Disgraced former Prime Minister Scott Morrison has denied allegations that he is dressed as a sun bear at a Chinese zoo, describing them as “disproportionate, wrong, unsubstantiated and contradicted by clear evidence”.
This is the most convincing Morrison story I've read in a while.
Generally I'm pretty 'right on' when it comes to animal cruelty, but I wonder if in this case some sort of national bear baiting tour is in order. Furnishing kids across the country with sharpened sticks and parading the Sutherland Sun-bear down every main street in a cage might prove instructive, educational and cheaper than the NCCC.
Lovely work, but... I do wish that people would stop fixating on the illegality aspect. Suggesting that if the government had passed legislation that permitted the income averaging idea it would be OK is to accept Morrison's framing. The scheme was mathematically and morally wrong from the get-go. The pain inflicted on welfare recipients was the entire point (it was deliberate that the debt notices had no contact information to query it, and the onus of proof of absence of a debt left to the recipient). Being illegal was the least of its problems.
And it should be noted that it's a plan that has worked: people out of work are choosing to run down their savings rather than touch the government's meagre offered "help", for fear of being caught up in the system down the track.
Governments often do things that are stupid (income averaging is just plain idiotic) and sometimes do things that are cruel (asylum seek policy anyone?), but normally they do so according to law. It's awful but legitimate. The difference matters.
Robodebt was worse than other stupid and cruel government policies because the individuals organising robodebt had no right whatsoever to do it, and they either knew or should have known this. They were no different to organised criminals running a thuggish shakedown scheme on the vulnerable, save that they pretended that it was a legitimate exercise of the power of the State.
In reality they were bandits and gangsters, terrorising their class enemies, and smirking as they did so.
Also, after Robodebt, the ATO started doing their own version aimed at small business. They didn’t target big business, which avoids tax. They destroyed small businesses, emptied bank accounts just before payday and things like that. An evil government.
It's hard to imagine any government willingly legislating to calculate debt by annual averaging when the benefit was calculated fortnightly. But a Morrison Government? I wonder if they would have tried it on?
I think the problem is twofold. As you say, the scheme was “mathematically and morally wrong” but they also misidentified people and assigned what appear to be random debts to victims, at least some of which was “these two people have vaguely similar names so I’ll assign this debt to this person who was on Centrelink benefits… or maybe I’ll assign this debt to this person who NEVER RECEIVED benefits, ha bloody ha”.
AND it was legally wrong. IMO the thought that the govt could have easily made it legal is chilling. The fact that the govt chose not to make it legal shows that they were trying to be sneaky, avoid scrutiny etc. And now we’re hearing that “Labor started it” although they didn’t. Lying to shift blame is a Trump tactic and the LNP are using it increasingly.
I want to see the LNP in a similar position to Trump right now. 3 arraignments so far. Apparently the upcoming Georgia one will include mug shots. The internet will have a field day.
My first thought, before I read further than the headline, was how relieved you must be that #TheLiarFromTheShire hanging around like the stench of a year-old corpse will provide you material long after he's finally put him in a box and buried.
You'll then be able to immortalise him as he posthumously creates a new entry in the Guinness World Book of Records for beating the number of people lining up to mourn dead Queen Lizzie. In his case it will be to piss on his grave, some having to take a week off work, because the Public Holiday to allow people to 'pay their respects was a woeful under-estimation.
The level of enthusiasm to confirm he was indeed under the ground instead of floating into the sky, should've been obvious to anyone who'd been paying attention. People from all around Australia, the Pacific and the People's Republic of China will join the queue, all with bladders bursting from the long wait and the desire to win this pissing contest.
His grasp on this, the highest of his achievements, will only last until Donald suffers the same fate! Even Putin won't be able to beat his record; a loser for eternity.
I look forward to seeing your coverage of these much anticipated events!
Firstly, of course he will be wearing his Angela the Sun Bear suit, and true to form, he refuses to stfu so he's the epitome of the gift that keeps on giving.
Oh, JB - only you could see who was in that sun-bear-suit! I have never laughed so much so early in the morning! May this vision go far and wide. I'm going to share it around the world! Back in the early noughties when I was teaching in Japan I would give my university students a 10+ minute break at the end of our 90 minute sessions - time to ask Jim a "Wh~" type question. What do you think of George Dubya? They loved asking that one - as he pursued his wars into Iraq - his strange garbled manner of speech, etc. They asked more general questions, too, of course - but the ones about George Dubya giving us the opportunity to laugh at the man who called John Dubya Howard a man-of-steel was too good to pass up. But how I wish I had had this Scott "sun-bear" Morrison image to play with back then... blessings upon you - he who could see so clearly the truth beneath the bear-suit. (I remember seeing sun-bears in the jungles of Sabah - and thinking back - I think one could easily have been Scottie getting into the feel of it all! Isn't that just incredible!)
That Headline gave me my first belly laugh of the day - which only got louder as I read the article. In a personal torrid time, I really needed that. Thank you, JB.
As a person with both thoughts and something akin to morality, I naturally have a very low opinion of Scott 'the sun bear' Morrison. His very visible big pouty sook this week and his claimed victimhood over the Robodebt shakedown, not to mention the denials despite the mountains of evidence produced by a Royal Commission no less, really showed what a horrible shitebag of a human he really is.
Old Sunbear from the Shire has somehow managed to get even lower in my opinion and has most certainly exploded my stance that Tony Abbott was the worst Prime Minister in Modern Australian history.
I hope there is a special place in his Hell for him and the others involved, and a good arse kicking from that Hebrew carpenter turned prophet/revolutionary character him and his ilk like to worship.
Nice one JB.! The kiddies will be fine. Unless they get a ball involved. Or their family's poor. Nah, who am I kidding; he's a deadly fucking sun bear.
Utterly more convincing and entertaining than any of the tall "not my fault","I'm the victim", "I had no input" stories we have heard from Scummo himself over the past several months. My contempt for that man is limitless, as is his for the Australian people. Jog on, clown.
Gold :-)
I resolve from this point on to always refer to the former PM as "Angela the sunbear".
Failed Prime Minister, Angela the Sunbear
This is the most convincing Morrison story I've read in a while.
Generally I'm pretty 'right on' when it comes to animal cruelty, but I wonder if in this case some sort of national bear baiting tour is in order. Furnishing kids across the country with sharpened sticks and parading the Sutherland Sun-bear down every main street in a cage might prove instructive, educational and cheaper than the NCCC.
Does a bear shit in the Engadine woods?
Nah... just the Maccas...
Somewhere a man in a Sun Bear suit is deeply wounded by this comparison ...
Lovely work, but... I do wish that people would stop fixating on the illegality aspect. Suggesting that if the government had passed legislation that permitted the income averaging idea it would be OK is to accept Morrison's framing. The scheme was mathematically and morally wrong from the get-go. The pain inflicted on welfare recipients was the entire point (it was deliberate that the debt notices had no contact information to query it, and the onus of proof of absence of a debt left to the recipient). Being illegal was the least of its problems.
And it should be noted that it's a plan that has worked: people out of work are choosing to run down their savings rather than touch the government's meagre offered "help", for fear of being caught up in the system down the track.
Governments often do things that are stupid (income averaging is just plain idiotic) and sometimes do things that are cruel (asylum seek policy anyone?), but normally they do so according to law. It's awful but legitimate. The difference matters.
Robodebt was worse than other stupid and cruel government policies because the individuals organising robodebt had no right whatsoever to do it, and they either knew or should have known this. They were no different to organised criminals running a thuggish shakedown scheme on the vulnerable, save that they pretended that it was a legitimate exercise of the power of the State.
In reality they were bandits and gangsters, terrorising their class enemies, and smirking as they did so.
What Roy said.
Also, after Robodebt, the ATO started doing their own version aimed at small business. They didn’t target big business, which avoids tax. They destroyed small businesses, emptied bank accounts just before payday and things like that. An evil government.
It's hard to imagine any government willingly legislating to calculate debt by annual averaging when the benefit was calculated fortnightly. But a Morrison Government? I wonder if they would have tried it on?
I think the reason they didn't is because, if they'd publicised that that was what they were doing, it wouldn't have got through the Senate.
I think the problem is twofold. As you say, the scheme was “mathematically and morally wrong” but they also misidentified people and assigned what appear to be random debts to victims, at least some of which was “these two people have vaguely similar names so I’ll assign this debt to this person who was on Centrelink benefits… or maybe I’ll assign this debt to this person who NEVER RECEIVED benefits, ha bloody ha”.
AND it was legally wrong. IMO the thought that the govt could have easily made it legal is chilling. The fact that the govt chose not to make it legal shows that they were trying to be sneaky, avoid scrutiny etc. And now we’re hearing that “Labor started it” although they didn’t. Lying to shift blame is a Trump tactic and the LNP are using it increasingly.
I want to see the LNP in a similar position to Trump right now. 3 arraignments so far. Apparently the upcoming Georgia one will include mug shots. The internet will have a field day.
A masterpiece of investigative journalism.
Tell me you went to the AI image generator, and said “gimme scomo in a poo bear suit”.
Something like that.
Love it JB 🤣
My first thought, before I read further than the headline, was how relieved you must be that #TheLiarFromTheShire hanging around like the stench of a year-old corpse will provide you material long after he's finally put him in a box and buried.
You'll then be able to immortalise him as he posthumously creates a new entry in the Guinness World Book of Records for beating the number of people lining up to mourn dead Queen Lizzie. In his case it will be to piss on his grave, some having to take a week off work, because the Public Holiday to allow people to 'pay their respects was a woeful under-estimation.
The level of enthusiasm to confirm he was indeed under the ground instead of floating into the sky, should've been obvious to anyone who'd been paying attention. People from all around Australia, the Pacific and the People's Republic of China will join the queue, all with bladders bursting from the long wait and the desire to win this pissing contest.
His grasp on this, the highest of his achievements, will only last until Donald suffers the same fate! Even Putin won't be able to beat his record; a loser for eternity.
I look forward to seeing your coverage of these much anticipated events!
I have a feeling he has more content to offer.
I was in a hurry and intended to add a P.s.
Firstly, of course he will be wearing his Angela the Sun Bear suit, and true to form, he refuses to stfu so he's the epitome of the gift that keeps on giving.
Using the word peddling instead of pedaling, is particularly apt with anything to do with Scott 'Sun Bear' Morrison.
Yeah, Imma leave it as is.
Oh, JB - only you could see who was in that sun-bear-suit! I have never laughed so much so early in the morning! May this vision go far and wide. I'm going to share it around the world! Back in the early noughties when I was teaching in Japan I would give my university students a 10+ minute break at the end of our 90 minute sessions - time to ask Jim a "Wh~" type question. What do you think of George Dubya? They loved asking that one - as he pursued his wars into Iraq - his strange garbled manner of speech, etc. They asked more general questions, too, of course - but the ones about George Dubya giving us the opportunity to laugh at the man who called John Dubya Howard a man-of-steel was too good to pass up. But how I wish I had had this Scott "sun-bear" Morrison image to play with back then... blessings upon you - he who could see so clearly the truth beneath the bear-suit. (I remember seeing sun-bears in the jungles of Sabah - and thinking back - I think one could easily have been Scottie getting into the feel of it all! Isn't that just incredible!)
Thanks Jim.
Given Angela Morrison's proclivity for taking on multiple roles, can we be sure that he isn't in ALL the Sun Bear suits in that zoo?
That one's fucking terrific, JB; I don't know whether to laugh or cry.
That Headline gave me my first belly laugh of the day - which only got louder as I read the article. In a personal torrid time, I really needed that. Thank you, JB.
Glad to be of help. Sorry it was needed.
As a person with both thoughts and something akin to morality, I naturally have a very low opinion of Scott 'the sun bear' Morrison. His very visible big pouty sook this week and his claimed victimhood over the Robodebt shakedown, not to mention the denials despite the mountains of evidence produced by a Royal Commission no less, really showed what a horrible shitebag of a human he really is.
Old Sunbear from the Shire has somehow managed to get even lower in my opinion and has most certainly exploded my stance that Tony Abbott was the worst Prime Minister in Modern Australian history.
I hope there is a special place in his Hell for him and the others involved, and a good arse kicking from that Hebrew carpenter turned prophet/revolutionary character him and his ilk like to worship.
I wonder, has anyone ever seen Angela Morrison and Humphrey B. Bear together in the same room?
God I want Scott Morrison to read this column.
Nice one JB.! The kiddies will be fine. Unless they get a ball involved. Or their family's poor. Nah, who am I kidding; he's a deadly fucking sun bear.
Utterly more convincing and entertaining than any of the tall "not my fault","I'm the victim", "I had no input" stories we have heard from Scummo himself over the past several months. My contempt for that man is limitless, as is his for the Australian people. Jog on, clown.