Monday - mixinup metaphors.
You know Creamy, the more I think about it, the more I am convinced that the Senators are publicly doing all the right things; I mean why would you waste a public media session on the small beer of aviation. There's comrade Sunny, like most folk stepping onto an aircraft with a reasonable assurance of arriving at their selected destination, this is as it should be. The aircraft is as fit as our top class engineers can make it, the flight crew are competent, operating in benign weather conditions over a land mass which is relatively flat. The smoking hole argument, for the punters is almost nugatory. So why waste air time and why not use that time to make sure that 'you' get elected ?, it is important we elect the right people. A minister who actually gave a toss about industry and would support the independent, non in house groomed and selected DAS would be a nice change.
Someone to plug up the smoking holes for industry; decreased or capped administrative costs, a reduction in regulatory purgatory, decriminalisation of non safety issues and the instant removal of the obscene, ludicrous 'strict liability' option. Someone to enforce the law – innocent until proven guilty - in court; transparent due process and to destroy, forever the horrendous, double jeopardy of the AAT system, currently providing an administrative life support system for piss-potical whimsy in place of solid evidence, facts and proof.
A new system of regulation would be a fine thing to have, but until the open slather of half baked, subjective opinion is removed, there is no point to bringing in nice shiny new rules. Until some of the inutile rubbish, masquerading as "expert" anything, except as pencil sharpeners, is put back into the stationary cupboard, where it belongs the new broom will not clean out the dark corners. CASA needs to be slapped into it's proper place, taught some manners, humility and probably how to do it's bloody job properly, that's working with industry expertise to achieve a superior system, instead of poncing about the place annoying the crap out everybody. Hells bells, we pay them enough for it.
None of which make any difference to the punter except yet another fare increase and perhaps, one Tim Tam instead of two; except should another 'systematic' failure bring about the unthinkable.
Aye well, those of the public who have never been touched do have short memories; regrettably, those newly touched by an aviation tragedy soon arrive at the same conclusions as their predecessors. Ask them, they'll tell you. 004 has the right of it, sighting the disgraceful "Erebus" aftermath.
Anyway – enough: I just hope Fawcett gets re elected becomes junior minister and the gummint is smart enough to allow him the decision on who will be DAS and the discretion to dictate the course for CASA, ASA and ATSB reform, for they have surely lost their way.
Oh, I feel better now, getting that lot off my chest. I really do.
Last edited by Kharon; 9th Jun 2013 at 22:38.
Reason: Perhaps mixin my toesis, not t'other one. Argh, WGAT.