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News in OZ versus news in U.K

News in OZ versus news in U.K

Old Aug 13th 2008, 8:52 am
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Default Re: News in OZ versus news in U.K

Originally Posted by Professional Princess
Gordon is taking part in the Towel Olympics.

The plan is to open the towel cupboard and munch as many as possible before anyone detects damage.

The team that shreds the most towels will win a team gold - individual golds can be one if the towels are discoverd in the litter trays.
I reckon gold should be awarded if he does a load of towel washing, folds and puts them away anything else is merely silver or bronze.
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Old Aug 13th 2008, 8:57 am
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Default Re: News in OZ versus news in U.K

Originally Posted by rabsody
I reckon gold should be awarded if he does a load of towel washing, folds and puts them away anything else is merely silver or bronze.
I caught him eating a towel last night - one minute he is asleep on his bed and when I turn round he has reams of pink threads hanging out of his gob and caught on his nails.
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Old Aug 13th 2008, 9:06 am
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Default Re: News in OZ versus news in U.K

Originally Posted by Professional Princess
I caught him eating a towel last night - one minute he is asleep on his bed and when I turn round he has reams of pink threads hanging out of his gob and caught on his nails.


Our burmese kitties (well, they are almost one now) sleep in bed with us every night and as it's quite cold at the mo they sleep under the duvet. I was woken in the wee hours the other night by a delicate clawing to my rear end. Think she was trying to tell me that two thirds of the bed was simply not enough for her to spread out and sleep comfortably.
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Old Aug 13th 2008, 9:28 am
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Default Re: News in OZ versus news in U.K

Originally Posted by Professional Princess
I am ashamed to say that I have found it quite refreshing not keeping up with the news since I arrived in Australia.

In our local paper in London, there was always someone being mugged or something depressing in it.

Now I am fully aware that all these things are probably happening right under my nose in Fremantle before anyone reminds me, but I quite like opening up the paper and seeing the front page news being 'Whale sighted in Freo' kind of thing instead of the usual headlines I was used to in West London.

I know it goes on, I just don't feel a need to read about it and I am amazed at the effect that has had on me, I feel cocooned in my own little world and after years of reading about it, it is nice to be selective.

Naive? Yes you bet but I am enjoying some blissful ignorance for a bit and I am sorry for all the murders/stabbings/muggings that may/may not occur in Fremantle but lets just say that self preservation has kicked in and it is suiting my mental health considerably to read about Whales/dolphins/carnaby cockatoos instead.

I don't think that is niaive. It is very healthy and rational. You are just counter-balancing the disproportionate reporting by being selective about what you expose yourself to. It's not as if newspapers present a balanced view of news in society in the first place. Looking on the bright side is associated with better mental health so you seem to have it right.
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Old Aug 13th 2008, 10:08 am
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Default Re: News in OZ versus news in U.K

Originally Posted by rabsody
I reckon gold should be awarded if he does a load of towel washing, folds and puts them away anything else is merely silver or bronze.
Cats don't have opposable thumbs and so can't fold towels, nor could they open the drawer for the soap powder . . .

Last edited by spartacus; Aug 13th 2008 at 10:11 am.
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Old Aug 13th 2008, 10:26 am
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Default Re: News in OZ versus news in U.K

Originally Posted by bcworld
The Age is definitely worth a read too if you can get it - that's probably where I read those stories above, tend to drift over to The Age when I can't find a single thing worth reading on news.com.au or when that friggin Olympics section on the front page stops the whole thing from loading! :curse:
I think the tabloid media here is pretty dire to be honest.

People who do not need to be spoonfed can now find alternative media elsewhere or read a better paper which seems to be SMH,The Age, or Australian in my experience.

Violent crime is certainly reported in Australia, (well Sydney or Melbourne where I have lived) and yes, it is often a State thing rather than a national thing. I am sure there is actual good reason for this apart from the obvious that the country operates out of hub capital cities. The online papers do share there stories via feeds elsewhere (look at the bottom of the page) via their 'Fairfax' sites.

I would also say that those who would uphold BBC *tv* as a example need to remember that apart from that RP accent a lot of their presentation is rhetoric and spin.

I was in London when the report of the "Diana" inquest came out and sat down with the deliberate intent to critique the newscast. A few salient points were stretched out to 30 mins/1 hour, literally repeated ad nauseum. Take away the nice accents and a bit of pomp, and slightly different deliveries of the same material, and there was very little left - certainly not analysis.

Having said that the flagship analysis programmes were always good, don't know if this has been maintained. Speaking for The Times, moving back to print, it has been quite tabloidised in some ways. Top 10 lists of things etc etc.

And those who would say that the Aussie Battler is catered for here and idolised forgets that the Sun newspaper absolutely glorifies the Brit counterpart and does exactly the same job, in the same way the Melbourne Herald Sun does for the Mirror or Express. (It's not quite as slushy as the Daily Mail - more working class than middle class). Marx would have a field-day.
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Old Aug 13th 2008, 11:31 am
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Default Re: News in OZ versus news in U.K

Originally Posted by svinnes
Over the last few weeks i have noticed that all the stabbing, murders, shootings and everything bad seem to be all on display in the U.K, but i have failed to see stabbings and such like making news here in OZ, prime example the other day there was the biggest drug hoist in the world uncovered in OZ, it lasted all of about 1 hour on the internet then we are back on to the olympics, Saw a lassie got stabbed to death in Logan, lasted about another hour, kid got beaten up and stabbed in Capalaba, i didn't even read it a friend told me about it because she got questioned by the police....Is is just not important over here or is it all just covered up to make the place not seem so bad!!!

Suzanne
My husband works in the police cells here in the UK, and I must say we only hear the half of it. There are far more stabbings, rapes, drugs raids...than we hear about.
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Old Aug 13th 2008, 11:32 am
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Default Re: News in OZ versus news in U.K

Originally Posted by clarinsred
My husband works in the police cells here in the UK, and I must say we only hear the half of it. There are far more stabbings, rapes, drugs raids...than we hear about.
Same as Australia then
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Old Aug 13th 2008, 12:45 pm
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Default Re: News in OZ versus news in U.K

Originally Posted by Mikeyc
Ha-ha that statement makes me laugh.

No actual bill of rights or provision of free speech here (yes people, Australia does not actually have free speech).

Too much control of Media (there is actually a law about the number of stations we have and how much shown has to be Australian content).

No equal rights for all citizens – eg: gay people pay the exact same tax as straight people but are not entitled to the same things or benefits or entitlements for things like super.

It’s law that you MUST vote, even if you don’t like either person running, Voting is a right and like most democratic countries you should have the right to not vote!

Too much control with things like supermarkets – Woolworths and Coles control the majority, this is why we have such high prices.

Too many pathetic anti-competition laws, this is why flights are so high, food so high, TV so bad.

The list could go on and on, but Australia is nothing close to what a true democratic country should be.

Oh and as for the news, yes here it is total crap – local news for local people, I think they are just ignorant to the outside world (Australia to Aussies is the centre of everything remember, the best country in the world!). We are lucky to have the internet so we can find out what’s happening outside of this island, and as for the Olympics, going by Australian media you’d think only one country was participating!

Mikey
A couple of interesting points there.

Aus actually does quite well on the Democracy Index.

On free speech. Does the lack of legislation protecting free speech actual mean that free speech does not exist? Not necessarily. I think the concept of free speech exists to some extent in the common law of Aus (inherited from the UK). As no specific legislation has been passed then it is true that the government could possibly curtail free speech. However as the Aus government is highly democratic (i.e. new laws have to be accepted by both fully elected chambers) then it is unlikely.

You don't have to vote. There's a legal requirement to attend a polling station (or vote otherwise) but you don't actually have to vote. In Aus a person's vote is not actually recorded like it is in some countries so you can pick up the paper and walk out. Personally I think people should be allowed to abstain but it's no big deal.

As for the news. Decent stuff is available but people seem to like the crap. I presume it's their choice.

So where's your preferred democracy?

Last edited by MartinLuther; Aug 13th 2008 at 12:49 pm.
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Old Aug 13th 2008, 2:57 pm
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Default Re: News in OZ versus news in U.K

Originally Posted by Mikeyc
No actual bill of rights or provision of free speech here (yes people, Australia does not actually have free speech).
Yes it does. While the Australian Consitution allows for the technical restriction of free speech, (no different to any other nation), Australia is a signatory of the UDHR, which states in Article 19 the right to freedom of expression.
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Old Aug 13th 2008, 3:02 pm
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Default Re: News in OZ versus news in U.K

Originally Posted by MartinLuther
On free speech. Does the lack of legislation protecting free speech actual mean that free speech does not exist?
This is an interesting question. English Common Law generally let's everything go unless specifically legislated against, as opposed to legal systems based on the Napoleonic Code. In other words, it goes without saying you have freedom of expression in the UK/Australia/US, etc., unless the state takes this away.

Sadly, especially given the enormous cost in terms of human lives it took to safeguard these liberties, the present governments of various Western states are intent on violating these principles and trashing our civil liberties in an attempt to increase their control over our societies, and all excused with the pathetic and nauseating reference to Islamic fundamentalism.

Canada is the best place to live in terms of invasvive givernments, at least. Go to Privacy Internaitonal online and check it out. Australia is not too bad either, the US is getting worse, and the UK is in the same section as North Korea.
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