NT governments over the past years have only been surpassed in quality by the front page of the NT Times.

The CLP was voted out when MR Gunner took the helm, politics in the NT at that time put shame to the Rudd Gillard Rudd & Tony and Malcolm debacles combined.

Mr Gunner himself could easily challenge Trump for Tweet/comment of the day.

Well before Covid and including the CLP the economy has been declining, a walk down the mall is evident - not even the historic pub survived (this is Darwin do not forget).

Gunner getting re-elected is pretty amazing.

New York got hit hard and ended up in a 3 month lock down.

They came up with a re-open plan and reached the target June 7, the following day phase 1 of 4 was started.

Clearly they are still very nervous of this pandemic (after first hand experience) but they have a published plan based on a number of things some are cases per day and number of hospital & ICU beds available, all pretty sensible stuff.

https://gothamist.com/news/coronavir...demic-new-york

https://www.rochesterregional.org/ne...us-in-new-york

Interesting they have border restrictions via a formula also a less than 24 hour exclusion.

A quick question for you guys in Oz. I am trying to get home to Perth but at the moment there are only flights to Sydney. Can one stay in transit in Sydney and then ones arrive in Perth quarantine for 14 days, or would I have to quarantine in Sydney for 14 days as well. I know its not about the subject of this thread but looks like some of the guys would know. Thanks

No. You must quarantine in the city of entry.

Show less Travellers who have been in Victoria or New South Wales in the previous 14 days will not be allowed into WA, unless they fall into one of the following categories:

• certain senior Government Officials
• certain active military personnel
• a member of the Commonwealth Parliament and any members of their staff travelling with them
• a person carrying out functions under a law of the Commonwealth
• the Premier of WA and any members of the Premier's staff
• a person coming to WA at the request of the Chief Health Officer or the Director General of Health
• any person (other than an airline or maritime crew member) responsible for transport or freight and logistics services into or out of WA
• In addition, persons falling into the above categories are required to comply with certain hygiene requirements during the 14 days after the date they entered WA.

If you have been in Victoria or New South Wales in the previous 14 days and do not fall into the above categories, you will not be permitted to enter WA unless you have written approval from the State Emergency Coordinator (or a person authorised by the State Emergency Coordinator) and comply with any terms and conditions imposed on entry to WA. This may include quarantine requirements.

Currently with that plan you'd the 14 days federal quarantine in Sydney when you arrive. My reading of the state regs (with the caveat that I'm more familiar with the aircrew exemptions, rather than for Joe public) says that you'd then you need to go somewhere else than NSW/VIC to quarantine then apply for a G2G pass to enter WA. If you think of QLD as you will have to quarantine again in QLD as you have been in NSW as a hotspot.
Then when you get to WA you'd have to quarantine again.
Study very carefully the directions in https://www.wa.gov.au/government/doc...der-state-wide

Note that you will need to consider multiple documents there - the original directions, then 4 amendments. Print them out, get a highlighter put them in reverse date order and good luck!

You will be best served flying straight in to PER on EK or Qatar if you can wait. Even business class might be cheaper in the long run (not having to pay multiple quarantine and flights and hotels - there aren't flights every day to Perth these days).

And these regulations are dynamic. They can change at a day's notice and don't care that you have a ticket....

Mainly because of a massive increase of random testing throughout Europe. Here in Spain the average age of Covid positives is around 35 years old (compared to 60 plus back in April) and well over fifty percent of them are asymptomatic... Hospitalizations are happening but at a far lower rate! Hardly startling...

Got any links or stats on your claims?

What is the average Covid positive age of 35 relevant too?

Spain a comparable country? I find Spain and Italy more comparable.

Thanks guys !! What is this world coming to ?????

The rest of the world seems to be getting on with it and generally accepting the lifestyle trade offs Not here. :(

Any examples?

Most of the World still seem cautious, very few "getting on with it" but your list will be interesting.

Due to the Europeans need for a summer holiday every year ( and I worked in Europe for 17 years .. so I know how it works) .. it seems that outbreaks are being reported again. I don’t understand why they can’t all stay put at home for a year.

The rest of the world closed their schools. Many are yet to reopen.

Australia is one of about half a dozen that didn't, albeit a couple of weeks distance ed. for some, but open nonetheless.

Alongside Taiwan, Singapore and yes, Sweden.

Yes here.

Sweden closed (stopped education) for all students above 15 years old - all universities were closed.

Sweden will reopen universities and upper secondary schools from mid-June, Prime Minister Stefan Löfven told a press conference on Friday.

No problems with almost 30,000 at the footy yesterday though-no risk there🙄

Dan Andrews wants another 12 months of state of emergency till Sept 21. Power has now gone to his head.
This needs to be blocked and not passed by the house. If it is then borders closed till then. I thought Sept 20 was
driving me to the brink. He want's another 12 well if that happens I can sense a coup by the people.

You do realise that Dan Andrews hasn't closed any borders??

Who’s going to lead the coup? You with your garlic strung around your neck?

Well this has got me so furious, I have actually written to the Governor of Victoria, the Honourable Linda Dessau AC
to express my views and asking her to sack the government with immediate effect. If Kerr can do it you can do it.
Good idea garlic with kababs tonight.

Good that you had a word with the boss. Matter should be sorted in no time.

:D

The State of Emergency provisions under Vic's Public Health & Wellbeing Act allows directions to be made to reduce public health risk (such as: wearing of a face mask in public places, etc).

It can only currently be in place for a 6 month duration (that date is coming up very soon); the Vic government is proposing to make it a maximum of 18 months. Passing this bill would result in government spending less $$ drafting new legislation every time the State of Emergency lapses.

This is completely unrelated to the border closure (by NSW).

I can just imagine what you wrote, you're probably on the national terrorist list now then.

You are being very kind saying it is saving drafting cost; Andrews is never scared of spending a dollar if it suits him. It gives the government the power to declare laws without putting them before parliament. It allows the government to suspend laws without reference to parliament. It means parliament may not sit until some time next year. It is a dangerous precedent and very un-Australian.

You're welcome mate.

If you want the really good food - top range organic with advice in Victoria.

My sister has done it on scale for 30+years on a pro basis,
wholesale and retail not just in Australia.

Keep calm and pm if needed.

From the outset, this has been one very strange virus. Most infectious diseases are most virulent where they originate, and become pprogressively less dangerous as they spread. The opposite is true for COVID with China (apparently) having very small numbers per capita relative to the rest of the world. Decidedly asymmetrical.

I wonder.

The median age of death (all causes) in Australia is about 81. The median age of death for Australians who died of COVID is 83. So COVID is more skewed towards the elderly than is all cause mortality.

Approx 5% of the Australian population is older than 80. That compares with about 1% older than 80 in China.

So just how noticeable would COVID be in a country with only 1% older than 80? Is China really free of COVID? Or does it simply fly under the radar with so few older than 80? Especially when the party line is that it is under control. Maybe some elderly Chinese are dying of "old age", while younger Chinese are simply getting a "cold." I am not sure how much testing they are doing for COVID in China. Maybe they have decided to "eradicate " it and get on with business.


On a related point, this article makes you wonder about the wisdom of wide societal lockdowns.
https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/covid...rtin-kulldorff

Too much Sky News?

Clive Palmer's case returns to the Federal Court at 1415 AEST today. Stay tuned!

He's arguing under s.92 of the constitution though, so even if he loses, there's still scope for another challenge under s.117. The interesting bit though, according to WA's CHO:

"Eliminated' or just not enuf testing performed as yet..... I wonder....??

last night I said a coup, a Warsaw uprising well reading todays newspapers I'm not far off the mark.
Darren Hinch's Justice party was going to back it last night, this morning doesn't look like he going to cross the floor.
Dan needs 4 to cross the floor for another 12 months of this nonsense. Only 1 at this stage Animal party.
He needs another 3 and I don't think he's going to get them.
Relax Buster we still got a little bit of democracy left before the hammer and sickle flag goes up.
What happens in 3 weeks will be interesting though.

I reckon they understand this virus pretty well. Getting on with business and picking fights in all directions, while we are trying to find our way out of this social and economic mess.

In 3 weeks?

You simply let the State of Emergency lapse for a single day (State Mask Off Day?) then it can be reinstated for a further 6 months... Vic government knows this.

What happens in 3 I meant, do we stay in a state of disaster or do we downgrade to a state of emergency. Do we stay at stage 4 or downgrade to stage 3.
I heard from ministers on radio (forgot their names) even if we had zero cases stage 3 would be the lowest. Incredibly amazing.

Let me pour more fuel over the fire. Gil Mclachlan should fire a warning shot off Spring street stating 'if you win an extra 12 months of SOE then no
football for the whole state next year'. Not one game. Gil has no choice.

You do realise that Dan is only trying to extend the TOTAL LIMIT of SOE which is 6 months currently. This in no way shape or form means that we will be in these restrictions for the whole period of extra 12 months. Just like now SOE can only be extended in blocks of 4 weeks each.

I hope this makes sense, MSM and the opposition party have done their absolute best to avoid this particular detail.

Yeah got it, though it's like no one is on the same page. To many ego's and they are all trying to be the lead actor in a movie.
Speaking of movie's the whole government should watch Apollo 13, and see how a group of people on the ground deal with stress
in trying to save a spacecraft. Remember the line work the problem, failure is not an option. Well the government is failing the
state with no limits no objective. Suppression or elimination. Victorians want to know the limits, the objective so we can plan ahead.
Maybe they should do a CRM course learn to keep everyone in the loop. Learn to be a leader not a dictator. Learn the Swiss cheese effect.
The holes all lined up with hotel quarantine.

And yet in NSW no "State of Emergency" required as the provisions contained therein (VIC) are available for general use regarding matters of public health without any further formality.

"The New South Wales Government doesn't even need to declare a state of emergency to deal with a public health issue.

The state's Health Minister, Brad Hazzard, can make any direction he needs to reduce or remove the risk of COVID-19 in an area, to segregate or isolate people, or to block access to any part of NSW."

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-08-...tions/12592714

Struth, almost sounds like my plan B I wrote #776.

There's also a great moment where Gene Kranz admonishes the NASA Director saying "With all due respect, sir, I believe this is gonna be our finest hour."....yeah, nah....

A very strange virus at a very odd time
 

https://www.nytimes.com/2020/06/08/t...il&login=email

COVID PSYOPS
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Psycho...United_States)

Having inflicted this on the world and then sent the world into a tailspin, China is getting down to business and aggressively pushing its international agenda

It does seem strange that early efforts to influence the world focussed on Italy. But then of course, China recognised the huge number of residents from Wuhan who were working in Italy - with multiple daily direct flights between Wuhan and Milan.

https://thediplomat.com/2020/03/chin...nd-propaganda/
With friends like this, who needs enemies

So, after downloading, printing and reading through the full judgement in Palmer v Western Australia (No4) today, several things are apparent from Justice Rangiah's judgement.

Firstly, and most importantly, it appears Justice Rangiah found essentially in favour of WA in as much as their "hard border" is the singular most effective way to prevent the importation and consequent spread of Covid-19 into WA. Other measures, he wrote, were not as effective as the border closure, even though it had limitations in providing exemptions for certain people. These comments appear to reinforce WA's stance that they will not remove their "hard border" to any state until there is zero community transmission, which the judgement defines as "two incubation periods" totalling 28 days. The reason for that is to prevent "Border hopping" ie NSW-NT-WA when NSW-WA is currently prohibited.

The hearing was conducted with the agreement of all parties as to whether the border restrictions were currently justified (at the time of the hearings) - not whether they were justified when implemented. Notably the hearings were conducted 27-31 July, almost smack in the middle of the Victorian outbreak, and it is notable reading through the judgement that that outbreak - and the flow on one in NSW attributed to it - appeared to heavily influence both the experts opinion and the Justice's thinking.

The judgement was only concerned with the public health aspects of the case - there was no discussion able to consider the social, economic or constitutional aspects of it. That'll come later with Clive going to the High Court to continue his s.92 challenge, though I can foresee that being a bit harder now the Federal Court has found the Border Closures, essentially, justifiable.

The other notable thing from reading the judgement was it appeared - to me at least - to focus almost entirely on the absolute worst-case outcome should Covid-19 1. Be imported into WA and 2. be allowed to run rampant with community transmission. This is despite the judgement also finding WA has strong surveillance and testing systems, and has been successful in containing outbreaks in the past. (Pg. 67 [296]) which would appear more reasonable given what has gone on elsewhere, in NSW and Qld for example.


Food for thought should Clive lose his s.92 case and you want to go to WA anytime until a vaccine is found.......