Shock for disabled people: Tough new restricitions to hit disabled parking permit conditions

 

PEOPLE who rely on canes or crutches to walk will no longer qualify for disabled parking spaces under changes to the permit system.

 

A national system replaced the Queensland permit system on Thursday, meaning many of the 132,000 people who currently hold disabled parking permits will now have to re-apply.

 

At least 30,000 of those are not expected to meet the new criteria, which say anyone who does not require a "large mobility device'' such as a four-wheeled walker or a wheelchair, will no longer qualify under the new national system. 

 

"A large mobility device does not include splints, crutches, walking sticks or shopping trolleys,'' states the eligibility criteria. 

 

"People with intellectual, psychiatric, cognitive or sensory impairment alone do not meet the eligibility criteria.'' 

 

The information on the Transport and Main Roads website, also warns anyone who continues to use a Queensland disabled parking permit past their expiry date could be fined for doing so. 

 

The changes have outraged doctors who say they have seen patients with legitimate claims to disabled parking refused.

 

Brisbane GP Dr Thomas Lyons said he was phoned and interviewed about two of his patients, who were refused permits. 

 

"The patients had painful disabilities but did not require a large wheelie walker,'' said Dr Lyons.

 

"I was advised  they would be declined. This new process is a waste of my time when I have a waiting room full,'' he said.

 

A spokesman for Transport and Main Roads said the department had been writing to permit holders about the changes.

 

Federal Parliamentary Secretary for Disabilities Jan McLucas said that the Australian Disability Parking Scheme offered certainty for permit holders.

 

"Queensland's 100,000 red permit holders, who have reduced mobility, can still access their red disability parking permit parking concessions when they travel interstate,'' said Senator McLucas.

 

www.CourierMail.com.au

 

 

CONSUMER WATCH COMMENT: Queensland and other states should "go it alone" if the tough new Federal rules prevent people with genuine disabilities from receiving a disabled permit.  These changes were no doubt dreamed up by bureaucrats who are out-of-touch with reality.

Consumers not adequately aware of ATM fees - The Australian

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Consumers not adequately aware of ATM fees The Australian The Reserve Bank's admission is a victory for consumer groups, which insist ATM owners should display the fees on the outside of machines in the same way petrol stations advertise their prices. The Reserve Bank and the Treasury are due to recommend ... and more »

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Kiwi bid to cut milk cost - Weekly Times Now

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Kiwi bid to cut milk cost Weekly Times Now AUSTRALIA'S dairy industry may be busy fighting to increase the price of supermarket-brand milk, but not in New Zealand. A Kiwi consumer group says milk is too expensive and wants a government inquiry into dairy pricing. Consumer New Zealand chief ...

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RBA's Stevens Poised for Longest Rate Pause Since 2006: Australia Credit - Bloomberg

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RBA's Stevens Poised for Longest Rate Pause Since 2006: Australia Credit Bloomberg Australia's household savings approached 10 percent of incomes last year, up from 1.5 percent in 2007, and retail sales declined 0.3 percent in the fourth quarter, the first drop in more than a year. Australian consumer confidence fell to a nine- month ... Inflation worries over mining bonanzasSydney Morning Herald all 13 news articles »

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Fairfax to delete online autoplay videos - The Australian

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Strong dollar a jobs threat, CSL warns - Sydney Morning Herald

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Strong dollar a jobs threat, CSL warns Sydney Morning Herald Australia's retail sector, is under pressure from increased personal savings. Russell Zimmerman, head of the Australian Retailers Association, said dollar strength was ''a double-edged sword. It's obviously good from a consumer's perspective. ... and more »

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Critics question aid agencies' presence - The Australian

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No need to break the bank - The Australian

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Cheats cost the nation $600m - The Daily Telegraph

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State faces loss of workers to east coast - The West Australian

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Victorian Muslims plea for 'more tolerance' in Australia - Herald Sun

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Inflation worries over mining bonanzas - Sydney Morning Herald

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Call to boycott BP petrol across Australia to force prices down

The following email is sweeping the internet in Australia to induce all drivers to boycott BP outlets across the nation:
 
THIS IS NOT THE 'DON'T BUY' PETROL FOR ONE DAY, BUT IT WILL SHOW YOU HOW WE CAN GET PETROL BACK DOWN TO $1.00 PER LITRE.

This was originally sent by Phillip Hollsworth, a retired Coca Cola executive.

If you are tired of the gas prices going up AND they will continue to rise this winter, take time to read this, PLEASE. 

Phillip offered this good idea.

This makes MUCH MORE SENSE than the 'don't buy petrol on a certain day' campaign that was going around last April or May!

It is worth your consideration. Join the resistance!!!!

We are going to hit $2.00 a litre and it might go higher.

Want petrol prices to come down?

We need to take some intelligent, united action.

The oil companies just laughed at last year's action because they knew we would not continue to 'hurt' ourselves by refusing to buy petrol.  

It was more of an inconvenience to us than it was a problem for them.  

BUT whoever thought of this idea, has come up with a plan that can really work. 

Please read on and join with us!

By now, you're probably thinking petrol priced at about $1.50 is cheap.

It can only get dearer and dearer unless WE do something about it.

Politicians pay nothing for petrol.

Do not expect them to fight for you.

Now that the oil companies and the OPEC nations have conditioned us to think that the cost of a litre of petrol is CHEAP at $1.50, we need to take aggressive action to teach them that BUYERS control the market place, not sellers.

With the price of petrol going up more each day, we consumers need to take action.

The only way we are going to see the price of petrol come down is if we hit someone in the pocket book by not purchasing their petrol!

And, we can do that WITHOUT hurting ourselves. How?

Since we all rely on our cars, we can't just stop buying petrol.

But we CAN have an impact on petrol prices if we all act together to force a price war.

Here's the idea:

For the rest of this year, DON'T purchase ANY petrol from BP, the biggest price-up driver company.

If they are not selling any petrol, they will be inclined to reduce their prices.

If they reduce their prices, the other companies will have to follow suit.

But to have an impact, we need to reach literally millions of BP petrol buyers.

It's SO simple!

Now, don't wimp out at this point ... keep reading and I'll explain how simple it is to reach millions of people!!

I am sending this note to 20 people.

If each of you sends it on to at least twenty more that's 20 x 20 = 400.

And those 400 send it to at least twenty more (400 x 20 = 8000) ... and so on.

By the time the message reaches the fourth group of people, we will have reached over THREE MILLION consumers.

20 x 20 = 400
400 x 20 = 8,000
8,000 x 20 = 160,000
160,000 x 20 = 3,200,000

That's 3.2 million people folks who will have been contacted!!!!!

Unbelievable? Do the maths and see for yourself!  

Again, all you have to do is send this to 20 people. That's all!

I'll bet you didn't think we had that much potential, did you?

Acting together we can make a difference.

If this message makes sense to you, then please pass it on.

THEY WILL LOWER THEIR PRICES TO BELOW THE $1.50 RANGE AND KEEP THEM DOWN.

THIS CAN REALLY WORK.

It's simple – send the message along to others and choose to not buy petrol from BP.  

THREE POINT TWO MILLION people: Now THAT'S people power.    

LET'S JUST DO IT!!!

More power to you friend.

Infiniti and beyond - Rouse Hill Times

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Aussie Dollar Spurs Internet Shopping, JB Hi-Fi's Elliott Says - BusinessWeek

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It's the click and the dead as the pennies drop - Sydney Morning Herald

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WEEKEND ECONOMIST: Are consumers spent? - Business Spectator

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New Research Confirms Staggering Consumer Demand for Online Retailing - PRWire

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Consumers dishing out the cash - Herald Sun

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Tags to reveal power costs of all consumer white goods - NEWS.com.au

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AUSTRALIA: Bob Birrell, controversial but determined - University World News

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Intend to study in Australia? Give careful consideration to the following - Sunday Times.lk

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KFC is still serving up fatty, grease-laden burgers - without the bun!

CONSUMER WATCH COMMENT: It might look good but this KFC concoction will kill you!

 

 

KFC's new macho burger proves the fast and the fried still rules

 

Double trouble? KFC bun-less burger

 

KFC have unveiled a bun-less burger known as the double. It has double the chicken, double the bacon, double the cheese, and doubles your risk of a coronary.

 

KFC isn't part of my usual remit as this newspaper's restaurant critic, but a northern suburban outlet of the fast-food ''restaurant'' (to borrow the jargon of its multinational owners) was Wednesday's fluoro-lit destination. The attraction was the release of the Double Down, a burger purpose-built for a brave new world. The Double-D ditches the bun for protein, protein and dairy-derived protein: two deep-fried pieces of chicken standing in for the bread, sandwiching two rashers of bacon, two slices of cheese and a sweet, sweet barbecue sauce.

 

It was first released in the US a year ago, where it became, depressingly but not unexpectedly, a hit. KFC, the company that retreated to the safety of initials when its marketing whizzes decided people were put off by the word ''fried'', couldn't keep up with demand.

 

A Facebook page - purportedly established by Australian KFC fans although anyone with a modicum of cynicism might suspect darker forces at work - immediately implored the Kentucky-based company not to deny us their calorific Godzilla. For the greater glory of our waistlines (540 calories wrapped up in 35.7 grams of fat, by the Colonel's own calculations) their prayers have finally been answered.

 

The Double Down has had plenty of brickbats along with its bouquets. People who ought to know have called it an atrocity, before pulling off the gloves and really saying what they think.The New York Times restaurant critic Sam Sifton concluded: ''It is, in all, a disgusting meal, a must to avoid.'' I would respectfully argue he doesn't go far enough, and should finish with the additional flourish of ''at all costs''.

 

A guilty pleasure minus the pleasure, the Double Down rewards forensic investigation with the following inventory: sort-of-crunchy chicken breasts, so very white, so very soft, that speak of the terroir of the factory farm; pale yellow cheese that tastes of nothing yet melds itself to everything like tar; streaky bacon, a lip-tingling sodium bomb that could alone be used to justify a desal plant; and that sweet barbecue sauce, as though the folk in the test kitchen decided it needed some sort of balance. My heart did start beating faster, but it wasn't love. Remorse and self-hatred followed the Double Down's consumption like a forgotten side dish.

 

It's fair to say I'm not the target audience for the svengalis behind the Double Down. They're marketing it as a man-sized ''occasional'' treat, which might just cover them against class actions (incidentally, the same tactic is employed by Sesame Street's new-age Cookie Monster).

 

The cardboard box converts into a do-not-disturb door-handle sign that warns ''mantime in progress'', which prompts the even more unappetising mental leap from junk food to sexual activity - unspecified, but presumably solo.

 

Despite my cognitive abilities being compromised by an orgy of saturated fat, it's not too difficult to recognise these fast-food Frankensteins (Hungry Jacks' 12-patty Whopper springs to mind; ditto Maccas' Double Quarter Pounder) for what they really are: marketing gimmicks dressed up as lunch. They're the flip side of the coin to their - let's bring out the inverted commas again - ''healthy'' alternatives that have been proven to induce customers into their stores, only to sell more burgers and fries.

 

The Double Down would be just another quirky marketing story if the message sent by its just-add-Pepsi success wasn't so sad. For all our ''foodie'' ways (a term I despise, but it conveys the meaning effectively), we're still a nation addicted to the fast and the fried.

 

If we can't look in the mirror to see a nation of fatty-boom-bah hypocrites heading to an early grave after clogging up hospitals with avoidable ailments, this freakish fried sandwich ought to drive the reality home.

 

An ugly snapshot of who we really are, as opposed to what we believe ourselves to be, it's food for eating with no sense of ceremony, no sense of civility, and certainly no cutlery. The only way to really optimise the experience is adding a TV.

 

So don't let me stop you. Go ahead, eat it if you will. The Double Down is a big bunless whoop, a finger at the adage that you are what you eat. It's a dare wrapped in branded paper, an overt show of machismo. To paraphrase Paul Hogan: ''That's not a clogged artery. This is a clogged artery.'' But don't go getting too proud of yourself.

 

Despite its excess it's still pipped at the post, calorie-wise, by the likes of the Big Mac, although you could argue the latter's lettuce and pickle gives it the edge on the healthy-eating pyramid.

 

The publicity the Double Down has received here has, unsurprisingly, mimicked the US, with nutritionists and concerned private citizens who like to ingest their food in less forceful quantities making the usual noises about government regulation, an idea almost as quaint as it is impossible.

 

Well might the forces of authority bring down a prohibition on one of the more disturbing ends of a multibillion-dollar industry, but going by a depressing snapshot at a suburban greasy spoon this week, no one can save us from ourselves.

 

www.BrisbaneTimes.com.au

 

Gillard braves the lion's den and leaves a stunned Barnett purring - The Australian

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Looming food crisis showing on our shelves - Sydney Morning Herald

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