75 — Sour worms

We discuss the cops who can't stop leaking sensitive information to abusers, Victoria's return to lockdown and the government ministers who keep forgetting that Grandma exists.     Porter stuff

• Christian Porter has dropped his case against the ABC.
• …a week after calling on the ABC to not drag out the case, because they’re spending taxpayer money.
• Fairfax papers published a weird puff piece on Porter’s new relationship.

Abusive leaks

• In 2013, a QLD Police sergeant Neil Punchard deliberately leaked information about a domestic violence victim to her abuser.
• In a completely unrelated note, QLD police is “grappling” with a rise in officers named in domestic abuse orders.
• This week, it came out that NSW police gave the entire image of a domestic violence victim’s phone to her abuser.
• Celebrite is an Israeli hardware/software package used by law enforcement.
• The CEO of Signal posted a blog post dissecting how Cellebrite works.
• It’s not just cops! The NDIS leaked information about a participant to their family, despite warnings they were at danger of domestic violence.

Lockdown!

• Victoria has been in lockdown for two weeks.
• The Victorian government has propped up businesses with $250m in grants.
• The Federal government has finally agreed to give some measly grants to individual people, in the form of a wizard’s riddle.
• Businesses have refused to pay back Jobkeeper overpayments (and the government isn’t asking for it back).
• …while they claw back money from individuals.

Aged care

• Richard Colbeck is minister for aged care, apparently. He just refuses to admit he’s responsible.
• Of the 910 people who have died of Covid in Australia, 655 were in Victorian aged care homes.
• The Royal Commission found that the Government did not have a plan for the pandemic.
• During the outbreak in 2020, the government provided additional funding for aged care workers to not work at multiple sites. They dropped this funding as soon as possible.
• The National cabinet has agreed that Covid Vaccines are not mandatory for aged care workers.
• We have a Registry of who’s been immunised in Australia!
• There are anti-vaxxers in the Government.
• A great thread about the roll-out of the HPV Vaccine.
• Health Minister Greg Hunt posted anti-mask propaganda.

Shoutouts

• Sign the petition to stop the planned cable-car up Mt Wellington in Hobart.