Imagine what losing nearly 900,000 jobs from an economy would look like? Actually you don’t have to imagine just visit Detroit, Michigan USA and you can see it for yourself.
What was once called the Paris of the West is now being called a ghost town. The same city that was celebrated for generations because of its tremendous history in music, architecture, and manufacturing is now famous for its $1 houses for sale.
What happened?
All those “displaced” jobs have to come from somewhere. American manufacturing took advantage of NAFTA faster than you could blink.  They relocated assembly plants to Mexico and lowered the wages/benefits for the workers that remained in the United States. This resulted in stories like Bob Bowen who worked for Ford Motor Company for 35 years before retiring one year after this act went into effect.
In a featured article for The World he reflects on NAFTA 20 years later and also talks about his son who has now worked for Ford for over 8 years and only earns $18/hour–the same amount that Ford was paying Bob Bowen 20 years ago.
General Motors and FORD made headlines when it was discovered they were paying the assembly plant workers in Mexico only $26/day. This is less than they were paying American workers PER HOUR to assemble the same cars in Detroit.
This is the reality in Detroit city.
Why did this happen? The only real means that any country has to grow or earn more money over time is from trading favourably with other countries. The total amount of money that a country earns from exporting goods should always be greater than the total amount of money that it spends importing goods. This is how it used to be in America back in the day but trade policies like NAFTA ruined the surplus party.
The North American Free Trade Agreement took an already large trade deficit in 1992 of -$39B and grew it exponentially to -$417B by 2002.  Since then it’s continued to balloon out of control. The situation has worsened to the point that taxpayer funded “bailouts” are being used to provide funding for the same companies that actually closed American plants and relocated to Mexico in the first place. General Motors who’s headquartered in Detroit received over 30 Billion dollars from taxpayers after filing for bankruptcy in 2009.
It’s now clear twenty years later that NAFTA hasn’t provided prosperity for the American worker as promised, it has instead introduced poverty while promoting corporate welfare and greed.
Millions of Americans knew in the 90’s that borrowing from tomorrow in order to “appear” successful today is a foolish strategy that would result in a disaster. Today you can visit Detroit and witness ground zero for yourself.
What was once a great example of the American Dream has now become a nightmare. With the big three auto makers laying off people by the thousands and heading for the border what’s been left behind is tragic. Detroit, a big city once known as Motown is now getting known as “murder town”.
In 2012 Detroit had the highest rate of violent crime in the United States. This is due in part to the continuing flight from the city as residents continue to move out at a staggering rate.
When NAFTA was signed the population in Detroit was about 1 million people today there are barely 700,000 people living in the City.
Another reason why the auto industry in Detroit fell off is due to the lower quality of products they began to produce and the lousy deals they started making as a company.
In the same time that upstart Korean manufacturer KIA was blossoming by offering affordable cars with attractive styling; Detroit automakers were stiffing their most loyal customers by cancelling their most popular brands and offering new models with bland or uninspiring designs.
Even after the bailout GM still can’t seem to find a way to really impress new customers.  The first car they made with the bailout money the VOLT get’s less miles per gallon than a car they were making in the pre NAFTA days,  the Geo Metro.
There already were great cars on the road before NAFTA was signed with excellent fuel efficiency, ironically GM was one of the manufacturers. GM’s Geo Metro was getting over 40 miles per gallon for only $9,740 in 1991 and now GM’s offering a VOLT for $39,145 that requires you to plug it in AND put gas in it to only get 37 miles per gallon.
I guess you can call that a deal if you like to worry about your gas bill AND your electricity bill.
The future of Detroit looks grim. There appears to be nothing on the horizon that would stop what’s happening there today.
Property values are still diving as the exodus continues, the tax base has vaporized leaving massive budget deficits and a lack of funding for basic civil services like schools, the courts, and fire fighters.
Due to this calamity in 2012 the local government formally known as “the city of Detroit” followed GM into bankruptcy and has now been placed into some weird “government in repo” situation where the mayor is not elected but appointed in a first of its kind re-organisation that’s about as easy to understand as the text in the original NAFTA bill.
Welcome to Detroit City.
http://iqunlimited.org/2013/06/11/detroit-city-the-nafta-disaster/