I am pleased that we have Big Nana with us to pull white do-gooders into line in the matter of indigenous affairs.

If it were known that members of the local community were advocating to 'deal with the problem themselves' and also the fact police directed the man who was a victim of theft to 'go look for his bike himself' then that says a lot.

Why were there not more police resources placed into protecting people who were victims of burglary and theft and in recovering slolen property.
What onus were on they police actions when they told him to 'go look for it himself'?
What did they think was going to happen?
And what do indigenous think is going to happen if they steal?
What do their parents teach them?
That its ok to steal or that it's justified behavior for whatever reason or normal and that there are no consequences?

If the kid hadn't touched that which did not belong to him he'd be alive.
I'm sad Elijah paid with his life, it's a high price to pay.

If we resort to argue and blame rather than look at the deeper issues and learn from it then he really did die for nothing.

The parents should stop drinking, and the kids should stop stealing.

Hi there RUNNER...

Once, there was an offence some time back, described as 'theft by finding'. The classic example probationary coppers were given in the Academy:- an individual finds a wallet, and fails to hand it in.

The same circumstances could be applied to a bike. Because it looks abandoned, it doesn't mean lawful ownership is automatically transferred to the finder? There's a legal process to be followed.

The bi-annual 'hard rubbish' collecting by our Councils - We often see blokes examining and pilfering articles from the piles of hard rubbish, and throwing it into the back of their ute. Some are amazed as to why they're being arrested for theft?

The facts are; once the householder places 'hard waste' at the curbside, it's now taken that ownership has been transferred to the relevant Council. Whereupon the council has transferred their ownership of that rubbish, to the Contractor who won the Council Tender, to remove that rubbish. The pilferer, in law, is actually stealing from the Contractor who's job it is to remove that rubbish!

I'm unaware of the circumstances associated with the Bike - however if the individual in his defence, claims he thought the bike was abandoned, then in law his defence would fail.

Dear Cherful,

Thank you for your excellent summary of the human condition.

«It's hard enough for human beings to provide for their children and their immediate families.»

Yes, because there are so many of them!
So why do they continue to multiply?

«It's the cycle of life, and our only genetic immortality on this earth.»

There is no immortality on this earth. Nothing here is immortal including our genes.

«The territorial instinct, like the sexual instinct, are the two big survival instincts hard-wired into every species on earth»

Right, but there is no need for us to become the servants of those instincts and of the genes that shaped them. The genes did not create these instincts for our good, but for their own selfish agenda.

«Religions too, constantly try to take control of countries.»

By that time, however, they have ceased to be religions and turned into something else.

---

Dear O Sung Wu,

«once the householder places 'hard waste' at the curbside, it's now taken that ownership has been transferred to the relevant Council.»

And that council is supposed to be representing "us", ordinary residents - what a joke: had it been the will of the residents, surely their council would have allowed anyone who has a use for what others discarded to freely take what they need.

Hi there YUYUTSU...

They are indeed supposed to be serving the will and the needs of their ratepayers. Apparently, when Council announce Tenders for this and that, part of defraying the actual cost for removing and properly disposing the hard rubbish, is to allow the various Tenderers to avail themselves, to all the various 'bits' they can salvage or strip from the mechanisms of many of these old items, that have been discarded.

I've no idea how it's computed into the contract, whether it's per tonne, or square metres, or what. But a lot of discarded electrical equipment does have certain precious metals built-in eg copper wire, even minute quantities of gold (I was once informed?), together with other 'bit's 'n pieces' that makes scavenging it, worthwhile for all concerned by all accounts. I reckon my ol' mate HASBEEN would know, 'whats what' with much of this stuff?

You're so right YUYUTSU; whether it's Local, State or Federal Governments, they're all essentially corrupt, if not in the criminal sense, certainly morally.

Friends, let man be different from the rest. That is how we can differentiate ourselves as human beings.As long as the fanatic ideas persist there will be repetition of barbaric atrocities.Civilised people should be able to see things beyond the borders and narrow parochial mindset.