Greens challenge Coles on cheap smokes

And we challenge Govt and Greens on Cigarette tax.

Australian Greens challenge Coles over cheap tobacco:   The Greens support of Labors 25% extra Tax impost on smokers is policy which impacts our homeless community and low  income communities Australia wide.The Greens falling into line with Labor on the notional health impact leaves our community concerns on cigarette costs without a political ally.

 I have personally seen, and spoken to several of our community who have noted the effects of this illogical tax grab on not only our community, but a growing number of workers and besuited professionals.These are the Sydney City folk who are regularly seen collecting cigarette butts from the ash receptacles and footpaths of the city.Smoking recycled cigarettes is a practice long associated with Mexico City and Manila slums.We can now report that Sydney has finally caught up. 

 The Cancer health figures are doubtless genuine, but attribution solely to smoking, and unfairly burdening only smokers with this tax is highly suspect.Many of the chenicals added to foods such as colourings flavourings and preservatives have the potential to contribute to the cancer count, but we see no tax on those foods.Then theres the carbon monoxide which our national love affair with cars and #bigoil produce, but no 25% slug on the motor or petrol industries. Or the cancer causing (and climate debilitating) industrial pollutants associated with the array of chemicals burned and used,but no 25% Tax on them either.In fact Rudd / Gillard Labor quietly exempted the biggest polluters from mitigation responsibility in discussions leading up to their abject failure on Climate in the Senate,and their subsequent rating as virtual climate deniers by The Copenhagen Climate conference. Hard to see the level playing field from our kerbside perspective...

 We haven't looked much at the impact on crime, but we know that ChopChop is now freely available along with "Paraguay Marlboro" and some other brands.Carboot sellers pop up doing the 1 man flashmob thing selling packs as fast as they can take the money in. These people contribute positively to maintaining the sanity of many in our homeless community, including myself, who would be driven absolutely mad without a nice relaxing smoke, a diversion from the rigours of corporately driven homelessness and marginalisation.

 I smoke about a packet of rollies a day.If I get cancer,I get it, same as if I get hit by a bus or shot by a cop. Treatment??I haven't been to a doctor since about year 8 so I'm probably not too concerned about it- I'll take my chances.

 The important issue here is freedom of choice, something which Australians have become too used to rich serving governments usurping because they know best & we don't. Freedom is undermined by draconian Tax imposts. i choose to assert my freedom to smoke the cheapest healthiest ciggies I can buy -legally or not

Building Sustainable #Fairpay in Sydney

In our many years of dealing with homelessness and marginalisation, we are yet to see a government supported program which has a sunset clause, a measure of success involving zero ongoing government funding because the marginalisation issue has been successfully and permanently resolved. 


 Under the current Rudd/Gillard #Labor and the immediate past Howard Abbott Coalition Governments we have in fact witnessed a rise in the income bar at which social marginalisation kicks in, a rise in the number of marginalised and a progressive increase in repetitive funding calls on the taxpayer.


 There are no government or Poverty Industry strategies to end poverty and marginalisation. Yet there are billions of Taxpayer dollars spent in the name of Homeless and other marginalised community sectors. The inconvenient truth is that our homeless name, along with that of the long-suffering aboriginal community, children, families and economically marginalised workers, is being used by State and Federal governments and a gaggle of co-dependent NGOs, to bilk the Taxpayer out of billions of dollars annually. This daylight robbery of the working Australian taxpayer has to end - and soon. 


 While State and Federal Governments wax lyrical about "sound economic management" they in fact produce the economic results they claim by digging deeper into the legislatively thinned pockets of working Australians. Ever more taxes, and ever less solutions has been a consistent characteristic of the Charlatan Australian political leadership of the past two decades. A recent example is the 25% hike in cigarette taxes which severely impacts low income workers & Benefit claimants,as it was designed to.
 For every social marginalisation issue,there are swelling numbers of people and swelling government and NGO budgets,but no solutions.Despite the diabolical Patrick McClure inspired "Workchoices" and "McClure Report" Howard era millions spent on NGOs, homelessness and marginalised numbers rose. The Rudd/Gillard Labor "The Road Home" and Stimulus Package spend of $6billion plus in the name of homeless people has seen asset increases for State Governments and NGOs, and an alarming growth in homeless numbers. Surely a sign that this program is not working?? Instead, Government and NGOs promote one self serving scheme after the other-including diabolical families and aboriginal schemes which actually exacerbate the perceived problems. And so with homelessness. The furphy of solving homelessness and aboriginal issues with jobs is undermined by bi-partisan legislation severely curtailing workers rights to organise and lobby effectively for #FairPay. For example Agency workers cannot picket their actual place of employment, due to Howard era anti-worker secondary boycott laws which Labor disliked so much,they kept. 


 I could,but won't,continue forever with a discourse dissecting the disastrous policies of past and present governments, or their NGO parasite friends. I will tell you what we ( and you are welcome to join us) are doing about it.


 Our initiatives aim to provide homeless, at-risk-of-homelessness and other marginalised community members with a self directed strategy to exit marginalisation by building an income base in which the participant owns or shares in the developed equity.Without govenment or NGO support -and without benefits to those parties.


 Our most successful project commenced in June 2009.Our IT based off the streets concept leverages a number of pre-existing online tools and strategies which participants use to derive an income.Our measure of success is an income of $Au1300 per week, which is the minimum a single person needs to live comfortably and make choices in Sydney. We have as of last night successfully helped 245 people to achieve this goal online.Delivery has been manually and we haven't charged for training or anything...but it will be available to all online as soon as we can guarantee it is not usable by parasite JobNetwork NGOs to claim $20000 success fees for doing nothing...or contact us @SydneyHomeless if you're in Sydney..more soon.  


 We are launching @BannerBikes in about 3 weeks - a powerful promotional service commencing in Sydney in August . Further info  This service will allow Sydney Homeless people to participate in and build an income and equity share in a viable workers community controlled collective,providing innovative service partnerships to Sydney and Australian businesses 

Rudd & Keneally,Macklin & Burney Hopeless on Homeless

These politicians just don't seem to get it- As Keneally sets up yet another committee of Pastors and homelessness industry parasites, its clear that the only voices your politicians are really interested in are those they choose-those advocating excessive funding of pariah Christian NGOs and expansion of costly government departments.

 Lets start with Housing.NSW announced 4000 affordable homes built, but waiting lists at least quadruple that. And the social housing comes with draconian strings attached.Todays social housing tenant is not afforded the same rights and protections as other tenants-Social Housing Tenants have special clauses in the Residential Tenancies Act which pertain exclusively to them-clauses making it easier to end your tenancy.Ultimately, a useful tool for governments who don't hesitate to stoop to blackmail as a means of exerting population control.

 Jenny Macklin and Kevin Rudds "The Road Home" is not working,and will not achieve its objective of halving homelessness by 2020.While Stocklands report 200,000 houses short in NSW now, these people focus on how they might give more money to NGOs, to "solve all our other problems." Our perspective might sound exceeding simplistic, but we cannot fathom how the multiple genius NGOs whose speciality is everything except housing, and who are being funded out of this massive mismanagement of taxpayers money, will contribute one iota to lowering the housing shortage.The critical housing shortage, despite the spin emanating from ACOSS,NCOSS ,the parasites they represent,and their bipartisan political allies will not be addressed by proclaimed "mental health experts,"nor any other experts who are not part of the property business.

 Many disillusioned homeless have already walked out, disgusted with the draconian reality of the Supported Accommodation Assistance Program (SAAP) a cynical excercise in using marginalised people as income generators for NGOS.

 Of extra concern is the insertion into the equation of Data Mining by State and Federal Governments, and their contracted NGOs, which accompanies "The Road Home." Relying on Patrick McClure's ( The McClure Report) erroneous, but thus far unchallenged concept of "mutual obligation", the logic is that unemployed claimants should do something in return for receiving allowances such as Newstart.The "mutual obligation" Test was met preceding The McClure Report:Pay Taxes when you work- collect allowances when you don't. Any other obligation is an extra obligation.In addition,we are reliably informed,a contract signed under duress is generally null and void if tested against existing case law.So much for the furphy of mutual obligation -just a Howardly attack on marginalised people.


 While assisting a Newstart applicant with her mandatory Job Network contract recently,I was disturbed to find a clause authorising the Network Service Provider to access ANY personal information the client provided, AND "to use the information...or for any purpose (the Service Provider) saw fit. This amounts to giving the Service Provider carte blanche to sell the information to anyone, for marketing, debt collection or any other purpose.It also neatly ties in with the Federal Governments quiet deployment of new internal surveillance measures. When challenged,the Network case manager quickly called Centrelink, who granted an exemption from using the Job Network to their client.


 If you are asked to sign such a document, as a precondition to accessing essential government services, such as Centrelink or Housing, this amounts to blackmail-You should refuse to sign, unless you are unconcerned with the privacy of your personal information.

 We have noticed in the past 6 months many new impacts upon marginalised living in the city.There have been more ex-mental health patients than ever presenting on the Streets.Some more able to fend for themselves than others.A few TOTALLY unable to take care of even the most rudimentary self care.Many periodically violent, or presenting a threat to themselves and unaccustomed members of the public.All whom we have been able to communicate with tell of recent release from one or another mental health care institution. Simultaneously, State Government signs on a new "Homelessness Services" contract provider in the inner city, Neami Ltd, a Mental Health specialist organisation with NO previous experience of Homelessness management.Using the information we have available, we strongly suspect a callous Federal and State Labor manipulation of mentally ill people, out of the health and into the social housing budget- ahead of prospective tenants who have waited years. A neat little excercise which keeps the NGOs in cashflow,the government departments growing, lowers numbers in Mental Health care (Success-wooohoo!!) while showing a rise in socially housed persons-using the same people,with a few token "genuine long term homeless" thrown in. We note that on the information supplied to us,just 25 housing units are available per year via this new "Inner City Homelessness contractor." We do not blame the contractor for doing what they are contracted to-far from it, we applaud them-its what they are capitalistically contracted to do.But we do question the disingenuous government tactics, and chronic waste of taxpayers money.We also wonder what will happen to other mentally affected people-the residue who will remain homeless.

 We have noted the rise in Political rhetoric from Macklin,Burney and such, painting a wide brush public persona of homeless people as mentally deficient.Quite apart from the unnecessarily disparaging (and often untrue) portrayal of homeless people, Labor politicians strategy is actually leading to increasing homelessness. There have been several who have been recently evicted from long term month-to-month tenancies, because the government is seen (reasonably) by landlords as a more stable tenant.The lie that "properties must be priced at 20% below market value leaves two commercial options for those realtors less concerned with ethics. The first is to reserve the "lowest quality" properties and only offer these options to social housing tenants- but charge the government 20% below the premium quality price for the area.If necessary,let the property (bogus lease,phantom lessee) at that premium price for a month.Option 2 is to just inflate all advertised rental prices,then discount to the premium area rate.Not rocket science. One agent cheerfully admitted doing the second. But the government is renting at Fair Market value? No, they have a closed list of agents who can provide these properties.

  Government Budget measures flowing from the Henry Tax Reforms failed to do away with, or lower the attraction, of negative gearing for residential property investors

 Our humble analysis is that this program will lead to further residential property speculation, and attendant rises in residential property values, prompted by the lucrative and comparatively stable leases offered. It will drive more low income people out of the residential housing market,or into illegal overcrowded occupancies. It will inevitably make home purchases less affordable,and rental a prerogative of those on middle incomes only.

 The Road Home and all other Federal and State Government programmes, do NOT address the issue of turning the tap off on homelessness.
  Federal Labor has failed to legislate wage increases or remove the legal constraints preventing effective worker lobbying. Labor aligned Unions have submitted application for a paltry wage increase of $29 per week.or 70c an Hour, taking the minimum wage to a whopping $15-30 odd an hour-for adults. This level of #wageslavery is unacceptable and unsustainable in any metropolitan and some regional areas.
  As #wageslavery continues to permeate up the income scale, higher qualifications become meaningless tokens. The Prime Ministers spouse Therese Reins former business is a primary Howard era and current driver of #wageslavery.

 The many smokers among our marginalised community are most affected by the "Health NGO & departmentally driven 25% extra rise in cigarette tax. We note that no parallel attempt was made to raise the cost of deadly carbon monoxide producing petrol by 25%, yet we are all forced to inhale this cancer causing toxin as we walk the sidewalks of Sydney. If the Cigarette Tax is a genuine Health initiative as portrayed, why is it not also applied to the products of the nations biggest polluters who cause countless respiratory problems. It is because,like Howard / Abbott, the Rudd Labor Machine attacks those most defenceless, economically.

 The only successes we see in The Road Home are as with its predecessors, as outlined in The McClure Report. The successful expansion of government departments and political power for certain ministries AND the rapid growth of the pariah NGO sector. If that is the Rudd Governments criteria for success then they will succeed magnificently.

 This post should not be read as an indictment of the Kevin Rudd Government alone, but equally of Rudd Labor and the previous Howard Coalition. The Abbott Coalition? Well, their policy is summarised most succinctly by their good leader,Tony Abbott (if we can believe him) "The Poor will Always be with us."

 Our election advice for #ozelection2010 #Ruddfail #Laborfail #abbottcide Vote balance of responsibility. Vote for REAL CHANGE. Why just change drivers when you have the option to change racetracks?

 Don't do it for us!! Do it for your children.Do you want them sentenced to a life of #bank servitude??

TAXING The Miners To Feed the Greedy

For Marginalised, homeless, low to medium income workers, the Rudd Federal Governments take on the Henry Report is a grotesque "feed the bankers" strategy - what we have come to expect from the Rudd - Abbott alliance.
 There is nothing in this Tax strategy which promotes home ownership,or specific investment in social housing . Instead, Federal government has kept the negative gearing applying to residential properties,keeping those people who buy housing to exploit renters for their own personal gain in the market - and excluding your children and grandchildren from the opportunity to own their own home.
 I have read with absolute contempt some Union Tops congratulatory remarks concerning super - or taking a proportion of the extra tax on miners, and placing it for the long term benefit of the approximately five super fund managers who actually benefit from super - they get all the benefits of your hard work now, not when they turn 70. And,by @KevinRuddPM s formula, this windfall Tax will last just long enough to fund the baby boomers retirement.I'd like younger generations to consider that as polling time draws near. Why should the most government pampered and exploitative generation ever, get the 1 off benefits of resources which rightly belong to all generations- including the great great grandchildren of Generation Y.

After 23 years Fred no longer needs Housing

Thats right!! After 23 long years living homeless, awaiting a placement from NSW Housing, Fred no longer requires a home.We attended his simple funeral yesterday.He was 78.Freds problem in getting housing was that, aside from rapidly shrinking finances and rapidly rising costs,and an undemanding demeanour, Fred didn't have any problems.He didn't do drugs, drink alcohol,have mental issues,just get out of jail or have any other socially debilitating conditions.In fact,I have rarely met a more mild mannered,caring and considerate man,who was in such complete control of his faculties.He simply needed a secure,affordable home.

 NSW Housing Minister David Borger can scrub his name from the social housing waiting list, but the question must be raised- why does someone who has done "everything right" have less entitlement to government social housing,than people who,of their own choosing,have an insatiable drugs problem?Or someone who is just being released from jail? Well, according to the priorities which NSW Housing have set, according to "The Road Home" and according to all the crap emanating from MacQuarrie St, thats the case.The several hundred people with simply housing issues have virtually no chance of getting social housing.Why?? Oh, because jail releasees drug addicts and people with a history or diagnosis of mental history have priority.Why? Because they create lucrative "case management opportunities" for NGOs.Who are the NGOs? Rebadged church organisations such as pariahs Exodus Foundation (Uniting Church) and Oasis YSN (Salvation Army), and private organisations like the recently reviewed Niami. Expensive organisations which provide "intangible services" or in other words charge the taxpayer (that would be you) for providing these largely useless services.Every dollar spent on these non housing services is a dollar out of the homelessness budget, which does not provide housing.Do you approve of this use of your tax dollars in the name of homeless people? We have additional concerns that these programs provide discriminatory housing, not on the same terms as other rental housing;possibly in violation of NSW governments human-rights obligations.Alterations to the NSW Residential Tenancies Act 1987 inserted 2007-2010, give "social housing" tenants less rights than other tenants. We question the provisios of combining expensive NGO service contracts with residential tenancy leases,and the extra conditions imposed on the tenant (of agreeing to accept "case management" as a condition of housing).

 By chance, we were about to publish our alarm at the sudden appearance of a large number of clearly mentally afflicted people in the past 2 months, who appear to know each other reasonably well.They are not known to our street communities, and have no long term history of living on Sydneys Streets. Well, we asked some of them.It appears that NSW governments Health department have been releasing medium to long term psychiatric patients into the general community,with nowhere to go (except the streets).This fits rather neatly with Federal Minister Macklin and State Communities ( formerly known as DOCs) Minister Linda Burney 's recent beatup, attempting to pigeonhole our homeless community as "largely people with mental issues." The callous strategy also neatly shifts these people from the health budget to the homeless (or housing budget), a sleight of hand which will allow the wallowing,,directionless NSW Health portfolio to claim a small success by state election time. 

 We are aware that Minister David Borger's NSW Housing is STILL selling off departmental properties in the inner city - well, on 99 year leases, courtesy of Agent Di Jones.These beautiful heritage listed buildings in the Millers Point area, are just whats needed for the many large families being forced out of Sydney by "unavailability of appropriately sized houses".Recent redevelopment of previous housing properties in Walker St in Waterloo are being replaced in part with a Vinnies branded retirement village -more social housing replaced with invasive NGO profit units-at taxpayer expense.

 We want State and Federal Governments to STOP LYING TO THE PUBLIC!! Its time to drop the spindoctoring and stop the lies. The smouldering question relating to Homelessness is; Which question are you trying to solve? If your aim is to fund your university or Labor Party friends masquerading as experts, or finance your favourite church NGO, then you succeed magnificently. If such is the case you should stop lying to the taxpayers- and,cruelly,to the homeless community. You should tell the truth about whom your rash spending of taxpayers funds are meant to benefit. You should show the taxpayer how many homeless people you have accommodated, in what locations,at what expense.Nice,simple accounting.Not the waffle we continue to hear about the next NGO you are funding.  

 If you say you are spending money addressing homelessness, spend the money on houses.If you need to provide extra services to mental health patients, you were already doing that at Callan Park (Which you closed). That is a health,not social housing issue. If you want to build SAAP housing with taxpayers money to pull money in for Vinnies or the Salvos, please tell the public thats your aim - but please stop lying to the public-and please stop lying to Australia's Homeless

Sydney Homeless Youth Wing

 Our absolute priority is our homeless youth program... Keeping kids & their families safe, supported, in education and away from #familyterrorist DOCs and its pariah agencies.

 Last year, 33 year 12s who spent time with our youth wing successfully got their HSC... we can't give you numbers of kids in our youth wing at any one time, but the number is rather a lot. Our youth wing apply rigid criteria as to who is accepted,which we keep confidential, so that means of circumventing their screening is harder. We can say that if kids do drugs,our Youth Wing can't help.I'm told tonight they rejected 18 kids as unsuitable.The numbers they reject are alarming,unfortunate,but necessary in preserving our Youth Wings 100% success rate in repatriating or reconnecting Young people with Their community. We also have nowhere suitable to refer other kids,as all so called Youth agencies are DOCs in disguise-spies who get hefty fees for providing a basis for DOCs intrusion into families.

 Tomorrow, another 6 of our youth wing reconnect- 2 to their parents, 3 to relatives and 1 to a schoolfriends home.. Good luck peepz, keep in touch:)

 To our Youth Wing,we are extremely proud of all you achieve for yourselves and your peers.

 I'd like to take this opportunity to thank our many business supporters, without whom our youth wing just could not work.Happy Easter,if you celebrate it.

 We are not funded by anyone,nor do we ask or accept financial support for this project... its a shame that our youth wing exist at all, and that the biggest threat to these young people is the government.

Homelessness Housing & Human Rights

A major barrier for many homeless people in NSW to applying for social housing is a question of human rights. Recent modifications to the States Residential Tenancies Act have given social housing tenants less rights than other tenants-and Supported Accommodation Assistance Program management more rights.There is no security of tenure,especially for "other ethnicities" and in particular,aboriginal people.The notion that non-compliance with extra conditions which may be imposed by the SAAP on tenants,where ordinary Tenants would have the right to object, are precisely the form of disenfranchisement homeless people do not need.

 The insulting rhetoric from various government offices and NGOs recently, alluding to the mental illnesses which homeless people develop through their homelessness, is yet another cynical attempt by the vested interests who profit from your tax money handed out so generously by government,to protect the hundreds of millions of ill gotten dollars,by silencing the homeless. For signs of mental illness, consider the actions of bipartisan politicians at all levels, who take their advice from the same tired old worn out advisers that for decades have provided failed advice. To reward failure once is tolerable but questionable..but to do so continuously for decades is either bipartisan incompetence or corruption _ hundreds of millions worth annually.

 We already have instances of some homeless people being told that itd much easier to get social housing under the menatl health act-but not being told of the detrimental lifetime effect of that legislation.Our advice to homeless people confronted with such offers id to seek legal advice before following this course.Once you take that path, you are at the whim of subjective "professionals" for life.Female? Oh,DOCs can take your kids,because of your mental disability.

 We note that in the last 4 years,NSW State Govt have been releasing more and more actual psych patients into the community, and in the process destabilising much of the privately owned boarding accommodation in the city area.How? Long term landlords get sick of renovating fortnightly after mental patients have been housed,usually aided by their "social worker." Not blaming homeless with mental issues,or social workers who get them housing.But the reality is many of the long term boarding houses are now backpackers,and much more lucrative as such..lost forever as affordable accommodation. Oh yes, Infrastructure Minister (now premier Keneally ) oversaw Callan Park being stripped of its essential psych care facilities to make way for her now defunct development plan

Linda Burneys "Plan to Reduce Homelessness" another con

 NSW Labors Kristina Keneally and her anti-family minister Linda Burney plan today to release The State Plan . 

  Minister Linda Burney includes in her announcement a rehash of the flawed and failing facsist "reduce homelessness by 2013" mantra of the Rees administration.Yes,I call it flawed and fascist because it calls for ALL homeless seeking affordable housing to be housed in Case Managed Supported Accommodation Assistance Program Housing, whether we ask for, or require this "service" or not.The "service" is an additional and non-negotiable onerous condition imposed on only marginalised people seeking social housing.What the minister will not announce today is the fact that ALL SAAPs are mandatory reporters-spies for the Department of Child Stealing and Family Terrorism known as DOCs.SAAPs are required to collect information for use by DOCs in the often malicious persecution of families and children-children the people of NSW are told this State Terrorist department protects.


 A quick check of Minister Linda Burneys super ministry, now expanded to include Fair Trading, Arts and a host of sub ministries, gives some telling insights into Linda Burney 's lip service only commitment to Family values- 


 The State Library (a Burney portfolio ) have recently committed to extending their opening hours to include most public holidays.Including 1p.m. to 5p.m. ANZAC Day. The small convenience to the public of these extended hours is offset by the fact that staff at the library are in the main family people.Now,more of their  precious family time is being taken from them by a State Government so out of touch,it would neither know care or recognise good family values.In doing so,the NSW Labor Government signals yet another quantum leap away from its increasingly distant working class roots, and Burney adds to the weakening of those workers family units.We understand that the official reason for extended hours has been "to bring the State Library into line with other institutions,such as the Art Gallery.Why not bring the Art Gallery into line with the State Library instead? Or, if such alignment and standardisation of service hours is so essential, why not open a working Parliament on those days also? Or the government departments which many other workers cannot access in their normal working hours.


 Earlier this week, Linda Burney announced her "Fairfield Domestic Violence initiative- another anti-family machination from the Minister for Family Destruction, and a vital new tool in the arsenal of DOCs contractor NGOs. Not a tool which will protect children,families or women, quite the reverse.Its a tool which has been designed to promote new and profitable income streams for the growing plethora of DOCs "Case Management" agencies- DOCs spy network, often staffed by the same untruthful ex DOCs staff who fabricated allegations in the Childrens Court.These NGOs are in the post Woods report era the new DOCs - responsible for putting in place the mandatory reports which DOCs uses to persecute Families and Children. These "social worker NGO businesses",who do not have to reveal their mandatory reporting role, do not have to provide evidence- they can simply make up an allegation,based on their own opinion - often the opinion in fact of a brainless childless university graduate barely past their teens, out to "save" your family. Our information is that "Case management" NGOs get $5400 per child per week after paying for out of home care, to "case manage" you for the minimum of months which DOCs can legally abduct and traumatise your children.Faced with this lucrative arrangement,neither DOCs or its case managers are in any hurry to give your kids back.


 In the past 2 years DOCs have State abducted record numbers of children,including newborn babies.Baby Bonus??Oh,that gets paid to the abductors too.


 In Premier Keneally s blurb, she mentions the importance of "jobs" but fails to point out that many of these #wageslavery positions do not afford the employee sufficient income to afford the basic necessities of accommodation and food, more especially after paying outrageous personal and indirect taxes.Included in the long list of wageslavery paying exploiters is NSW Housing Maintenance contractor Spotless, whose subcontractors are famed for paying exploitative rates in order to stay in business themselves.We understand that Spotless profits are not small numbers.Other major worker exploiters include Supre, Woolworths.Coles Subway,Hungry Jacks,McDonalds and most major chain retailers.ALDI not included, and we recommend them for your supermarket shopping.


 The Premiers blurb further identifies "crime reduction" a tiresome and age old bi-partisan beatup which scares the public into believing that public behaviour patterns are so changed,that crime is perpetually on the rise.BULLLSHIT!! Crime has risen steadily in no small part because the last 9 governments of NSW have seen fit to pass raft upon raft of laws criminalising or making offenses of normal behaviour - often at the behest of politicians favourite Christian lobbyists.
  

Phones-for-the-Marginalised

Imagine trying to call an ambulance without a phone.

Phones-for-the-Marginalised is the climate friendly,empowering alternative to e-waste phone disposal.

In the last 10 months, more Sydney homeless and marginalised community members have died or been victims of violence than in any comparable period we can remember.
 People become homeless or marginalised for a number of reasons. The vast majority are homeless or marginalised through circumstances beyond their control. Despite millions of dollars spent by government and some well intentioned donors in the name of homeless and other marginalised communities,the programs primarily assist the poverty industry,itself a cyclic financial dependent on the continuance of marginalisation.  

Your donation will help!!

Sydney Homeless Phones-for-the-Marginalised is an interface service for those wishing to dispose of working unwanted mobiles, in ways which benefit the marginalised.We distribute donated phones to homeless and marginalised people,enabling our community to

• Connect in health or personal emergency,or assist others who require emergency support.
• Photograph crimes such as assaults.
• Connect with employment opportunities.
• Reconnect with Families and Friends.
• Have a connection identity.

 To qualify,phones must be working and unlocked.A minimum standard camera is a highly desirable accessory. To donate, simply call us on 0410 722 000 or email us .

Matthew Talbot Improves Services

Matthew Talbot Hostel - Google Maps http://bit.ly/96ElEd

Government and Corporate Funded Vinnies Matthew Talbot Hostels recent change of Chef has brought a quantum improvement to the levels of client satisfaction with the food services at that facility.Glowing reports of food quality have been trickling back to us- we looked, and liked the improvements very much.This now makes Vinnies,whose foodvans also provide light snacks at 4 points in the city,the premium provider of free food services for homeless and marginalised MEN in the city. Matthew Talbot still cling to the curious notion that women and children don't get hungry.Their refusal to provide meals for women children and families is a blight on the doubtless foisted on the poverty industry by its government funding obligations.Despite the high quality of food we won't eat where women and children can't,noting that even hotels allow kids to dine in.
 We checked out the spacious well stocked library which seems well used,doubtless another government funding program.
 The showers available to the homeless were generally quite clean,but the facility has a curious rule of only issuing a small number of towels daily.Guys were seen selecting from a pile of used towels in order to have showers. Testing showed water appropriately warm and working for a reasonable duration.
 As well as its own health services the usual bevy of outsource services such as legal advice and "mental health services" provide outreach services.

 There is an attached computer centre under the badge of "Ozanam" a sister Catholic poverty industry brand. Hardware is consistent with some of the older public facilities in the city.The guys gush over the 5 week course they are about to do (government funded) in return for about $1200 in extra income support payments. Many are planning to use the money to fund a career in drug dealing. Another cash throwaway from the rhetoric based Rudd government.(We note Prime Ministers use the Talbot as a Photo op on a regular basis). Training is outsourced to TAFE and is NOT linked to jobs at the end of the course.Software is dated and Microsoft.In contrast,our unfunded,FREE one day course took 163 people successfully off the streets permanently in just 7 months last year, driving self employment.We don't rate people as successful until they are earning $1300 per week in retained income.A further 32 have become successful in the first 2 1/2 months of this year.

A history of Matthew Talbot Hostel can be found at "The Matthew Talbot Hostel. - Free Online Library http://bit.ly/cWsKtE " We note that in 1991 the hostel regularly accommodated over 400 men under the direction of Ray Burke.Today,despite hundreds of millions of taxpayer dollars,they accommodate 120.
 Meals used to be paid until a television channel sponsor indignantly threatened to withdraw funding if meals were not given free. As well as receiving copious streams of State and Federal government funding the Talbot has access to Oz Harvest,a MacQuarrie Bank funded service which collects food from retailers for Marginalised services (Free) and Foodbank,which supplies near end of shelf life food at very little cost.

 Despite this vast improvement in services,Vinnies and Matthew Talbot are still regarded as exploiters of homeless and Marginalised people.Their services and advisements to government (both directly and via ACOSS / NCOSS) have the primary purpose of driving Vinnies funding programs, not ending marginalisation.For example,the Society of St Vincents de Paul (NSW) were one of the drivers of   changes to The NSW Residential Tenancies Act 1987 (Sect 3) http://bit.ly/9RGUIN which confer extra powers upon social housing landlords not available to those in the private sector.Put another way,they take rights private tenants have away from social housing tenants,and confer them on the social housing provider.The hostel has curfews which limit the comings and goings of residents and restrict their use of facilities to certain times, despite their paying close to market rents for small rooms.The most important issue for us though,relates to their refusal to allow women and children equal access to meals.Staff still maintain an air of superiority.There appear to be no Street people on paid staff.his goes to the general anti-family straategies of government and the marginalisation industry, (in particular DOCs) who fail consistently and at all levels to make adequate provision for families in economic distress.