Do people have to die before Governments are forced to act ?

Yes -- far too often . They don't know and its worse when they don't admit they don't know that they don"t know - and don't consult the small voices in the household.  Progress comes from,  not someones knowledge,  but everyone's knowledge .

Many professionals reading the heading  know this headline  to be true

. We are ruled in AUSTRALIA ( until we change the system) by the superficial and the superficial, reactionary and ineffective  medicine that flows from that . The most urbanized country in the world
is at risk of losing touch with its most productive  and thoughtful members.
Until we insist in a return to the founding fathers vision of  responsible representation . the  democracy we have NOW will grind into ineffectiveness.







 Watch out for the pathetic blind  pedantry that says Democracy is just about numbers . If you care for the country you give a voice to the country . Anyone who name calls and doesn't recall the need for gerrymanders is a patheticly narrow minded pedant.- sorry if i have offended you.








Our vision of what works is a system that makes us listen to each other, not the majority all the time.

No more patriarchal nonsense from the city;  telling us it knows how the country should be run.
 Go children ! Go millennial's

Small is beautiful

Don't waste your whole life thinking big and powerful. Other factors are at work.Yes most people can't see them and big and powerful maybe as blind as anyone . Seek and you may find. Follow the money and you may well be confounded  if UR in Politics ( as a representative)   an ex ample Environment ( planning)

Don't try to do what only God can do

Burke,Wong and Flannery have floated down the Murray Darling channel and missed the point. Regenerating the riparian and the lower lacustrian  lakes takes floods that only God can produce.
 There are very few wetlands in flat old Australia and nearly all have to die to live ;because of the patchiness of flood flows and the intense evaporation and the salinity that results.
 Both the perennial and annual life phases are more dependant on the bedload  the silt deposits of giant floods  and deflation processes of dead salt pans than they are on the presence of water on the surface.
The mere explorer  doesn't really understand nature. They miss the point of droughts and flooding rains in a wide brown land -its meant to be dry for most of the time .  Libs can be just as bad, asking around their consultants and  failing to support people in the bush who like Iain Ellis know their stuff and don't expect dollars to share knowledge /learn from others in field freely .The Libs don't deserve government either because they don't effectively support the potential efficiency an effectiveness of the public service( see Net flixes  LINE of DUTY)  .
 Like the dumb and blinkered accountants that mere polys can be , they only see numbers (ML) and not the soil, silt ,seed and dry and dusty circumstances required for life to go on . Red gums , for example only regenerate easily in silt deposits. How many of our leaders move where angels fear to tread . How often are they like dumb and blinkered ideologues who  huddle  and cower to Green pressure on the crossbench -on the left  , Many of our leading non thinkers with blinkers  simply haven't  realized that none of those terrible dams which we have created ( and they want us to use - hypocrites) have taps big enough to do anything but piddle and fiddle . Takes one to know one when it comes to denial ?what do you want design with nature or do nothing?
Don't they realize that to even have their favoured, highly flavored ENVIRONMENTAL FLOWS  - you need DAMS -really really big dams and even they ( like Minindee lakes ) are not big enough .No they do not know - but they expect us to give them more money so they can learn what they don't know -- No -- feed these people .

Burke , Wong and Bandt  think themselves  great explorers and innovators in the theory of what others don't know or what others have not yet done . They specialize like Greenlabor  in Virtue signaling and finding fault with others . They proclaim a new form of righteousness that  is entirely their own ; pity they are ignorant and wrong. Capitalizing on emotion not ecology 
   Having fixed their minds . like the Greens and most reactionaries on  what we have supposed to have not done in the country, they see that we have interfered in nature ( we have but not always  without care ) and are determined to right the wrongs of others - at our expense. Be reasonable  if they were trained in careful surgery but they are NOT .


Even though we have spent more than Trump wants to spend on his wall ( his idea of a sword ?) on the Darling ( Murray ),  many are not happy . these never happies ? HEC's
This of course is quite predictable to those of us who have worked the earth at ground level , The politicians think they can do the impossible. We know what' s possible .
 These well intention'd ones  can  spend another 13 billion and it still won't work .-- if they don't change whom they listen to and the logic that drives their actions .
 The Premier of NSW can go on about how " he never heard" about the need to monitor more in the bush  but the reality is the polys spent the budget visiting the problem and not in fact dealing with it .
Guilty as charged ....time for confession high priests . And don't do what Dan Andrews- the iron ruler who fixes every problem with more police - water meter police  

ACTION
Put more Iain Ellis's on the ground. ( ref fish kills)
Recognise

1. That the riparian and desert lake zone zone and our awfully old and flat country needs something that our mere reservoirs cannot provide AND  Water that gets even half way down our modest hills will find itself quickly evaporating in the sun. Life in such lakes is always precarious and we respect nature by recognising that its naturally shallow and needs naturally big flood flows to live  . Prosecute offenders but ditch the pitch from the kindergarten right that "water price  control wise use"    
2. That we live in the Savannah where things have to die to live -
3. We do not live in the Garden of Eden even though some Greens still want to rewrite  the story and live in dream land .

The greatest evil is done in the name of technology

I wasn't the first to say this but those who did first say it have been forgotten ( J Ellul, B Russell, AN Whitehead)   Its a newer local version of "the best intention".
When everyone thinks  something is a good idea, its dangerous if it doesn't work , or it isn't going to work . Clearly it probably does work in some cases (eg Secondary industry policy ) Our wannabes have been busily legitimizing the dumping of processes that work for processes that don't work - on the basis of one example that does .

How does this happen? Well it happens largely because legitimization is often a matter of faith -esp when we are all struggling to make ends meet. The new faith for many is" in the future" ( therefore what we learn from the past is now less important )  . Many just now believe that the new is always better . Its a matter of faith bolstered up by the reality that in production of goods technology does increase efficiency and efficiency does matter for a large part of the economic sectors-- at least  on the surface . The fact that it doesn't work with ecology and some resource uses is lost in a blinkered majority "declaration /doctrine of truth" .
The dominant belief system across all Parties is in the idea that things will automatically progress . You haven't heard it that way because it sounds absurd  but then as Chesterton said : "religion and romance have a way of really turning things on their head."

Test it for yourself . See how you go defending " the way we do things " You old dinosaur " the majority will say ( as a matter of faith ..??..almost) .
If you want something more satisfying in the way of a faith system , you have to go to the margins , the outsiders and the cranks . ( I hope you don't ALL think of me that way !)    As we know we have the satisfaction of being able to predict how things will work -- most of the time .
take democracy -its always under threat because its not reliable or efficient ( but not everything has to be on the bookkeepers ledger _ who would have children ? ) Churchill summed it up - hands off Its the best of all the options ( and those who experiment at our expense should be accountable should be forced to demonstrate their competence/ not their faith to do so  )

A new conservatism is coming. Lets be a bit more cynical about new processes  than political reactionaries have been in the recent past so that the new religion isn't as inflexible as the current one .
Ask yourself  Would anything be any better in the care fields in our leaders just ensured we were as best trained as possible and LEFT US ALONE from the efficiency freak show .( that was the OLD way - the one without monitoring and relentless  bookeeping by the pedants !- where your reputation counted ,not the number of outputs)

Sentimental do gooders do more harm than good

Western culture is build on a faith in Jesus Christ and his faith that we get the best out of people by loving them individually,  not patronizing them or blaming their bad choices on disadvantage :by sharing on the basis of known need .  Keeping the commonwealth takes a miracle based on this faith and the idea of holding individuals responsibility for poor choices .( our law is respected if only just)
Many reactionaries still want to deny this so the only political choice is to offer another faith to civilizations who are losing faith in their careless invention ; breeding dependancy .
"Lets all believe the poor deserve their problems and may get another chance ... in the next life " a sort of less obvious version of "i good, they bad" - very Orwellian.
That way we need never worry or be worried again about the needs of others and keep our natural preoccupation with our own - we can all embrace the faith of Hindus  or the entertainment industry or whatever

Handicapping yourself

Tony Abbott  makes a telling point to the Heritage foundation today by reminding Americans  that while the symbol and substance of the US is not perfect , we want, need and, have to have it, as both symbol and substance of the best the west has created.  Are we wiser than Churchill in seeing  the glass as half full rather than half empty.
Probably the greatest handicaps are the ones we impose on ourselves.. and then pass on however subtly to others

We can do a lot for each other by encouraging people to believe in themselves .
My summary of the response to " pay teachers more " discussion on "the drum"   is that money alone will not revive the teaching profession but respect for their right to be teachers could.
The audience around us is full of people who  see the glass half empty in us,  or in others

The Greens Party's biggest problem

Seems to be that they want to do surgery without doing the training.The Greens would do a lot more good if they better supported those who study the environment , culture , incentives taxes and behavioral modification .
By adopting the modus operandi of many wannabes they can become as relevant as most wannabes are 10 years after their days of fame /favourite fantasy solution.
The green slide is not over . Minor voices  reflect people with a passion to see the comfort zone of major parties challenged to deal with failure areas . Until thinking Young people and rural producers hear more credible conservation policies from the major parties, they will seek to support individuals who seek to speak to reform.
 That said I thought Joel Fitzgibbon  did a good job of pointing directly to  arrogant errors of the Greens at Labor conference .
Do wonder if Libs do enough reflection  when they keep repeating same mistakes they made last time they were in power.Peter Walsh's new love affair with coops is a quickfix and a distraction.Viclibs and the Nationals  must think deeper about why their rural  constituencies are going mad ;  like the rest of the wannabes - handing out and following false hopes!  Before long our market blinkered polys won't care whether its food , fuel or opium that's grown in our paddocks. That great program on 4 corners on the opium growers in Afganistan this week show how misplaced effort can be . We  go in there with guns and knives , when they need political help/ wisdom  to avoid mere survival stretching economic policies.  
Greens could have even less relevance than major parties because at least the major parties have an advisory stream who take seriously the FACT that goals are easy, getting there is another matter.

We greens on the ground have the hardest task of all because, unlike the major parties who waver ,- we believe in BOTH resilience AND degradation and that if no balance is held ( often isn't) PEOPLE and the land SUFFER UNECCESARILY.  Afgans would,  just like us,  rather grow food than fuel for the rich.
We believe to hold the balance between exploitation and use is good for people in every country on the globe .but who is really on target here ?
Ask any rural person anywhere whether the politics of "care " works out where they work!

Co sleeping .Our reasonableness has its limits

Why do so many new parents think its OK to have a baby sleeping in their beds.? 
because they think its natural -" to listen to and not ignore the child " . Are natural arguments very deep or consistent or just used for convenience or in desperation - it is natural for a child to bash another child?  Why sit on anger when its quite natural ?
In the absence of a clear philosophy of considered resistance and faith ( eg to believe in hard edge cliffs you can't see but others have seen ) ,stoicism, determinism  and giving in become the norm . This state of mental incompleteness is not good or complete because tension is necessary for sustainable growth and development .

One hopes, as a realist, that irrationality or incomplete arguments are exposed .Because we all treasure our own reasoning we OFTEN ONLY  see the reality of incomplete logic in anothers failures and when the connection with their ideas is clear.  
Therefore
, I am positive most existing parents would be very pleased to hear the judge state the facts this week;  incomplete arguments have been exposed. Irushinality (copyright EA 18 july 2012)
Over half the SID deaths are cosleeping related, so its extremely risky for the baby to be there in bed  .Experience and objectivity are clear. Reality can and is not being promoted in some so called health and welfare magazines  who promote this new idea  .Why ? Are we truly rational creatures?The idea that we can trust magazines and organisation s who say they care to really care also gets a much needed shakeup - too easy to offer advice .everyone likes to put their bit in .

Why does idealism from time to time prevent us from accepting the real risks of life . As 95% of parents only want the best for their children and know that kids can go astray , anything that might prevent the alienation of parents and children is likely to be given consideration.Need doesn't necessarily drive solutions as some who promote progressive and evolutionary imperatives insist.

Sound moral drives have  therefore great power .We don't yet know a way to ensure our children make good choices , so naturally we would like to know if we could do more ; Previous generations of westerners had it easy ;"the problem is innate and related to their God given freedom " .
This generation have another idea;" If we think its not innate our focus will be on changing the environment" .Fine but how far do you go ? give them the best environment What cotton wool with candies ?
We may feel its only right to experiment   But like any moral choices just How you implement them is controversial . Surely its our preferenec for simple choices that can drive us to chose 1 line of reasoning rather than another . and a simple environmental reason seems to have the greatest clout  for many .
What if the issue is so complex  that no simple  line of reasoning can be followed . Are the environmenatl justifications just a bit too easy  So why do some advocates bring up stuff about " 2 cave" families ,it being unnatural . To call something "Unatural". ( like bottlefeeding)in 2012 is clearly to call a curse on the idea.Interestingly these natural comes first ideas are not new and have become prominent if not permamnet in previuos generations .  "The environment "now has too much weight attached to it ( cf heredity) .
 We can only keep the balance between nature and nurture here, as we have done before by ensuring we don't put nurture in a dominating position ?

Nobody home at the health clinic

Just spent a week trying to remind our State polys why the Feds have made a jump on them over the environment (Windsor /Oakeshott legislation) .
The States , unlike when I was was working with them,  no longer have anyone responsible or coordinating environmental advice, and according to one key operative yesterday said "they couldn't manage to do that anymore " .-nice compliment for me for decades of effective coordination but affirms my assertion that the States have instituted their own powerlessness in recent years ( at least Victoria)  . The polys have been stupid enough to allow a whole lot of bodies to throw their bit in, but noone is responsible for drawing it together . The shire are handed the chalice but that doesn't work and they know it  .Members of present Victorian govt , unlike QLD , have yet to wake up to the time bomb they have been sitting on since they took office.
As for decreased funding problems to some sectors - its inevitable because the persons ( new management class) who let pollies rule over them didn't think scientifically carefully or deeply about the science profession they were trashing.
 Landcare, coined its name from Medicare and while it was great to be able to give landholders a sense of ownership of conservation, real farmers  didn't need to be told - they already knew that well . Landcare would be a problem because it was too obvious and looked easier than coercion and prosecution of the ignorant , careless ,lazy and ripoff RE elements etc ( always does ) For the politicians and quickfixers it retains its appeal - it seemed an easier kind ( they like the Devil, carelessly translate ease to efficiency) a sort of  "do what you feel like "version of health care.
My early concerns proved correct in the sense that our coercive influence in  group projects could and did decline .This has left such groups vulnerable to the very valid criticism that they are NOT objective about risks in their own area- the budget cuts to Landcare groups will continue because this is true and too much private benefit /shallow targets  have been funded (Whiteboard affair in Hawke's time  ).
Like doctors, we earth health practitioners can't say our clients can be trusted to be objective about their health or their eco resources . If ecology and environmentalism is to WORK   it must be  about objectivity and sound foundations.For too long now its about fads .
If you look closely you will see that the educational focus of government has declined and both Labor and green policy are NOW very coercive. Their reliance on warm water taxes ( everyone pays )and cost driven pressure points  is in itself unsustainable( how much does a packet of cigaretes have to cost before people stop  smoking ?)  .

 It now costs more to buy water than to treat the wastewater( vic)
Governments  are, like wannabes in media with their committed projects ,  now desperate to find ways to motivate people see ABC websites exploring the latest bandaid .Objective Care ( even coercive care) is the most effective because its sees the hard choices with benefits at the end ( what study and science does ) and it is proactive and preventative to boot .
Much of the fear and desperation amongst the wannabes  is NOT about the state of the environment but an expression of desperation in the state of the mind (esp amongst the powerful) .
These sound foundation professional matters are things are being lost to our collective wisdom on the subject of env, if not to health care. You heard it first on blogger on 9th June 2012 . ask questions/post please.

The HUB solution

Is it a real solution or a new name for old idea that did actually work at much less cost ?
On a day after the PM chants repeatedly about her offering to drip feeding money into the accounts of all of the people , HUBs are announced as  solution to problems in some indigenous communities in the Northern Territory .Something unsustainable about that and the idea that HUB as propsed will be properly funded  long term.
The cost of health care can kill.   ABC journos - talk to real community leaders on these property areas !
I wonder what the care ratio will be and whether the hours will be be beyond 9am -5pm and on weekends , when the problems arise .
We are happy to hear this news from the ABC,   but are the people on the stations?
I just talked with someone who poo poed the  idea of missionaries in such communities; So easy to knock the previous encumbent .  This was the sort of armchair repeat talk that undermined , a generation ago,  the commitment of white aussies to support hubs in some of those areas . Look up Hermannsburg.  They trained people to care for people and the carers were called Pastors . Pastors are a sustainable support system .
Pastors are on call,  and look after as they do world wide,  and for centuries  groups of 40 -100 people .
HUBS which are committed to care are welcome,  but lets not pretend people are going to replace pastoral care . Govt's can't even get drivers out to the richest woman in the world' s mines . and with both major parties hooked on the drip feed of money riven solutions,  I wouldn't hold my breath  about more care and more time.  The cost of health care can kill.   ABC journos - talk to real community leaders on these property area  !
The proper ratio of political announcements to people announcements is at least 1:2

Cutting Edge Careers

Who cares ? what clothes should we be wearing?
Our politicains, like our people, are completely confused about what this skill set can be . Unwilling to ditch the destructive and depressing faith in progress idea that" it will all just happen" the people are more and more exposed to a mythical mix of determinism greed and old new clothes waste on the subject.
A wiser generation would unpick the childlike faith in technologically driven progress and decide what they wanted for their people ( invisible clothes merchants come and go)
A wiser generation would insist that our children do physics and chemistry and not assume one can do good science without them(Biologists are not coping with the complex eco challenges they find in trying to work with nature leading to a less scientific and practical approach to working with nature) .
We need to decide to train people to work together ( physics chemists,geol ,sociol,economists ) to really maintain and develop the boundaries of resilience protection that our forefathers established for us .  New technique fascination and short circuits must again come second to tough specific  training and skill development .
As a practical onground ecologist in Australia for over 3 decades,I have witnessed the politicization of my profession -clearly eroding its credibility.( groups like to grab the high moral ground without putting their feet down in places that work ;
Unlike engineering etc ,the conservation movement runs the risk of meaning all things to all men . To properly challenge mere convenience, conservation must maintain a hard edge in both mythos and logos; something that will attract young people to restudy the ways men can live well with nature http://designwithnature.blogspot.com/

Why do we make it easy for those who do not look after themselves ?

Let's put the seniors in jail, and the criminals in a nursing home. This way the seniors would have access to showers, hobbies, and walks, they'd receive unlimited free prescriptions, dental and medical treatment , wheel chairs etc. and they'd receive money instead of paying it out.
They would have constant video monitoring, so they could be helped instantly if they fell, or needed assistance. Bedding would be washed twice a week, and all clothing would be ironed and returned to them.
A guard would check on them every 20 minutes, and bring their meals and snacks to their cell. They would have family visits in a suite built for that purpose. They would have access to a library, weight room, spiritual counseling, pool, and education.
Simple clothing, shoes, slippers, P.J.'s and legal aid would be free, on request. Private, secure rooms for all, with an exercise outdoor yard with gardens. Each senior could have a P.C. a T.V. radio, and daily phone calls.
There would be a board of directors to hear complaints, and the guards would have a code of conduct, that would be strictly adhered to.
The "criminals" would get cold food, be left all alone, and unsupervised. Lights off at 8pm, and showers once a week. Live in a tiny room, and pay $5000.00 per month and have no hope of ever getting out. Justice for all.

Is sometimes best communicated by love

No wonder our polys attempts are OFTEN so feeble. lol

Take this wonderful example (click on here) - an ad produced in England by someone who cares.
If this doesn't make you laugh , I cry with you because there is a fair bit of "government trying to do what the government can't do" .
The West always runs best when we all do what we are best at....... and don't try to do what we haven't committed to training for .
Anyone  listening eh ? Glad you did !

Gillards education revolution may be doing more harm than good

It may not be well known in our society , but those of who have worked with incentives KNOW it  is possible to make things worse when you throw money( even lots of money)  at a genuine problem .

Rudd's and Brumby's team are not alone,  but they might take the cake for best intentions gone wrong because they seem to be unaware of how dangerous it is to take advice from those you clone to closely and how difficult it is to get the HOW right when you employ people with no experience and competency at the care coalface.
Our state schools have problems ,but so has our society . Our kids need every mentor still at school to stay there . The good teachers in our State schools need all the help they can get , because they do an impossible job . ( Read H.L. Menken on "The educational process" for the glass fully empty version - he wrote this at more stable times . These aren't the best of times for teachers cause they are doing a great job trying to make up for deficiencies at home )
The solution is,  as often happens in the care professions - don't change the structure, build more buildings or offer us help anywhere else,  but right on the hard cutting edge .What can i do to help YOU ?
How many good teachers will have left the State system simply because the Change agents in state and federal areas think and practice quickfiz:
They wanna help but only in ways THEY think are most helpful - whats' new .
They wanna listen or they will be outta office sooner than they think possible.
At least 6 in out town have gone to private schools in the last few years.

Telling the truth - are we still up to it ?

There was a great book in the early 70's - "The kindness that kills" .It was ahead of its time . We need someone to remind our leaders and wannabes ( you may not have this problem) that the truth can bring healing and prevent disaster.

If the Royal Commission into the Victorian Bushfires 2009 commission can't say that "we have a problem because we are not allowed to say to people "you are living in an impossible risk situation" we will still have the problem. More here

Those annoying itches

If the itch doesn't go away, we keep scratching. The best solution is often to leave the sore alone, but we are all tempted to keep scratching . Our leaders do the same - its really annoying to watch , especially when its our money or others care thats wasted in the quickfiz .

How do you stop youself from doing it ? - especially if the bigger issue is that you are unsettled and not at peace with yourself . We have all been there . The choice? Sores or self control ?

The solution to this enormous waste and frustration is simply to accept that we are not perfect and find a worldview that enables you to accept that. Deal with irritation anger and your faults as they come .

Not as easy as it looks from the outside . Remedies for scratching habits aren't curealls. But pretending there are such things makes a lot of people a lot of money . Governments even feel the need to apply balm which is quite Ok if they pay us to apply it; Provided they don't name the brand , the places and the signal to noise ratio that triggers a grant. Leave that to the professionals.
If you want a cure all, you may feel the need to watch more TV , rather than read the good book .One works the others just waste time and prevent you from exercising - excercising self control .

Managing bushfire risk- Focus on area of interest

Education is not easy, so you can't ALWAYS blame govt if people don't listen - People constantly facing high risk often ignore the risk - helps them sleep . see notes under What govt don't know here

but listening is more effective if people are interested -
Sometimes people up the top have lost sight of whose listening so they don't spot a faulty education campaign when they see one- A good education campaign is One that captivates interest (and is not distracted by trying to create more) A good education campaign for bushfire management should focus on people's interest in fire behaviuor -not clear that this is happening . Example " you have v high blood pressure - interest is high - you can manage it this way--- by understanding this about "the wolf" ; "


For example what % of those killed didn't even have the basic expectation that a fire would come at them first from the north and then possibly from the west.

The lack of experienced risk managers with real experience in DSE and the ongoing competetion over who knows how best to manage risk can ALSO be expected to continue to add fuel to the controversy over whether knowledge ( and its corallary) is being transferred down in ways which give ownership or take it away ?
ASh feb09 lots of Ads talked about " Your plan " many did not EXPECT the fire to come at them from the West after coming from the north - awareness is one thing ;
More on manageing the wolf here!
Knowledge of risk is another. What do you think ?

Great news for ailing health care systems- reform

Health care in the US costs nearly 17% of the GDP..... for those who partipate . Australian's pay less , but some us have to wait for 3 weeks to see a doctor .
Palfremans excellent reviewprovides hope by pointing out some of the boundaries for a more effective and efficient health care system . It should be compulsory viewing by every poly in the country .
Get your bearings boys - its not all about how good industry is or how bad government is. Get together and talk!

Labor might just be the party to pull it off

Human services aren't God - now that's not to say they don't try , but those who care for their own severely disabled children in Australia would have to have angels with them to do what they do to date going on ABC 4 corners - with the sort of " where are they? " kinds of relief that just aren't there .
Sure it takes more than a new building program - one that is more lateral than bureaucrats are normally into. Horses for courses? Bonuses got an honourable mention- it seems to me this is right esp for those who take on much more tahn average .
It was good to see Labor on 4 corners seeming to take this very seriuos matter seriuosly - to stopping the blame game. We live in hope .

Homelessness -more than boundaries with 4 walls!

ABC TV PROGRAM ON OASIS

Family breakdown IS THE KEY ISSUE .
So lets talk about it . The parents themselves have tried and failed . In many cases both parents and children have given up on each other. Why shouldn"t society?. Tough job for tanya .
Its not easy for any parent to admit defeat . But as Noni hazelhurst said so well on 774 - we all give up on each other from time to time . Failure is no reason to give up on providing down to earth parental support on the street or THE BIG RISK ( NOTE YOU POLYS AND MEDIA WANNABES) to keep changing direction is how that service is provided ( The stupid technological fix syndrome of the wannabes) . Fact is we all fail every day in the boundary setting job , so noone need give up .
CONCLUSION
SO Lets not pretend to find some new way to do one of the toughest jobs in the world - lets just make sure someone is there WHO HAS THE ENERGY TO REALLY CARE LIKE THEIR OWN PARENTS - PREPARED TO PUSH BOUNDARIES AND not JUST BE PUSHED AROUND !

SO WHAT"S WRONG WITH NOW? ---the inadequacy and mutual irresponsibility of the merry go round of 9-5 weekday care. One or 2 persons needs to act as parent, not 10! ( MAYBE MORE THAN 2 -JUST HOW MANY AND WHERE WHAT ROLES IS A key QUESTION BUT AUTHORITY TO AcT LIKE GUARDIAN - ALSO -PUSHING EM BACK TO tHEIR OWN PAReNTS ---DAVE COULD HELP WITH)
The govt are like the worst step family you could think of - and kids know it . Too many can still get "what they want" ( as opposed to what they need") from our defacto and dysfunctional families (nature of bureaucacry to be so - just give the right jobs to the right people) Rememember current govt case workers jobs ( which you can't and won't fill) is impossible if it doesn't have a cutting edge care angle ) giving them what they need - not always what they want!)
The risk with half baked measures (where the waste is now)is ALSO that these children do not get any helpful modelling on anger, resistance , respect and confrontation management ( they keep pushing people around) with merrygo round of "so called servicing" that is currently the go .


Many of the old merrigo round service centres operate as if the children were in charge . What the community wants and the children need is for the parents ( or someone seriuos enough about authority - NOW I HAVE DONE IT ! --that role) to stay in charge -Avoid the woosy LEAVE TO NOONE handout merrigo round of the present !

Bad labelleing of the problem of homelessness isn't the end --provided the label doesn't keep distracting us from dealing with the core motivating factors . Sure beds are needed but not neccesarily "secure ones" .
Other boundaries of care and love and discipline need to be reset - thats the hard bit - where you need tough people with tough action at their disposal . Street living does some of that discipline ( so its not all bad ) but without hope and stability of stable adults who aren't hooked on the universal drug of " doing what you feel like " it is indeed hopeless.( those wonderful Salvo people can't be beat with the help of specialists and other needed bureaucrats BUT PUT THE CART BEFORE THE HORSE and GIVE the HORSE A BETTER DRINKING HOLE ! )

The opportunity to direct and set new bounadries for young people was nearly missed.

In a post moden age the ABC could lead the way beyond mere quickfiz by moving beyond the " how do you feel" focus to really help provide objective answers for children who find themselves without parental influence. THE OBJECTIVE VIEW

TOWARDS BETTER FUNDING DECISIONS
The audience want answers and the polys want answers that accord with that ( so they can stay in power) - so make it happen ABC . Dave gave the hint ( somewhere in the system 0 but Tony didn't take it .( where in the system?)

DAVE might have said " The state is reluctant to give its power of playing parent to the right people, but really in a crisis who best can play the role ? -Surely those near the street who are almost as equally powerless people-- who have the guts to act as defacto parents' .Who can with adequate support stay there to pick up pieces and keep hoping . Self praise may not be the easiest thing to do,
but it doesn't change the fact that like the NT the church has a critical and important role to play ( one which has been given a hard time over for too long) Salvos don't intervene without review , so don't worry .
Anyone who has ever worked at that boundary knows just how difficult any case workers job is ( secular or non secular) ( none less than Plibersek,,, who did well ) The point is it like so many PS jobs, it is the person without the pay, the influence and the predictabliity that is most vulnerbale tpo the poly project mentality ( polys love to keep changing the way things are done - what kids need is stable mentors who hang around )

Got news for you powerbrokers
Parenting has not changed. therefore keep the people who have the guts and strength to stay there and be there to stay there ( the poys know casework filling is a big problem at the moment so deal with it) - maybe plibersek might have said to the OASIS audience – “how about I give just one of you gets a job helping others like yourlseves through this period - wow what an outcome .

We missed it - Does the ABC prefer control and leaving the stated objective of “answers” --up in the air ? . Hate to dictate - to intervene?. T be held responsible . Give responsibility tothose who take it I say ! The absolute right to freewill thing was checked well by david burbidge . If all sides of goverenment’s natural tenedency to "changechange change programs" ( see note about "not working" in relation to all families below)isn't checked by media , the growth of parentless potentail on the streets will increase .

POLYS WATCHING? The job for plibersek- sit on any techno fix and get consensus for ongoing support for caseworkers on the streets and in the schools ( another area where quiet early intervention is working )
Avoid the merrygo round syndrome . What the community wants and the children need is for the parents ( or someone serious enough about tough but listening roles) to stay in charge -Avoid the woosyy handout merrigo round of the present. Put people on the street where it really means they can make a difference and help cut cleanly with care.

Like in real parenting You can't always see the good that’s coming from cutting , caring and specific discipline (all children are different ) the stress of contininiug to set boundaries All the good that is going on - best not to focus too much on the ever present and unexorzisable bad OR you will miss the pointy end of really doing good !


----and miss the point of giving our children all the parental and real world boundary setting help they can get at such a difficult time in their/ all our lives .

Tanya will do well even to insist in a discussion of taking roles of authority seriously –The best balance is probably a mix - as long as it’s a strong mix with little duplication and real leadership responsibilities .