Any one else think we are in a slump?
Thread about unemployed vs pensioners seems the last straw.
Mining tax thread has legs a few others going well but what next.
Shared concerns at Rudd's list of things on hold or not done are not firing us up.
Workplace storys? maybe but what else?
Stood beside a traffic controller the other night, road was totally blocked he, under police direction was diverting traffic.
He jumped up on the side of a very big truck and said, sorry mate road is blocked truck roll over you will have to go long way.
Driver, mate I have to get through I have meat on.
TC sorry mate no room to walk past police said 16 hours, trucker, *()&idiot meat I said!
Maybe we can talk about how the GFC and the ETS helped by Rudd's super tax broke Greece?

Dear Belly,

How about my new thread on poetry?

Give it a go!

I too got a bit tired of the same old
same old ...

Belly,
how about is Rudd a Rudd ? Might get some hilarious comments if nothing else.

is he noxious ?

Foxy did that, not time for poetry yet but maybe one day.
Noticed the spikyness in you individual of late but start your thread I will come.
Thought some posts in dole vs pensioners are,,, well below our usual standards.
not rechtub his dislike of just about every one is expected.
But a post insulting pensioners had all the class of a case of well rotted fruit.
Do we talk about other things?
Yes often but we are in a slump in my view.
Share this with you, AM Sunday my life changed.
Phone rang, 4 kids hurt in smash, 3 bad two very bad.
All under 20 3 my relatives two may not walk again.
One , my mate and nephew may die.
speed stupidity, yes we know why , why however must each generation make the same stupid mistakes?

Belly,
that is dreadful. I have no answer to a situation like this. I can only express my dismay at such happenings

Belly, I'm sorry to hear of your family's tragedy. I was a very lucky young man who had some incredibly close calls due to speed and stupidity and only one really serious accident. I do hope your family can be as lucky as I was.

Like leaning & common sense so too stupidity is part of each individual's make up. How many times do we see police & ambulance being abused whilst trying to help ? now there you have several stupidities. 1; those who abuse 2; those who refuse to punish the abusers 3; those who keep defending abusers 4; those who don't cease to provide support to those who obviously don't deserve it, 5; those who think that all responsibility is up to others. the list goes on....

Dear Belly,

I've just come back to this thread.

I'm so sorry about your family.
Speed is a killer.

I've had quite a few friends badly injured,
especially on motorbikes. One will never be
the same.

You take care of yourself - take some time
out for yourself if you can. Also know that
you and your family are in our thoughts and
prayers.

We really like you Belly, because you bring balance to any debate. You are a predictable Ruddite, but not a Luddite. Peter Sellick had an article that was way too deep, and almost nothing tickled my fancy in the articles section.

Some exciting things are happening in Victoria. There are rumblings in Gippsland and all over Victoria where a pair of blokes are out praising the Labor Party amendments to the Trade Practices Act 1974, and praising the Liberals for extending them to local Shire Councils. There is a Toxic Labor Government in Victoria and one nearly as toxic in New South Wales and Queensland, and Rudd has been a real disappointment because he has not asserted the supremacy of the Commonwealth.

The problem is that even Rudd and his advisers have had no great benefit from their expensive free education. The punctuation in the Constitution is quite clear. A bloke called David Wyn:Miller from Hawaii was in Australia and he has a system that gets Judges to resign, and has had 4000 leave office in the United States. This included the whole Supreme Court in Hawaii. He claims an IQ of 200. One of my Time-Life Books claimed that Mozart, Bach, Ataturk, and Jesus Christ had that kind of IQ, and Einstein was not far away. They all changed the way society did business.

The word in the Constitution is judges and courts, in S 79. An educated man would know, that these are generic words, and that Courts and Judges are not the same thing. This pair of bods reckon the Commonwealth is liable to those who have been screwed by the Courts and Judges. Keep on discussing the ways of they world. We have had someone tell us that Prince Billy is coming as a Governor General. Rumors abound, but the natives are restless

Thank all, never wanted to turn the thread into my problems.
I n fact it took place after I posted first.
Need to share this,,,, it may help some one.
My job NSW RTA was on that death strip.
12 dead in one week, 27 one year, a hundred call backs to work in the middle of the night.
Holiday time is the worst, winter second.
The young think they invented sex, joy, fun, and that those like me are too old to understand.
Yet I made most of the mistakes they do, not however driving above my ability's, see even now I am a petrol head, drive too fast, but not much faster than legal.
Of all the dead body's, stopped counting at 73, all the crippled people including a great bloke local cop who broke down mentally and left his lifetime job, kids the youth died in numbers that break your heart.
Full of joy happiness at being on holiday killed them.
Winter car heaters on full cars locked at just over the speed limit sleeping drivers speeding on to death,
We must learn we are fragile.

Each of us has or will feel as I do now.
Hollow, helpless, fear filled almost afraid to answer the phone.
Tell your sons about that feeling, and tell them you love them, please.
As the day got older it was 5 not 4 in hospital, all very unwell.
Youths all maybe under 18, my relatives for sure no more than 16.
Speed bravado, foolishness and grief.
The pain and fear in my brother voice, gee that hurts Foxy, you will understand this, as my dad died I had my Christian belief, this time I can not bring myself to other than wish.
3 of these kids have possible spinal damage.
The worst is a great young kid and he may not make it to night, I hope he does.
What can we do about it?
Stop our kids being kids.
Is it worth taking driving rights away for 5 years?
for silly driving/
PTB Individual lets talk about me being a Rudd fan in another thread

Just read what happened Belly, I'll say some prayers for your nephews and the other kids tonight when saying them for mine. Dreading when my son gets his licence soon; the population is not what it was when you and I first sat our licence tests in country towns. For a year toyed with the idea of catching buses only and not buying another vehicle after mine is sold this week. Force me to become fit and healthy again AND take time out to smell the roses on my mountain bike occasionally

Sorry to hear of your family's tragedy Belly.
I don't know what I can say that would help.
I'm shocked and saddened that you have to bear this grief and worry.
Hope they recover in better shape than seemed possible when it first occurred.

pynch

Belly

I can only echo previous sentiments. People make remarkable recoveries. My thoughts are with you.

Thanks all.
I never knew the direction the thread was to take.
But I do know thousands more will go through what I have and that hurts.
My work life on the main roads left memory's and scares.
I saw great people a police man and more than one workmate leave, because of the blood bath on the Pacific highway in the 80, and 90,s.
Then shift workers in Newcastle came to my new workplace to tell of the hell they found on the service road young dead and dieing kids.
It is only because this dreadful act must be a warning I conclude this story.
Yesterday I had a 6am meeting two hours drive away, my trip started, planned road stop beak fast, at 3.30 .
My brother had hung up without answering all the day before, my fear was high.
But I knew he would be in intensive care and that he would have forgot to turn his phone of.
7.05 full of fear I rang, his son had come through the night, will live, but nothing else is sure.
One lost his knee cap, one will be cripple one maybe another will return one day to normal life.
We have sad times in front of us.
No one knew they got in the car.
No one knew the driver was disqualified.
We will get stronger because of this, often wish as every damaged worker does if only we could turn back the clock.
What each of us can do, the only thing we can do, is try to see what we can do to stop this happening again some place this weekend.

Not trying to breath life back into the thread.
It was diverted by that sad day.
But without knowing it I miss lead here.
My nephew struggles still, he will live but has a fight in front of him.
My nieces two sons, [call me uncle] are ok the first reports of spinal damage a drama queen lie, both are walking but battered.
Driver? no did not have knee cap torn of walking around too.
Youngest walked away.
5 kids one disqualified driver [no one knew at time]
1 now struggling along with his family cut in half so dad is in another city sitting with him day and night.
message? the same as above always .