Yuyutsu,

What are the safeguards? All I've heard is that information is kept for 28 days. Do I believe that? No. Politicians cannot be believed.

Of course, there will be people who don't have smart phones, or do have smart phones and deny that they do, because they don't know what information they will be revealing about themselves and they will will use the pen and paper sign in (if anyone in a shop they enter bothers to ask them to do so). They might put in their correct name and 'phone number, or they might put in someone else's, or the might make a name and number up.

It's all a farce, and passive resistance is always available to those who object to Big Brother tactics. And there's not a thing Big Brother can do about it.

And, before anyone tells me how irresponsible it is to try thwart Big Bother in the case of the China virus, and that I should be in it "all together" with them, I say bulldust! When my number is up, it's up. I take precautions without the interference of Big Brother; so can every one else.

Hi Hanrahan,

I think I can follow your logic: we're all going to die sooner or later, so why not sooner, if someone has done nothing about themselves and their health ? Or later, for those who have ? So the mean gets pushed up. Win-win-win.

You put your finger on a huge funfancial issue: if so, why spend anything at all on health ? Why can't people either look after their own diet and exercise OR take the consequences of not doing so ?

Yes ! Imagine the savings for all thinking Australians ! Look after yourself, don't worry about anyone else, and the virtuous will come through and probably live long lives ! And in much greater social comfort too !

But who listens ? Almost nobody. So most people are doomed. And there's nothing anybody can do about it. Yes, yes, the half-wit 'Left' worry incessantly and fruitlessly about it. But Hobbesianism wins every time.

Joe

Dear Ttbn,

I would break the law for a good reason, for a just reason, but not for a whim or emotion: why turn yourself into a liar just because government behaved improperly? Why grant them such power to corrupt you?

For passive resistance, simply avoid shops. Go hungry if you need to, following Gandhi's example! While Marshall usually behaved sensibly, this time he placed the economy above basic freedoms, so hit him where it hurts most, in his "economy". When merchants experience the deep downturn, they will do the screaming themselves.
Another way, you could instead stand outside a shop and shout to the shop-keeper, ask them to come and sell you what you need OUTSIDE, in the street.

I do not approve of mobile phones, I find them immoral, never had one, never will, but my understanding is that it is legally sufficient to physically not have one on you when visiting a shop - what you have or not at home is irrelevant. You could also have it uncharged then use the paper option absolutely legally. Mind you, the shop-owners and possibly also other customers could read your details off that paper. Scantek should solve this because your scanned details will be transferred electronically directly to government, not through the shop-keepers.

I don't think that Marshall has a Big-Brother attitude, he just made a mistake and went too far driven by his economic philosophy. Fatigue could also be a factor. If indeed he had such Big-Brother attitude, then it would be right to thwart him in any way we could, but I sincerely don't think that this is the case with Marshall (though it is with Victoria's Andrews).

Regarding safeguards, I believe that the data is secure, also the announcement that this information won't be used for any other purpose, including law-enforcement. We have seen this in the case of the Spanish pizza-boy. I honestly believe that contact-tracing will never be used in court, not even to capture an escaped prisoner. The danger is rather that ordinary criminals and greedy merchants could abuse the information, not government.

Yuyutsu,

You say, "For passive resistance, simply avoid shops."

Yes. I'm doing that. My wife and I are not big consumers and apart from food shopping, we are avoiding shops, and the usual cafe lunch we have when we do our weekly food shop has ceased until the surveillance has ceased. It's unfortunate that most people will up put with anything rather than forgo their incessant consumerism.

We don't have to be Christians to follow the Benedict Option to protect ourselves from increasingly mad, dictatorial governments.

PS,

I'm surprised that you trust the government more than I do.

No need for sophisticated electronic surveillance down in South Aussie. Marshmallow Marshall only needs to stick his head over the back fence in the village of Adelaide and he could see what the other two inhabitants are up to, whose off to the corner shop etc.