Glass in Pubs - Topical Blog 2

Glass in pubs…clubs…bars…where do you draw the line?
This is a hot topic in the media at the moment as there have been so many attacks, and some very serious.
There has been 67 attacks, just this year, in WA Clubs; Broken down: that’s 2 every week; or 9 every month.
What they are looking at doing now is implementing plastic drinking vessels as opposed to glass, but do the following statistics say that won’t work:
Stubby style bottles are used in 70% of glassings, pre mix bottles being the number 2 favourite after beer bottles. Only 30% of these slashings have involved actual glassware.
Commissioner O’Callaghan says it wont do anything; that the large majority of people who aren’t doing anything wrong shouldn’t be punished and forced to drink from plastic cups; but isn’t being slashed for being in the wrong place at the wrong time more of a punishment.
I mean really, change the glasses in the bigger pubs and clubs to plastic, and anyone who doesn’t like it and feels the need to be drinking from glass should consider an upgrade of venue and company kept perhaps.
The Commissioner has also stated his surprise that most slashings occur through a simple insult from person to another. It seems to me that alcohol and poor control are to blame for the rest. At what point do people who cannot control themselves need to have a little control taken for them?
Think about how much people were driving drunk for years, and yes I know we all say the Police are trying to make more money, but something had to be done with the ever increasing and disrespectful population.
The legal Blood Alcohol Content was dropped from 0.08 to 0.05 for fully licensed drivers, and from 0.02 to 0.00 for P-Platers, because quite simply, someone needed to take control of the situation because the individuals weren’t doing it themselves.
Taking control and handing out larger punishments shows results over time.
The Commissioner also believes that what is needed is to increase the punishment for the offence of cutting someone with glass. Excellent suggestion. We just need the courts to actually follow that belief as well and hand out the higher end of the punishment, rather than the lower, if they can find the space in our jam packed jails, that is!
But can’t we try ‘prevention is better that cure’ as well. How about a multiple attack on the situation?
Yes, increase the punishment in case it does occur, but let’s try to remove the risk first.
That option saves 2 peoples skin, literally. The poor person who would have been slashed is no longer in the situation where he lives the rest of his life having his face scarred up, and the would-be offender can live the rest of his life not in prison!
And that also saves the tax payers a heap of money, as the cost to keep just one prisoner every year is in excess of $50,000. I am sure that money could be better invested.
And what about the cost of the insurance for the ‘Victim of Crime’ claim that the injured person is entitled to.
And then of course, the people who had been waiting at the hospital to go through for the last 2 hours, and got sent to the end of the line when the Victim of Crime arrives to be sewn back together.
Or the old lady, waiting for an ambulance that has to wait even longer as the ambulances is tied up with another slashing.
And then there’s all the court costs and time wasted because one idiot can’t handle his booze and control his anger.
One action has many reactions, so just avoid the action.
Stabbing someone with a knife style weapon carries a much more serious punishment; is there that much of a difference?
Another suggestion made is to have the bars and clubs clean up the empty glasses faster to avoid them being used as weapons. Again, excellent choice, but really, if someone insults you and you want to glass them, you will use your own half consumed drink, wont you?
How about a total glass ban?
That would mean all drinks are served in plastic cups, from premixes, to all beers, wines and the rest.
I am sure the producers of these drinks would not be too happy as they want everyone carrying their brand of beer around, but safety should be the ultimate concern.
People uproar in the short term, but you just get used to it. Nobody likes change, but unfortunately there are some that have ruined it for others.
Think about the other issues you find with glass in clubs. Broken glass on the floor, girls getting cut feet, the poor bar staff trying to get in amongst the dance floor and clean it up while there are 300 screaming drunks dancing and jumping around.
What we are looking for here is Harm Minimisation! And shouldn’t that come from a little bit of RSA, Responsible Service of Alcohol.
Really, you don’t want to be holding the owners and workers of these places legally responsible for everything that happens and some of the RSA restrictions can be a little daunting for an employee having to use their own judgement. But if someone is clearly drunk, it is no longer about how much money can be made, it is about the safety of that person, and the people around them.
Let’s try and eject these people before these serious slashing incidents occur.
Only recently have the police started to actually keep records of glass slashings as the incident; before coming under the umbrella description of GBH, or Greivous Bodily Harm, which applies to many styles of attacks when an individual is left with damage to their body.
That is how serious the problem has gotten and we are now becoming more aware of it!
Awareness=Reaction=Action=Results

Topical blog: What are your thoughts so far on the election campaigns from Liberal, Labour and the Greens?

My opinion on the election so far…Well, I am glad you asked! I think it is best to start at the beginning:

Opening with a huge piece of honesty; I am Liberal, born and bred. Passed on down through the generations, it’s all about the Country, not the individual.

Individuals should make their own mark in life, their own wealth and their own successes and failures.

The Government should govern the Country and make it as protected, wealthy and successful as possible, avoiding failures of carrying those individuals who do not bother to make their mark. What happens then? The individuals who are making their mark are given the responsibility of carrying the ones that aren’t.

Sound harsh? Unfair? Look at the big wide world and see just how small you are and try to understand personal responsibility and survival.

Labor takes away that responsibility, shows no responsibility for their actions and is responsible for spending all the money! O Oh! They’ve got the reigns!

My biggest concern now….My party having the wrong leader. But which is the lesser of 2 evils?

Tony Abbott is not what the Libs need. Although he has extensive experience and time in Government, people don’t trust him which makes for a swinging vote.

But then on the other hand, you have Julia Gillard…well, what can be said for that. She snuck up through the back door of leadership to overthrow her own boss sighting that he was incompetent and the wrong face for Labor and that his policies were bad. Hang on a minute! Julia drove those policies right beside Kevin Rudd, but not being in the limelight as much, nobody noticed.

Who is she to put such a sad day on:

AUSTRALIA’S FIRST FEMALE PRIME MINISTER!?!?!

History has shown that Liberal make the money and keep the country in check while in office, and Labor come in and spend it all frivolously and put very poorly considered policies in place.

Examples of this trend:

After a very successful run of respectable Liberal Prime Ministers, the next stage occurred:

In 1972, Gough Whitlam came to power: The first time Labor had been elected in 26 years! Big mistake! He did such a bad job and ruined the country in a huge way. So much so that the Governor General at the time, Sir John Kerr, dismissed the Labor Party from power altogether in 1975 and Malcolm Fraser became the “Caretaker” before being elected as Prime Minister. He spent the next 8 years rebuilding the Country.

Then it was Bob Hawke’s turn in 1983. Do you know what he was famous for? Winning a yard drinking competition; yes beer! Lucky for Bob, he inherited a successful government from the Lib’s and managed to stay in power for 12 years, until Paul Keating ‘took over’ his leadership of the party and the role of Prime Minister from 1991-1996. Very charismatic human being. Charming.

Anyone who was around in the time of Bob Hawke and Paul Keating will tell you about the interest rates on their homes hitting %’s of about 20! And we are upset today with 10% peaks!

In 1996, for the first time in 13 years, the Coalition was back, with the reigns being held by John Howard. Not the most attractive man, pretty annoying voice, but hey: He got the job done! He held his seat for 11 years, through some huge world changes. And wow, what a surplus he built!

And we all know what happened next, right! That’s it….Kevin 07! What a campaign trail! With his perfectly gelled hair and perfect annunciation, and the fact that he can speak Chinese, he wowed people with his charm (and of course his apology)! Hang on, this sounds familiar. Hmmm…Oh yes, Paul Keating, the Charmer. Have we not learnt from the past! Charm does not run a Country.

Well after 3 short years (well long really), and so many poor judgments, he was overthrown by his own deputy and party, and it was time for Julia Gillard; “The First Female Prime Minister”. At least she took the measure to not move into the PM’s residence until she was officially voted in by the people. Well really, how embarrassing it would have been to move all your belongings and then have to move straight back out! Best to air on the side of caution…agree?

So what are they actually saying now?

Let’s have a recap on some: “Election Promises”, “Policies”, and more….Here are some exerts from Saturdays West by Gillard and Abbott:

Mining Tax:

• Labor: “The mining tax I have agreed to is the tax we will enact”. “I think they too can look forward to the benefits of the infrastructure that will follow - $2 billion in WA”.

• Liberal: “There is no need for any extra tax on the mining industry”. “There would be a huge slump in investment and jobs and it would always be in the best interest of Australia to put those jobs back in by rescinding the tax”. “What is the commitment? It’s a commitment on the never-never, I mean when, where? Its $2 billion at some time off in the far future and what projects have they promised?”

Broadband:

• Labor: “Having a national broadband network is about whether, in the future, we can compete with Singapore, Korea and Japan or whether we export jobs to them”. “From his public statements, he seems to think it’s about downloading a movie or flicking an email to someone”.

• Liberal: “On one hand, they keep talking about all these extraordinarily fast speeds but on the other they want to whack an internet filter on it which will slow everything down. So they can’t have it both ways”.

Education:

• Labor: “I’ve built on my major reforms in education by strengthening our approach to empowering principals, better rewarding schools that improve the lives of their students, rewarding the best teachers, and getting families extra payments to keep their children in school”
• Liberal: “We need to ensure that our best teachers get more money in their pockets”.

Greens:

• “At the moment, that puts Labor 3^rd and Liberal 4^th in our preference”.

Strangely enough, neither party had anything to say on the issue of “Boat People” this week after such a long period of concentrating on it. But check out the front page of the paper. The UN slammed the current government for it decision to “Stop” processing any “Asylum Seekers” from Afghanistan and Pakistan as it is against “Human Rights” to stop someone from seeking asylum. It was seen as nothing but an election move on behalf of the Labor Government. After putting their foot in it and saying it was agreed to put a processing centre in another country without checking with them first…good move!

The “West’s Campaign Trail Mix”:

Spend O Meter:

Labor: $7.5 Billion

Coalition: $27.7 Billion

Savings O Meter:

Labor: $2.1 Billion

Coalition: $6.9 Billion

I am actually beginning to wonder if either party even know what their policies are, how much anything costs, and what they even believe in.

They argue, they match points, they talk things up that they know are impossible.

As Zolton Covax said recently: “Welcome to Election Idol”

Best of luck Australia, you are going to need it no matter who wins!

Ariana. xox

Topical Blog #1

Topic:

Water Usage...and the rest

Australia has a shortage of water...

A shortage of current energy options...

A shortage of gas...

These are not questions for anyone to answer, they are statements to be heard and understood by everyone.

Carbon Emissions, Global Warming; you've heard it all before. But I am ok right now, they all say, but what about the future generations is what they should be saying?
The government do not want to take this seriously right now, and why? MONEY! THE COST! Yes that's right! It is wasted money in their campaign!

And even the public are more concerned about tax cuts, but at the same time, the costs to water, power and gas and increased twice this year already!

This will be the biggest blunder in Australia's history in the very near future, which means it will effect you, your children, and your children's children, and if we're lucky, their children too. But that will probably be it because there just wont be anything left after that.
With such an alarmingly increasing population, higher demand on resources from both the domestic and commercial sectors, plans need to be put in place now before there is nothing left.
A sustainable future for all should be a top priority!

Perhaps doing more to control the ridiculous vehicles people drive that guzzle earths good oil and turn it into emissions for all of us to breathe and the atmosphere to slowly absorb.
Perhaps more research into renewable energy so while we are using one resource it is recreating something else.
Perhaps placing more of a focus in education at a young age so teenagers don't have 30 minute showers.

I was shocked to hear whilst in Melbourne on the weekend that they are considering lifting the sprinkler ban! Why bother? People have accepted in now, they are making changes to garden designs and water usage, and all the good work that has been done will be thrown out the window so a few people with ridiculous sized front lawns can waste more water.

There are people in the world who don't even have clean drinking water and we are spreading it across our lawns and gardens without a second thought.

Do you remember when the gas line exploded up north a few years ago? Everyone had to make changes to their lives. Industry suffered greatly. Hospitals had to find other options to get things going for themselves, massive laundries could not provide clean linen to hotels, pubs couldn't get gas for beer or soft drinks, pools could not be heated:

But China received all the same provision of gas they always had because that is where they make the money!

Perhaps some Uranium mining would offer some other options to the power requirements. But what happens once we actually start to mine uranium in amounts that will really make a difference? It will go elsewhere...the small amount we mine right now is already on way to China as it is. And we will be the ones risking our beautiful land for it!

Just remember, there is only so far you can dig before there is nothing left of earth but the core, and you cant live there!

Australia is the lucky country and we need to keep it this way. We bring more and more people into the country everyday, and at the same time, we are sending all out resources to other countries who have simply already wasted all of theirs.
We need to keep Australia the place it is; so control is what's required. It is ok to share, but when there is nothing left to share, what happens then?

Yes the costs of coming up with new ideas is high, but it will be even higher when there is almost none left and the only people who will have access to water and power will be the wealthy. And what happens to the not so wealthy after that? They suffer.

India ended up the way it is today through over use of it's resources and overpopulation, and in the years to come if we don't be careful with what we have, Australia will slowly end up with similar issues. The wealthy people in India live like kings while millions of poor people roam the streets just looking for something to eat or drink to survive.

This is not the Australian way and efforts must be made to "Keep Australia Beautiful" and be renewable into the future.

We should set the example for the world!

Recount a special time in your life

The moment that changed my life

A special time in my life...How do you choose something that is the most special? Perhaps something that is special to me but appropriate to share...
When I was 17 and finished school I was looking for a little direction in life, and was not finding it where I was! Working in a pharmacy by day and living like an owl during the nights.
One night, while floating in existence, I was struck down by a car as a pedestrian and shipped off to hospital for surgery. What a life changing moment!
It was over the next week when I spent time in hospital with people much worse off than me that I realised life is only what you make it and there is always someone worse off then you. These people were never going to get opportunities like I still had available to me. So basically, pick it up and do something good!
After 3 months of being out of action, losing my grandfather who I was very close to, losing my job through not being able to work for such an extended period, and ridding myself from the evil I called friends at the time, I decided to go to Tafe.

That was some direction for me.
I enrolled in Certificate IV in Hospitality and off I went. I then got a job at the Esplanade Hotel in Fremantle and pushed myself to a combined effort of 70 hours a week. What a trooper. It gave me the opportunity to everything the job had to offer throughout the whole hotel and gain some amazing experience. I was doing things people who had been there for years were not offered, I just had to do it all!
I then continued on to my Diploma of Hospitality Management where I extended my knowledge and come out on top as Outstanding Student of the Year. Finally I felt my parents could have something to be proud of again.
After I graduated I got a job hostessing at a top restaurant and moved to supervisor then manager within 6 months. My career had begun all from the moment I was hit by the car.
It was a blessing in disguise and there is always a way to get something good from something bad so you just have to go for it!
The world is your oyster, so put whatever dressing you like on it, but eat it while it's fresh, it always tastes better!