I was watching the news last night and realised the above statement is true…. And I can prove it.
It will take a few paragraphs…. but, I guarantee it will be worth it!
The current ‘road toll’…..
‘Road Toll’ – a very nice term to describe people who have died unexpectedly in car accidents, usually by getting their delicate human body smashed and torn apart by sharp metal, bitumen and glass…..
So, the road toll in South Australia for this year (2023) is 31, that is 31 people
And ‘they’ took away the markers no doubt because someone was offended?
died as I described above.
Last year (2022) at the same time it was 15.
I wrote the above a few weeks ago and just decided to publish it and trawled the internet for the current totals….
That was difficult as the SAPOL web site had two different results and every where else I searched compared death rate to date, with the total for last year……
I could have gone to the media (the ‘merchants of misery’) reports but decided I couldn’t trust them more than statisticians, politicians or pollsters predicting ‘the Voice’ referendum….
So I will let you be the judge of these ‘accurate statistics’ …..
So, we are dying in horrific circumstances, being crushed and ripped apart; even incinerated, at double the rate.
Our Police (our beloved SAPOL) is full of good people going out their each day risking their lives when we need them to serve and protect us from the fantasy of the road toll and how they are ‘helping’ to reduce it.
They are just going through the PR motions:
More breath tests
More drug tests
Giving out more on the spot fines
Cameras and computers even giving us more on the spot fines
Traffic operations in country towns and ‘black spots’ to do more alcohol and drug testing and hand out more fines.
The fantasy is the glory of protecting us from the ‘fatal five’ killers on the road:
Drink and Drug Driving
Speeding
Distraction
Seat Belts
Dangerous Driving
…. And SAPOL on average hand out …… get ready for this as it doesn’t sound real but, it is recorded on the SAPOL web site at the link below….
Okay I did research…. not my thing….. and found the below statistics.
In the days between 6/7/2022 – 31/3/23, a total of 268 days, there were 425,407 expiation notices issued by person and machine.
That is about 1500 a day!!
That is at total of $119,198,366.00 of fines issued in that period.
I need to write that out in full so you know it isn’t a mistake:
“one hundred and nineteen million, one hundred and ninety eight thousand three hundred and sixty six dollars!!!!!”
(Wait for it…. that is $444,770.022 A DAY!!!)
How about that ‘ramping’ at the hospital emergency departments where all the road accident patients go screaming in the back of an ambulances with bits hanging off them, or bit missing and squirting blood…. and waiting for hours with ambos on double shifts and not break
After all, we just need more beds, more doctors, more nurses….. but, where do we get the money???
Plus,
$26,253,260.00 additional payments on top of those fines for the Victims of Crime Levy. (I bet that makes you feel good as a victim of crime when you have been waiting years for compensation?)
But, the good news the statistics reveal that SAPOL’s vigorous protection of us from the “Fatal Five’ resulted in more deaths and more fines.
The simple truth is that the infringement notices are going up in line with the the road toll – remember that is the crushing and ripping apart of human bodies and the death of someones’ loved ones..
So, this wonderful strategy of protecting us has continued with enforcement, telling people they are selfish pricks (which by the way wins an award in advertising!?) and that 3 out of 5 people killed on country roads live in the country; I just wonder what the statistics are for the number of people who live in the city that are killed on the roads in the city?
Plus as a little side issue (I’m writing a series on this one called ‘Never Pay and On the Spot Fine Again’ – to be published in the next week or so – there will be a link – here – when it is done).
SAPOL continues to increase enforcement, disregarding your presumption of innocence by taking away your license, on the spot, and then taking your car (and charging you to store it)….
And…. having on their web site that you ‘have‘ to pay the fine….
Is this all sounding a little crazy, even insane.
SAPOl is not doing the same thing over and over again….. they are doing more of the same thing, and more, and more…..
That is because by definition SAPOL and their ‘traffic strategies’ are insane as old Albert points out below:
I will tell you how to NEVER pay an on the spot fine given by a Police Officer or a robot (although it is getting pretty hard to tell the difference) EVER again….. in my next blog….
…..or maybe the one after….
I got heaps of other stuff to bitch about, like, crime and mayhem in the CBD of Adelaide!!!!!
I have just ordered a book by Robert D. Lupton called ‘Toxic Charity’.
In doing a bit of research, I found the below graphic based on the book. Always remembering that research is not my forte, as I like to go full blown ‘dunning kruger’ when I can get away with it.
The strange part about ‘toxic charity’ is I have experienced it.
Particularly at the ‘expectation’ and ‘entitlement’ phases. I can attest, that it makes you feel a bit sad, even jaded, that suddenly appreciation has turned to expectation and entitlement.
Then I feel like the ‘baddie’ when I say no….?
Anyway just a little whinge. Let you know more when I’ve read the book.
(Plus, I have to do a post on ‘dunning kruger syndrome’ – because once you know about it, you can never un-know it: it is a greater plague that COVID19!!!!!)
The ‘presumption of innocence’ is the most basic fundamental principle!
But, apparently it is not to the Media, the masses (unless of course you are accused of a crime?) and to just about anyone in a position of power.
I want to really ramble and give all these really cool and pertinent references; but, I know most people won’t read it because it doesn’t involve a cat on a vacuum cleaner, a ‘fail’ video reel or something that requires more than the attention span of a goldfish.
So, without reference to anything other than my memory and of course the most important thing, my personal opinion.
THE RANT!
People are often accused of horrible crimes and actions, sadly some of those are done under parliamentary ‘privilege’ (explanation: you can just about say what you want in parliament so long as you don’t mislead parliament – you are only allowed to mislead the Australian People?).
Notwithstanding the severity or unsavoury nature of any allegation, not matter what ‘evidence’ the media decide to editorially supply to us, the accused is INNOCENT until proven guilty….. this is the LAW!
Of late we have had terrible ‘allegations’ of crimes and behaviour thrown at us from the most disaffected people in our society to the halls of power.
Where the allegations come from are irrelevant, the ‘accused’ is INNOCENT until PROVEN guilty. This fundamental of law is being stealthily taken away from us and we applaud it.
THE EXAMPLE
You are stopped, breath tested and give a positive reading (YOU ARE INNOCENT).
The Police cancel your licence on the spot (YOU ARE INNOCENT).
They impound you car for 28 days at a cost more than undercover parking at the Adelaide Airport for the same period of time (YOU ARE INNOCENT)
If you are caught driving under this licence suspension imposed by the Police you are charged with driving disqualified: even if you are acquitted of the drink driving the drive disqualified charge stands (YOU ARE INNOCENT)
END RANT….. almost
I could go on, and on, and on…. which is my gift.
Yet, we all agree that drink driving is a very bad and reckless thing (I don’t call all drink drivers are Selfish Pricks, some people make mistakes. Perhaps you should call all Police who pull you over Selfish Pricks as apparently it is not ‘offensive language’ as the powers to be are calling a lot of people that?)
But, and there are a lot of BUTs in this, I do not think the Police should be the ‘judge, jury and executioner’ on the side of the road.
And, under no circumstances do I think the public should be ‘randomly’ Policed. What next? Laws to close of streets and randomly search houses just in case someone has drugs and/or stolen property in their house???
So, next time you hear of a call for ‘resignation’ or some other ‘punishment’ because of an allegation – remember that person is presumed innocent.
Next time you hear of the summary seizure of cars and cancellations of drivers licences remember that person is presumed innocent.
Okay… Really the End of My RANT…..
I am scared that the fundamentals of our legal system are being eroded because we are taught to be afraid of the rampant criminals everywhere, the risk to life and limb on the road, etc etc etc
(Noting today, 20/6/2023, the Acting Assistant Commissioner of the South Australia Police Linda Williams, told the media crime in the city of Adelaide was down…. just don’t walk alone, politicians being escorted to their cars….. and I dare any of you to go down North Terrance near Parliament House and the Casino late on a Friday or Saturday night….)
So the crime rates are dropping….. Issuing of Traffic Infringement Notices are up….. Just like the road toll…..???
I don’t know what to do about all this, so I wrote this…..
I am working on my two next Posts which are: (they will be linked when I write them unless I am ‘randomly’ arrested for something I am innocent of…..)
1. The Police (our beloved SAPOL) are insane and I can prove it. 2. Never pay an ‘on the spot fine’ again: ever.
I have been in Canberra for the last few days at the Australian Local Government Association National General Assembly in my capacity as a Councillor for the Berri Barmera Council. (A bit of a mouthful!)
It has been interesting and enlightening. There is a common theme and that is although ‘we’ are all part of Local Government and part of the greater State and Federal Government machine, we all are missing our local communities; some have travelled thousand of kilometres to be here. It is the last day of the conference and the meeting of the Australian Council of Local Government – feeling lost? Welcome to the ‘learning cliff’ I am on in my first term of Council.
I have posted a few things on my Facebook page under my own name at: https://www.facebook.com/ian.schlein. There is a little video of me asking a question at the Assembly and I am looking very ‘clever and informed’. Lucky there is no audio on the clif as my question was ‘Do we have an acronym dictionary because I don’t know what most of them mean?”
So, I come home, I believe better informed, a little better networked and enthused to do the job I was elected to do. Remembering we, the elected members are supported by our “professional staff’ and particularly our Chief Executive Officers who were all selected on merit and the ability to do their job. Whereas, all of us elected members were selected because we were popular.
Remember next time when you go to hospital for an operation that you ask for the most popular surgeon!!??
My point today is not really about all the above except that I think all of the true representatives of our communities just want to be home with our communities, plus our friends and families.
Today, not that long ago, my very best mate rang me with sad news.
He is in that group of mates I call my ‘band of brothers’ some of who are sisters. We say fair well with LYLAB(S), Love You Like a Brother/Sister. They are the people I know will come when I call and I will go when they call and we don’t need to know what the call is for.
My ‘brother’ called me today and told me his old Dad had passed away. I cried. I was at the assembly, conference, meeting, presentations about ‘running the world’ and I cried.
Because community is everything, but family is final. His Dad was like my Dad which is what if is like with my band of Brothers, it is all about family.
It made me think about the real reason I joined Council, which initially I told people was to cause trouble and get some of my rates back; when really it was about family, the families that made up my community.
I will miss you Ron Foenander.
I will be there for my mate, for his family for his community.
I am proud to be on the Berri Barmera Council; I feel greater pride in having good friends and being a good friend.
