Red Rag

Hey, cool: Free public transport in Melbourne and Perth tonight.

The Currency Lad urges Laborite bloggers to discuss the AWU’s criticism of employers who use Chinese guest workers. No worries. As Mark Bahnisch points out, the racist overtones of the AWU’s comments are undeniable and unacceptable.

However, it is important to note that they are criticising the use of guest workers. The Chinese are not immigrants, they will be flown in to work and flown out again. This is a band-aid approach to a labour shortage that should not be supported. The Government should either make genuine efforts to train people, or allow the Chinese workers to stay as permanent residents.

Currency Lad says:

Ominously, Mr Shorten also said it would be hard to ensure the Chinese workers would be ‘treated fairly.’ Oh he was officially referring to terrible capitalist middlemen who would allegedly exploit the Chinese. The visitors might, for example, be forced to pay for accommodation or other compulsory financial commitments, the national secretary said. Pretty much like everyone else in Australia in fact. Really, of course, Mr Shorten was speaking in AWU code. What he meant was that his union and some of its members might make life, er, interesting for the Chinese. Just like the old days.

CL’s unfounded allegation of union-sponsored violence against the Chinese is not only defamatory, but it’s utterly pathetic.

So is his dismissal of concerns about exploitation. Guest workers sign agreements before they enter Australia. The terms of those agreements are not “like everyone else in Australia”; they are loan-shark style deals designed to effectively indenture the worker.

For example, a group of boilermakers who recently came to work in Western Australia were forced to take out $5000 loans to pay for the paperwork. The interest rate on the loans was 144%. They were also told their wives and children could join them in Australia, but after they arrived discovered that wasn’t the case. They were paid about $13/hour for a job that an Australian would be paid $44/hour.

Interestingly, the company later admitted that it “only entered into this area on the invitation of the CCIWA,” who received a substantial payment as part of the scheme. These “terrible capitalist middlement” are the peak employer body in WA!

The AMWU supported the guest workers who went on strike, pursued the company for the workers’ legal entitlements, and helped them find alternative sponsors so that they could stay for the full time allowed under their visas. At the same time, the union called for changes to the regulatory framework, so that similar exploitation could not happen in future.

There is a risk that activism against particular visa arrangements can slip into racism. However the AMWU demonstrates that an effective campaign against the exploitation of guest workers need not rely on racism and blanket anti-immigration statements.

When I saw Elf last year, I assumed Zooey Deschanel was lip-synching to “Baby, It’s Cold Outside.” Apparently not — she sings (very well) with Leon Redbone. Next year she hits the screens as Trillian. I can’t wait!

Like Scott Wickstein, I am finding it very difficult to find anything to say about the devastation throughout Asia:

Its not so easy to write content about a terrible tragedy about this. What can you say for so many people dead, so many lives smashed, so many dreams shattered, and the pain of those left behind?

Fuck all, thats what.

I feel like something is stuck in my throat, and I can’t get my head around the escalating numbers of dead, not to mention the injured, sick and displaced people.

All I can do is pass on a request for non-perishable food, milk powder, medicine (like paracetamol), etc. Perth readers can drop things off here:

“Ceylon Style” Cafe
Corner of Etwell Street and Devenish Street
East Victoria Park

Contact: Rajindra (aka ‘Coach’)
Telephone: 0411 166 484 or 9361 1566

Thanks.

There will also be a benefit concert in the new year.

Update: Sydneysiders should head to the Sydney Goth Tsunami Aid gig on Wednesday, 5 January. All proceeds to Care Australia. (Via HBD & ES.)

I accidentally bought an album without noticing the “copy control” sticker on the cover. It was Placebo, which seems fitting: looks like the real thing, but isn’t. As a representative of Philips said, “Those are silver discs with music data that resemble CDs, but aren’t.” It seems to have ripped with no dramas, though.

The hitch-hiker made it to Perth in one piece. He assures me that the gory details will be online soon.

Cardinal Pell says, “Women need real alternatives to abortion.” I can think of a couple: access to contraception and the morning-after pill.

It’s time to vote for the Labour Website of the Year. Voting closes on 15 January.

John Quiggin’s moved to Wordpress. A few other bloggers I know are about to do the same.

Marisa is in Sri Lanka, and so is Sunili’s family. Thankfully, their loved ones appear to have escaped unharmed — though Sunili’s grandmother’s house was flooded up to her chest. If you want to contribute to the relief effort, try the Red Cross appeal.

Andrew Bartlett responds to suggestions that the Democrats and Greens form a coalition:

Still, the two parties are quite different in our approach to politics and on business/economic issues and I don’t really see the point in even bothering to look at alliances at the moment.

That’s definitely good news, given that his idea of “a fine example of Greens & Democrats co-operation” is going out for a Christmas piss-up instead of turning up in the Senate chamber.

Bartlett’s blog also draws attention to this comment:

I think it is somewhat offensive to say to people who are not of a Christian religion, ‘Merry Christmas,’ as if the rest of the world shares your own world view. It is a multicultural world and there are differences. I do not think there is anything wrong with acknowledging them and choosing a form of greeting to include all people. Christians would say, ‘Merry Christmas.’ Saying, ‘Compliments of the season,’ includes all people. Not everybody happens to be of a Christian religion.

Is this, as Steve Edwards would have us believe, an example of sanctimonious Leftism? No — it’s Amanda Vanstone.

Destroying Western civilisation by undermining our Christian heritage, but kicking out those stinking towel-heads? I think Steve’s head will explode as he tries to grapple with that one.

(Incidentally, Vanstone didn’t let Christmas drinks get in the way of her attendance in the Chamber, as was apparent to anyone who watched proceedings during the final sitting week of the year.)

As Mark and Ben pointed out at the last Perth Blog Meetup, my shoes are a little bit worse for wear. They look pretty much like Ruth’s, but in a different colour. Now my other shoes have a hole in the toe, so I’ll have to get a new pair. Bugger.

Darp was given an iPod, and posted a list of the first ten songs he played on it. Hmm, I thought. That’s cheap blog-filler. So here’s the last ten songs I listened to on mine:

1. Dan Brodie & the Broken Arrows — Highway Loving Man
2. Stopgap Measure — The Secret of the Crying Game
3. Ween — Falling Out
4. Pearl Jam — Bugs
5. Secret Chiefs 3 — Renunciation
6. Jet — Are You Gonna Be My Girl? (actually, I skipped it after three shakes of the tambourine… I swear!)
7. The Go-Betweens — Right Here
8. Ween — Transdermal Celebration
9. Bikini Kill — Don’t Need You
10. Ben Folds Five — Steven’s Last Night in Town

There it is… wart and all.

Miss Piss has implemented Gravatars on her blog — little pictures that appear next to comments you leave on any blog that supports the service. Go and upload yours now.

Remember when my blog crapped up last week? Thankfully it didn’t take long for my hosts to fix it. In case something similar happens to your blog, here’s what went wrong.