Jordan Rice bravery award

Jordan Rice

In January 2011, during a deadly flash Queensland flood in Toowoomba, Donna Rice and her two sons were stranded on the roof of their car in a raging torrent of muddy water.  When a rescuer finally reached them, Jordan Rice is reported to have said "take my brother first" even though he couldn't swim.  A moment later, Jordan and his mother were washed away and drowned.

For a while, Jordan's courage was recognized and applauded by everyone including Prime Minister Julia Gillard.  Now Jordan's father John Tyson wants his son's bravery to be recognized by Australia's highest civilian award for bravery - the Cross of Valour.

But I'm confused.  Was it Jordan who told his rescuer to take his young brother first or was it his mother Donna?

Blake with PM Julia Gillard

Jordan's father John Tyson has written to Tony Abbott, asking for his help.

The award was established in 1975 to replace the British George Cross, previously awarded to Australians, and has so far only been awarded to five men.

A spokesman from Mr Abbott's office said "Nominations for bravery awards in the Australian Honours system are considered by the Australian Bravery Decorations Council which makes recommendations to the Governor-General.  The Prime Minister has approached the Governor-General to ask for his support in ensuring proper consideration is given to any nominations for bravery awards relating to this tragic incident."

At the inquiry in 2011, the court heard the frantic 000 call Donna Rice made as she and her sons clung desperately to their car roof. She is heard screaming in the background as Jordan begs rescuers to "hurry up, we're nearly drowning."  Donna asks 000 operator Constable Wheeler to call her a tow truck.  After first asking her the make and model of her car, Constable Wheeler said "Well you shouldn't have driven through in the first place."

The inquiry heard Constable Wheeler, a police officer of 19 years experience, had not asked Rice if there were other people with her or how high the water was before assigning the job as low priority. He said Donna's even vocal tone and her request for a tow truck gave him the impression that she was not in extreme danger. "There wasn't time for anything that day", he told the commission, "it was mayhem in there."

The weather bureau was also in trouble for not giving people fair warning of what was about to happen, but it happened so fast, there wasn't time for warnings.

A shattered Chris Skehan and his wife

Business owner Chris Skehan said that on January 10, he checked the weather bureau radar before heading out for a job about 2pm. "I just remember seeing lots of yellow on the radar, huge amounts of yellow over Toowoomba" he said.

He stopped his ute when he saw water rising quickly in parts of Kitchener Street.  He took off his boots and socks and waded across to an elderly female who was stuck and starting to panic and helped her to reverse out safely.

Then he saw Donna and her two boys and a man attached to a rope struggling to reach them.  He asked the man with the rope to give him a go and he eventually reached the car and tied a rope to the hinge of the rear driver's door.  He said the lady shouted "take Blake first" so he piggy-backed him to safety and went back for the others. Then the rope snapped and Donna and Jordan were thrown into the muddy water. They managed to grab hold of a light pole for a few seconds, but the force of the water was too great and they were both swept away.

There were many other heroes that day who risked their lives to save others who never got a mention, but they know who they are. And what about Donna's bravery of insisting that her children's safety came before her own.  

The Bravery Decorations Council will have a difficult job trying to decide who is more deserving of a bravery award, when it was just a terrible tragic event.

Rolf Harris' bizarre performance in court

Sasha Wass, Queens Council since 2000, has over 32 years experience at the Criminal Bar.  She is known for attention to detail and relentless cross-examination on behalf of her clients.  She is admired for her ability to master her brief and to isolate and identify the essence of her client's case.

Yesterday Sasha Wass gave Rolf Harris a hard time.  He's still insisting he didn't have sexual relations with the complainant until she was 18 but she insists it started when she was 13.  Ms Wass said he "groomed" and "psychologically dominated" the 13 year old before repeatedly sexually abusing her.

Harris is charged with 12 counts of indecent assault against four girls, some as young as 7 and 8 between 1968 and 1986.  He denies all charges, seven of which relate to one woman.

Then Prosecutor Wass broached the subject of his bizarre behavour in court the day before.  "Yesterday you delighted us with a demonstration of your many talents" she said.  "The Prosecution does not suggest for a moment that you are anything but a brilliant, polished performer, but this case, as you know, is not a talent show. This case is taking place to decide whether beneath your friendly, lovable exterior, there is a darker side lurking."

Harris confirmed that there were few words spoken during sexual encounters with the girl and admitted that he would go into a bedroom where she was sleeping, perform a sex act on her and leave without saying a word.  Prosecutor Wass pointed out that this was not the normal behavior of an adult relationship.  She put it to him that he once molested the girl within yards of his sun-baking wife and daughter and performed oral sex on her in the same room where other children were sleeping.

Ms Wass said that even as an adult, the woman had been too intimidated by Harris to tell police "because you were so famous, so popular, so loved by everyone" she said.

The sad exhibition and spectacle Harris made of himself in court is proof that this man really believes that because everyone loves him, he can't possibly be found guilty.

He doesn't realize that he's already made a fool of himself by dragging his frail wife to court every day to hear the details of his sordid past.  

The trial continues.

Two ex cops arrested for murder

Jamie Gao

There was 3.1 kilos of methamphetamine at stake worth $3 million and police allege that two ex cops who worked together in the 1980s, murdered university student Jamie Gao to get it.  Police believe Roger Rogerson and Glen McNamara took Gao to a storage unit facility in Padstow, shot him twice in the chest and dumped his body out to sea.

Rogerson arrested at his Sydney home yesterday

But what they didn't know was that their movements were being recorded on CCTV.  Video footage shows Rogerson, McNamara and Gao walking into the unit together and 10 minutes later, only Rogerson and McNamara walking out.

But that's not all.  They are then seen backing their station wagons up to the unit's roller door, carrying Gao's body wrapped in a surfboard cover and blue tarp and putting it into McNamara's white station wagon. Then they carried chairs out of the unit and put them in the back of the wagon.  Officers later found a surfboard at McNamara's Cronulla home and the items of clothing he was wearing on the CCTV footage.

Glen McNamara

The next day police allege they used McNamara's boat to dump Gao's body in the sea which was later found floating about 1 km off Cronulla. Then they went back to the unit, spent 40 minutes cleaning up and took the chairs back inside.

Rogerson in 1981

Rogerson loved his job and received 13 bravery awards and at one stage, he was even considered for the job of Police Commissioner. He was dismissed from the force in 1986 and convicted of perverting the course of justice over $110,000 deposited by him into a bank account under a false name.  He spent 9 months in jail in 1990 before being released on appeal.  The appeal was dismissed and he spent three more years in jail from 1991 to 1995.

In 2005 Rogerson and his second wife were found guilty of lying to the Police Integrity Commission and he served another 12 months.

Rogerson is playing the 'old age' card, "I'm 73 years old" he told reporters outside his house yesterday.  He was outraged when police came to his home to arrest him because he had already made a deal with them to give himself up at a set time.   He was under the impression that he still commanded a modicum of respect from the force, when he should have known he has none left.  The good old days are well and truly over.

Mark Bensley stands up for Christianity

When two young Muslim student teachers turned up for work wearing hijabs on their first day at Redlands College - a Christian school in Queensland - principal Mark Bensley wasn't having it and transferred them out.

The PC police took to social media and have been on his back ever since.  "Shame on you Redlands College" they said.  "This could have been a very good way to show Christian love and acceptance."

The two trainees, in their final year at university, were allocated positions to start their work placement at Redlands College.  Mr Bensley said he respected their right to wear the hijab but felt it was inappropriate at his school and transferred them to another school to complete their placement.

Principal Bensley wrote to parents "I have a duty of care to ensure that those teaching at the college are actively supporting the Christian principles, practices and beliefs of the College" he wrote. "I see the wearing of the hijab as openly acting in a manner that is contrary with these principles, practices and beliefs."

In contrast, two non-Muslim teachers from the Islamic College of South Australia were sacked because they refused to wear a hijab. The school issued a warning to female teachers - wear a hijab or risk being fired.

Keysar Trad

Sounds reasonable, doesn't it but Muslim spokesman Keysar Trad, doesn't think so, he's already jumping up and down. Trad is the man who tied up the courts for eight years because he thought he was insulted by a radio announcer.

Last December the NSW Court of Appeal found that when 2GB's Jason Morrison called Trad "a disgraceful and dangerous individual", he did not defame him.  Morrison said that Trad was "responsible for more misinformation about the Islamic community of the attitudes of Christian Australians, than any other person."

But it's not just Trad who has put Australians off, every night on the television news, the majority of men who are involved in the regular suburban shootings and crime in Sydney and Melbourne have Muslim names. And when a Muslim maniac kidnaps 300 schoolgirls in Africa, there is absolute silence.  Where are all these so-called 'Muslim Moderates', don't they watch the news and why don't they speak up and denounce these ratbags?  We no longer believe that Islam is "the religion of peace." 

It's time we stood up for ourselves and our way of life, and in my view, Mark Bensley is making an excellent start.

Rob Oakeshott, The Independent Member for Lyne

I suspect history won't remember Rob Oakeshott kindly, the man who once held the fate of Australia in the palm of his hand.

He grew up on Sydney's North Shore and went to Barker College. After graduating from Sydney University he worked briefly at the Road Transport Forum before becoming a staffer for Mr Vaile, National Party Federal MP for Lyne.  Six years later he split from the Nationals to become an Independent.

Rob and Sara-Jane

Lyne is located on the Mid North Coast of New South Wales and includes local government areas around the beautiful Port Macquarie area.  In 2010, he was re-elected with a large majority by the anti-Labor electorate.  In fact the people of Lyne hated the Labor Party so much, their anti Labor/Green vote was the second highest in the country.

After the election, it became clear that neither Tony Abbott nor Julia Gillard could form government without the help of three independents, Oakeshott, Tony Windsor and Bob Katter.  As Katter was a rusted on conservative, it was down to Oakeshott and Windsor.

He said he weighed up all the sweeteners from both sides and intended "to do what was right for the country" and decided to go with Julia Gillard and the Labor Party - the exact opposite of what the people of his electorate wanted.

Around this time, while he and Windsor were being bribed from both sides, Oakeshott reveals that he was flat broke and to top it off, his wife Sara-Jane was about to give birth to their fourth child. A failed business venture resulted in having to sell the family home and rent, and he had to finance his 2010 election campaign on credit.

To his critics, Rob Oakeshott betrayed his conservative electorate to back a Labor government that turned out to be a shambles.  He said "he could have sided with the Coalition" but chose to protect his "integrity at the expense of his reputation," whatever that means.

Independents Rob Oakeshott and Tony Windsor

In June 2013, Tony Windsor and Rob Oakeshott announced they were quitting politics and wouldn't be standing at the next election.

Today, Rob is a house-husband and takes care of his four children while Sara-Jane works full time.

Aboriginal artist Patrick Mung Mung

Texas Downs Station was the place where Patrick Mung Mung grew up, met his wife, worked as a stockmen and learnt his traditional culture. When station days ended he fell into alcoholism and separated from his wife. But he's managed to rebuild his life and still visits the old station whenever he can.  Watch his video on  http://vimeo.com/80448330

Prince Charles compares Putin to Hitler

I've often wondered why 88 year old Queen Elizabeth II still refuses to hand over the monarchy to Prince Charles, but after his latest faux pas, it's probably because she knows he's a complete idiot.  During a visit to Canada, he compared Putin to Hitler.

Alexander Lukashevich in Moscow said "If these words were really said, then undoubtedly they are not worthy of a future British monarch." 

It's clear that the Russians are seriously offended.  "We have requested an official explanation from British authorities over the statements" he said. "We view the use of the Western press by members of the British royal family to spread the propaganda campaign against Russia on a pressing issue - that is, the situation in Ukraine - as unacceptable, outrageous and low."

The only press release coming from Prince Charles' Office is that the comment was made during a "private conversation," never-the-less, his comments have British diplomats running around like headless chooks.

This weekend, the Ukrainian elections take place and Britain, along with other western allies who denounced Putin for his illegal annexation of Crimea, suspect the election will be "fixed."  The west expects there will be no support for pro-European candidates, instead citizens will overwhelmingly vote to stay closely aligned to Russia.  

Meanwhile, the Prince has shown that heredity runs true to form - he's inherited his father's trait of foot-in-mouth sydrome.

Tony Abbott and Joe Hockey don't understand their own budget

ABC's Q & A was held in the auditorium of Panthers Leagues Club in the heartland of working-class Sydney on Monday night.  It was packed with angry people furious with the cost-cutting measures introduced in the budget brought down by the conservatives last week, a budget that favours the rich and penalizes the sick, the old and the working poor.

Hockey was there to answer questions from the audience and proved beyond doubt, that he doesn't understand his own budget. He told Korey Gunnis who suffers from eight chronic illnesses that he wouldn't have to pay the $7 GP co-payment every time he went to the doctor. "Obviously you've got a number of chronic diseases......in that situation you are not affected by the co-payment."

Not true.  It's only free once a year when the GP plans his patient's care for his chronic illnesses, every other visit he makes to the GP or to have a medical test that is ordered, would be subject to the $7 fee.

The same lack of understanding applies to the Prime Minister. Tony Abbott was asked on radio yesterday "If I am the average person going along to the doctor, what is the safety net on the $7 co-payment?"  He replied "Well, it is 10 visits and then the standard bulk-billing arrangements apply."

Not true.  His office later released a statement "The safety net of 10 visits only applies to concession card holders (pensioners) and people under the age of 16."  And the stupidity gets worse, parents will have to pay $7 to vaccinate their baby.

The arrogance of Abbott and Hockey knows no bounds.  They had no concept of how hard the $7 GP co-payment would impact on the sick, the old and struggling families and even more worrying, nobody in their elite group working on the budget knew either. 

Tony Abbott and Joe Hockey deserve all the abuse they are getting from the public, they must pay for their stupidity.  Hopefully it will continue until they admit their mistakes and change them. Not understanding how the $7 GP co-payment works is unforgivable.

Rolf Harris trial witness Tonya Lee

Tonya Lee

I feel sorry for Tonya Lee, the only Australian of the four complainants in the Rolf Harris sexual abuse trial.  Because she sold her story to the media and lied about it to the British police, her credibility is now zero. She admitted under cross-examination that she told a "bare-faced lie" to Scotland Yard by giving the impression that she had minimal contact with the media.

Max Markson

She also admitted that hiring Max Markson to sell her story to Channel 9 and Woman's Day was a huge mistake because it makes it appear she was motivated my money.  She still maintains that in 1986 in a London pub, Harris fondled her and put his hand up her skirt.  He then followed her to the toilet, waited outside, and assaulted her again.

She said Max Markson is a "charlatan" who still owes her money from the deal after he took out his fee of $60,000.  "Max came over as a very genuine person who had my best interests in mind, but as I now know, that's completely untrue" she said.

Harris' defense team is yet to cross-examine Ms Lee on her account of what happened but one thing is certain - they must be clapping their hands with glee at finding an unreliable witness which could help him secure a "not guilty" verdict.

How did Tony Abbott get it so wrong?

After the catastrophic days of Labor, Tony Abbott was the man we trusted to steer the country back to prosperity.  Things were going along nicely - asylum boats were stopped and detention centres closed - but then he committed political suicide by bringing down a budget that punishes the poor and leaves the rich relatively unscathed.

For a Rhodes Scholar, he's not very smart.  He continues to make a bad situation worse by denying he lied to the electorate before the election when he knows damn well that he did.  His lies far outweigh Julia Gillard's infamous words "There will be no carbon tax under a government I lead" and he continues to dig himself deeper every day.

The tragedy is that the only real alternative is Bill Shorten who must be loving every minute.  He now has an 11 point advantage as preferred Prime Minister and Abbott's approval rating has dropped 21 points since budget night.

State Premiers are incensed by the withdrawal of $80 billion over a decade for health and education and were stunned by the news that they will be expected to run their own show without any help from the feds.

An independent analysis of the budget by the Australian National University found that high income earners will not do any "heavy lifting" at all.  Well paid couples will be worse off by just 0.09 per cent but a single parent on payments with a child aged six will lose more than 10 per cent of their income.

So the man we put our trust in to bring the country back on track has blown it.  He knows we can't go back to Labor and is banking on picking up enough support to get back in by the time the next election comes around, still a long way off.  But he shouldn't hold his breath.

If the LNP has any hope of redemption, Abbott must admit he lied and scrap the harsh measures he's imposed on the poor now, before it's too late.  

Kay Stirland's letter to Joe Hockey

With the 2014 Federal Budget outlining a new $7 fee to visit a doctor, one mum's open letter to treasurer Joe Hockey has hit a raw nerve with thousands of parents online. This is what $7 really means to Australian families.

Dear Mr Hockey,
I am going to do my best to write to you in an apolitical manner.  I am going to write to you as a mother of three children, and as a parent yourself you will understand that being a parent is more than love and physical protection.  It is a giving of the soul, a deep empathy that knows no equal, that gives you courage to try to fly and the tears to fill a river when you fail and fall.
I am also going to talk to you about seven dollars.

When my children were 2, 6 and 4 my marriage broke down.  My then-husband left us in a half-renovated home where there was no plaster on the walls.  We had a mortgage to the Commonwealth Bank, I was working ten hours a week and as my husband was not working I was not in receipt of child support.  His business had failed, there were creditors banging on the door and I was left to deal with it.

As the weeks went on it became clear that I was not going to get a job with more hours, the house wasn’t going to sell in its current state, the Bank was not going to refinance the loan before I went into arrears and my husband was not going to support in any way for various reasons.  Thank goodness for Parenting Payment or we would have starved. 

So, I picked myself up, enrolled in a degree off campus so I could make myself more attractive to future employers, joined a community group that shared hints and stories on how to save money (did you know that powdered milk is really, really cheap?) and set about teaching myself how to sand floors and plaster walls so I could finish the house. 

As the months went by, I slowly fixed up the house.  I would get up at 5am to paint a bedroom because I had to work later in the day, and an assignment was due for my degree (and its hard to paint with a toddler awake and wanting to help). 

One day, I received a Notice to Quit from the Bank.  Unless I could either pay a huge amount or sell the house, we were going to lose the house.  My one asset, my one source of security for me and my kids was going to go and it seemed there was nothing I could do about it.  The stress levels were intense.  Despite all my efforts to find more work, to improve myself, to fight tooth and nail to keep that roof over my kids’ heads, I was going to lose it all.   I was going to be bankrupt and live in public housing. 

Later that day I realized I had $7 in the bank.  My dilemma was whether to spend that $7 on nappies for my son, or petrol in my car which was running on empty.  I decided on nappies, and for a few days we cycled everywhere. 

That night, sleep evaded me yet again as I went over numbers again and again and again. Trying to get blood out of a stone, and realizing that soon I would have to face the humiliation of selling a house for a loss and file for bankruptcy.  Hating that every week I counted and recounted my dollars, looked under the couch for spare change and made humiliating calls to my son’s day care to hold off paying for child care for a week until I got paid. 

But Joe, do you know what upset me the most?  I had dreams for my kids.  I dreamed of them going to dance classes, playing footy, joining Little Athletics, taking them to the beach in summer and the snow in winter.  I wanted to buy my children new school uniforms from time to time instead of going to the secondhand shop every term.  I wanted to stop stressing when my son grew out of his shoes because I couldn’t afford a new pair.  I wanted to stop hoping beyond hope that the funny noise the washing machine made did not mean it was about to blow up.  I wanted to stop worrying about birthdays and Christmas and just enjoy them with my children.  I wanted my children to stop holding their tongues about asking for things because they knew the answer would be “no, we can’t afford it”.  I wanted something as simple as take them to the local pool on a hot day, but when you have to make a choice between that and a new box of washing powder, then you have to make do with playing with the hose in the back yard. I wanted to stop running numbers through my head when my three kids asked for an ice cream from the ice cream man, because that would cost the equivalent of a carton of milk and a loaf of bread.

I wanted to stop standing in a supermarket queue, feeling hot and cold and red in the face as I tried to work out which essential we had to go without that week with $7 in my bank account.
I did sell my house.  I finished it.  I fought the Commonwealth Bank with the Ombusdman and I won.  I moved to Melbourne and found work that gave me a larger salary.  I am continuing my degree.  Financially I am much better off.  But it was a very hard fight, fought over years.  My children are compassionate and thoughtful children who know the value of money and have empathy to those in need. 

But does it have to be this way?  My kids hurt and I hurt.  As a woman, as a mother I hurt.
I see the humanity in your eyes.   Please stop hurting those that need help.
Yours sincerely
Kaye Stirland

Kaye fought tooth and nail to renovate and keep the home she had bought with her ex-husband.
Images: Kaye Stirland.

Master Chef judge's food poisoning investigation

Master Chef judge George Calombaris must be very embarrassed after the restaurant he co-owns was closed following a food poisoning incident.  The Department of Health was notified when at least two groups of diners became violently ill after eating lunch at Hellenic Republic in Kew on Mother's Day.

After dining on a set menu, diners were struck down with vomiting, diarrhoea, and stomach cramps. An unnamed patron said "It's completely put us through the wringer, my wife was vomiting all day Monday and most of Sunday night....this stuff shouldn't happen at a restaurant like this."

Hellenic Republic

An officer from the Health Department took food samples two days later and faecal specimen kits were delivered to the affected victims.

George Calombaris

In September last year, there was a fire at Calombaris' other Kew restaurant, St Katherine's on Cotham Road and 170 diners had to run for their lives.  The damage bill was estimated at $100,000.

Calombaris owns a 25 per cent share in Made Establishment which controls Hellenic Republic in Kew and Brunswick and The Press Club and Gazi in Melbourne's CBD.

Joe Hockey's killer budget

The National Commission of Audit chairman Tony Shepherd has proved he doesn't know what he's talking about.  He thinks Australians are going to the doctor far too often when we're "not that crook."

"Australians on average go to the doctor 11 times a year" he said. Not true.  Figures show the average Aussie makes 6.9 visits to doctors every year which makes us almost level to the OECD average of between 6 and 7 visits per year.

He advised the Abbott government to introduce a $15 co-payment to visit the doctor which "will give people cause for thought over whether they really need to go" he said.  But it gets worse - Tony Abbott thought it was a good idea and put a $7 doctor co-payment in the budget. All money raised will go towards medical research, they said, and assumed that makes it okay - but it doesn't, it stinks!

People in Denmark, Italy, Netherlands, Norway, Portugal and the UK are encouraged and given incentives to visit the doctor because checking out a medical concern with your local GP sooner rather than later is a no brainer.

Joe Hockey's budget includes a co-payment of $7 for every visit to the GP for adults with no concession card and many procedures that were free under Medicare including blood tests, X-rays and ultrasounds, will now cost $7 per appointment.

And now we come to the quote of the year.  Treasurer Joe Hockey said on ABC radio yesterday

"One of the things that quite astounds me is some people are screaming about the $7 co-payment....One packet of cigarettes costs $22, that gives you three visits to the doctor."  

They are the words of a man who is completely out of touch with reality. If he had the faintest idea of how hard life is out there for the average family, he would never have said it.

Laurie Oaks

The Treasurer got a shock when Laurie Oaks asked him about dancing around his office to the tune Best Days of My Life just before delivering the toughest budget in 18 years.  

Oakes: You were dancing in your office before you got up to give that speech, why were you dancing?
Hockey: Dancing?
Oakes: You put on a song called This Will Be the Best Day of My Life and danced with your wife.
Hockey: I think that was more about our little boy was there. I hadn't seen him for three weeks. I think that was more of the focus.
Oakes: The unemployed, the sick, the welfare recipients have been hit by the budget. They're not going to be dancing, are they?
Hockey: No, Laurie, they are not.
Oakes: Won't be the best day of their life.
Hockey: No, but it is the best day for Australia, Laurie. It's the best day for Australia because we are actually getting on with the job of building a stronger nation. That's what we're focused on, building a stronger nation. Hugely important.

The picture of Joe Hockey puffing away on a big cigar in a private courtyard at Parliament House will linger, probably for the rest of his life.  It epitomizes what his budget is all about, the wealthy think it's great because they won't be affected, but the rest of us will.  It's Joe's "let them eat cake" moment.  

Budget pain for dole bludgers

Joe Hockey has brought down a budget that hurts everyone, he says, but it's set to hurt young people with no skills the most.

From 1 January 2015, unemployed under 25s will get Youth Allowance instead of Newstart, ($45 a week more) and the eligibility age for Newstart will rise from 22 to 25.

From 1 July, all job seekers between 18 and 30 who have been receiving payments for 12 months will be forced to Work For The Dole, 15 hours per week, for six months.

From 1 January 2015, all unemployed under 30s who apply for Newstart or Youth Allowance will have to wait six months before they can apply for the dole, then they must work for the dole for another six months. If they still haven't got a job by then, they will be cut off for another six months and the process will begin again. It's those six month periods with no government assistance at all that is a real concern to welfare groups.

During the six month waiting period, the under 30s must participate in the government funded "Job Search and Employment Service activities."  If they have a good previous employment record, the six month waiting period may not apply - for every year of previous employment, one month will be taken off the waiting period.

As an incentive for employers, if they pick a worker off the dole queue, they will receive that young person's dole payment for six months.

All Disability Support Pension recipients under 35 who signed on between 2008 and 2011 will be re-assessed and all recipients who leave the country for more than four weeks will have their pension cut off.

So from a young person's point of view, life is going to get tougher. Pressure is now on the family to support their relatives through times of unemployment which is likely to wear thin over time.

"The age of entitlement is over" said Joe Hockey on the eve of the Budget.  And he wasn't joking.

Bring back our girls

The Nigerian government is accused of pilfering billions of dollars of oil reserves and may have played a role in giving birth to Boko Haram, the group behind the kidnapping of almost 300 schoolgirls, experts say.

As the world focuses attention on Nigeria, we learn about the corrupt government who steal millions for themselves and let their people starve.  Money from oil revenue, supposed to go to health and education, instead ends up in the pockets of senior government officials and civil servants.

Today Boko Haram Islamists released a video of a small group of the frightened kidnapped schoolgirls.  The kidnappers said many have been converted from Christianity to Islam and they are all dressed accordingly.  The group leader says they will release the girls but only if militant prisoners are set free.

British PM David Cameron said yesterday Britain is doing everything it can but rescue won't be easy.  The girls are being held in thick jungle three times the size of Wales.  Military action isn't an option he said, we can't just "pile in and do whatever we like." Military intervention would only serve to further radicalize the group but he did confirm that counter-terrorism and intelligence experts are on the ground with the Americans.

President Goodluck Jonathan

So far Boko Haram has killed more than 1,500 people in their attempt to stamp out education for girls - Boko Haram translated means "Western education is forbidden."

In the latest attack, over 1,000 shops, dozens of houses and 314 trucks were bombed and burnt out and hundreds of people have crossed the border into Cameroon to escape the violence.

Parents of the girls are praying for a miracle but so far, all they've got is a hashtag and famous people holding up signs.

Keeping the girls in the headlines is getting harder as interest begins to wane.  Two years ago there was another campaign involving Joseph Kony, the man who stole Ugandan children and groomed them to become fighters and sex slaves.  Social media was outraged and went wild for a while but eventually lost interest and today, he's still out there, a free man.

As recently as February, questions were raised about Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan's sacking of the central bank governor who was investigating the disappearance of $20 billion in oil revenue over an 18 month period.  

So this is a messy business.  Amnesty International spokesman Netsanet Belay said "The fact that Nigerian security forces knew about Boko Haram's impending raid, but failed to take the immediate action needed to stop it, will only amplify the national and international outcry at this horrific crime."

Michelle Obama wasn't expecting this response from an unidentified supporter of Boro Haram.

Lin family murder trial begins

Robert Xie

It was the crime that shocked Sydney.  A popular Chinese couple, Norman and Lily Lin owned and ran a newsagency in Epping. When the shop failed to open one morning in July 2009, five bodies were discovered in their family home.

Crown Prosecutor Mark Tedeschi will try to prove that Lian Bin "Robert" Xie, murdered five members of his brother-in-law's family, motivated by "bitterness" and a "loss of face", something very important in Chinese culture.

Norman and Lily Lin

In his opening address on Friday, Mr Tedeschi told the jury that Xie crept into the Lin family home in the early hours of the morning and killed five members of the family with a hammer-like instrument as they lay sleeping in their beds.  Their daughter, now an orphan, was away on a school excursion at the time.  

Xie has pleaded not guilty to the murder of Min "Norman" Lin 45, his wife "Lily Li Lin 44, their sons Henry 12 and Terry 9 and Ms Lin's sister "Irene" Yin 39.  The bedroom of the daughter away at school was not touched in any way, suggesting the killer knew she wasn't home.

Xie is married to Kathy Lin who is Mr Lin's sister.

Mr Tedeschi said that after the killings and covered in blood, Xie walked 300 metres back to his own house and placed something on the garage floor which left a smear.  When he cleaned his garage floor the next day, he missed the spot but police found it.  They also found bloody footprints at the murder scene left by a certain type of shoe that belonged to Xie.  Police couldn't find the shoes but found the shoe box they came in at his house.  "It was a pre-planned, deliberately executed crime" Mr Tedeschi said.

Xie is accused of killing the married couple first, then the adult female and lastly, the two children.  Nine year old Terry Lin was alive for up to two hours after he was allegedly asphyxiated and bashed by his uncle. Unlike the three adults, both boys put up a fierce fight before they died and incredibly, neighbours didn't hear a sound.

The trial continues today.

James and Erica Packer reunite at funeral

Paul Ramsay was sailing in Spain when he suffered a heart attack and after a short stay in a Spanish hospital, he was flown back to Australia but died shortly after on 1 May at Bowral.  He was 78 and single.

Mr Ramsay owned a 36.20 per cent of Ramsay Health Care, the business he founded when he was 28 years old in 1964.  He bought a guest house on the Sydney north shore  and converted it into a 16 bed private psychiatric hospital.  He later expanded into mainstream hospitals in 1978.  Today the company has more than 150 hospitals across five countries.  Mr Ramsay has left $3.3 billion to his charitable foundation and yesterday, his funeral was held in Bowral.

Erica and James Packer were pictured together for the first time since they separated last year.  They took a 45 minute helicopter flight with Seven Network chairman Kerry Stokes, his wife Christine and his son Ryan Stokes.

As the press gathered outside the church, anxious to catch a glimpse of the celebrities inside, an angry James Packer said "Guys, it's somebody else's funeral, it's not cool."  But it got worse.  Some unidentified twit asked him if he thought his fight with Gyngell had overshadowed Mr Ramsay's funeral.  "Excuse me?" he replied, "I'm here for Paul Ramsay who was a great man."

Once again our media have embarrassed themselves and proved they have little respect for anything.  Nothing is more important than a good story, including the funeral of a very generous man.