Limited news

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 Every day we get up and every day the news package with bait arrives. Unpleasantly predictable. Media have become routine news dumpers and very little is discussed in an impartial fashion. Once in a while we are pleasantly surprised. It is a shame. Limiting news approaches is limiting ideas and involvement in any genuine sense. The repetition is wearing. The facile thinking is unnecessary. The sameness is mind numbing. We need to look at ideas and explore them properly. We would all be a lot happier. Today was no different. I use Edge as a browser normally but have come back to Chrome just to get some open links to something which ought to be important news in South Australia but is being drowned out by political clap trap and Elon Musk buying Twitter. Truth is, he could use all that money to do what Peter Malinauskas is doing, and make a difference for the the homeless. His money , though, so he can do as he pleases with it and he wants to buy Twitter. Our media is being aggregated into fewer sites owned by particular types of people and so we are now limited in what we are served . 

I found it hard to get links to articles about what Premier Malinauskas is doing. On Edge the links were behind paywalls. On Chrome there wasn't much choice. So I offer the only two links I could find. We need to ensure our local news is broadcast across a number of media outlets so people can read it and know about it. I think working towards solving our homelessness problem needs us behind it and to do that we need to know what Mr. Malinauskas is doing. He is having a good look at social housing and working out how we can have more homes available through he Housing Trust. Affordable housing is critical to a safe and happy life. Be it everso humble and all of that. He is also putting significant funding into centres and organisations which have already been working hard to help homeless people. He seriously wants to end homelessness for us and that is a worthy aim for us all to achieve together under his leadership. May there be access to decent information so we can get this idea off the ground as a state. 

Peter Malinauskas National Press Club

 

Our new Premier, Peter Malinauskas, is getting himself, his plans and South Australia known. Speaking at the National Press Club is a big undertaking which requires thorough research and preparation. You are before an audience who will consider detail and content deeply. You are broadcast to the nation. He acquitted himself extremely well  by respecting the standards of the NPC , representing our state, representing himself and in creating a platform for some decent national discussions about our future. 

When he dresses formally , his attire is impeccable. He is just as likely to come on our screens, though, togged up in his running gear, and chat away to us for a bit. He adapts himself and his language to the moment. He has the sort of social awareness you expect from a good leader and he is enthusiastic and positive. You don't have to agree with everything he says but you do value his thinking input which he backs up with action. He is a good thinker but he is an equally a good communicator. It says on his Wikipedia entry he is pro nuclear. Looking forward to the debates and thinking around that. As a state we are generally anti nuclear. He listens, though, and he thinks about what matters. 

His three slides on the make up of the German, Canadian and Australian  economies stopped everyone and forced them to think differently. Here was a man giving us some really meaty information which was forcing us to get out of our thinking rut and think hard about what he was saying. Think deeply about our future. You could see it on everyone's faces. These are people who like to think and very little which currently comes out in Australia is going to challenge you as a thinker. That changed yesterday. Peter Malinauskas shot his arrow very straight and we realised that yes, we can't keep doing drivel and dribble. We wanted to have something decent to get our brains moving so we can move on and change our country. 

He was born in South Australia, educated in South Australia but comes from a Lithuanian, Hungarian migrant background. He knew what it meant to come to Australia and contribute to your own life and the prosperity of Australia. He knew exactly how to get through to us about not welcoming refugees and immigrants. He knew because he had lived it through his family history. 

He also spoke about the importance and value of early education as an investment for the future. He seems to have a plan for education in South Australia and we shall see how it unfolds. He understands the importance of the early years as a valuable asset for the future. 

It was good to listen to someone with vision, who could really think, who did not just approach things simply but was prepared to make it all a dialogue. We will talk ourselves through this to the future. Repeating guided phrases has landed us in a big ditch because we just keep spinning the wheels. He is the voice of change and should not be overlooked. 

Adelaide 500 is back

 Our new Premier, Mr. Malinauskas , is a man of his word. He said , if he were elected, he would bring the Adelaide 500 supercar race back. He has. The Adelaide 500 is back this December. It was a big loss when Mr. Marshall let it go in 2020. It was a love hate relationship for some people in Adelaide. There was the disruption to traffic as the streets were changed and stands put up. There is currently no permanent place for it and there was some talk of that before is was unceremoniously dumped. It clashed with the Fringe and Festival events and that could be very disruptive but people were starting to negotiate so everyone could be happy. Those living in town had the noise of cars and helicopters but that comes with the territory with an event such as this. So many people loved it. Even if they didn't go and watch it in person, it created a lot of interest and talk. It was great for local businesses who enjoyed the buzz and profit. School excursions were organised to go there and that was an exciting day for students. We need things to look forward to to keep morale going and Adelaide does love cars. It loves car sporting events and those who don't love it appreciate that others have something to be passionate about. 

Holding it in December is better. Who knows what the covid numbers will look like by then but it is an outside event and presumably will run with a covid safe plan. Distancing ought to be easy and masks in busy areas are easy. 

This is no fake, show off action by Mr. Malinauskas. He wanted us to have this event back as soon as we lost it. He took immediate action as opposition leader to ensure we would get it back if Labor won this election, which it did. That is clearly explained on the AutoAction site. Now we shall see how they get our new look race up and running. 

South Australia has a new Premier

 

South Australia elected a new premier resoundingly yesterday and Peter Malinauskas gave a heartening speech. He is fit, enthusiastic, capable and his deputy, Susan Close, is very competent and a good communicator. There was a big swing to Labor so the message was clear. Many are offering opinions today as to why the Liberals were not reinstalled. There are no quick, easy answers. It has been a mood which crystallised on 23rd November when our borders were opened and has only grown for all sorts of different reasons. I can offer a few:

• Opening the borders before we had had boosters and our children were vaccinated meant many were quarantining during Christmas. Omicron was increasing. People were getting sick. Those without boosters went into voluntary isolation. It hit businesses and families hard . At the time we had done well and were safe. We had had four deaths the whole pandemic. We now have 231. These people and families have been so hurt. Trying to see how effective vaccines are is probably something which needs to be done, but not before everyone has had a chance to be properly vaccinated. It puts vulnerable and little children unduly at risk.
• Liberal decisions meant retail workers had public holidays and penalty rates removed. We are the only state which does not let them have public holidays. 
• Creating a nuclear waste site at Kimba has angered so many because we had formally made it clear as a state we didn't want one. 
• Liberal politicians were resigning because of state ICAC and the minority government had become weakened. Our parliament hasn't been running very well recently.
• Prior to 23rd November 2021 our covid management team of Professor Nicola Spurrier , Chief Commissioner Grant Stevens and Premier Steven Marshall were doing a great job of clear messaging, good decisions and creating safe practices to keep us secure. When the borders opened it has been difficult, garbled messaging, unpleasant and our safety has been threatened. Some of it was addressed but the ambulance ramping and deaths because no ambulances arrived on time have exacerbated the situation. There is a lack of consistency around pandemic management we really do not like. 
• Privatising public transport has been extremely unpopular.

There are other reasons. Mr. Marshall wasn't really himself. We had all respected him during the beginning of the pandemic but he seemed more to be broadcasting federal talking points in recent months. His concession speech last night was him, who he usually is. He gave a dignified, measured speech. We wish him well and know he will find a happier position to be in in South Australia. 

As it stands, we have what we need right now. Mr. Malinauskas is committed to and knowledgeable about health matters. Our crisis centres on that. He is committed to children and the future. Our worries are about that. He wants people to be who they are and find a good place in our state. We need that. We need strong, enthusiastic leadership which is about our health and wellbeing.