Aaarghh the absolute worst. I am sorry. May it pass quickly 🍀

I want to say “this can’t be serious” but since apparently genAI is going to be making NDIS assessments and they’re dismantling the appeals process… I have kind of lost faith in any faint sense of rationality around this shit.

Widespread shared delusions, all round.

Brb, screaming into the void.

And clicked on a couple more links, since this was an empty information space for me.

And Jesus Fkn Christ, the spine on this woman.

www.middleeasteye.net/news/life-ic...

We need a system that actually rewards sustained integrity, that is robust to corruption, subject to oversight, and we don’t have it.

Or someone who owns 16 fucking houses wouldn’t be made the fucking housing minister.

Anyways. Taking my cynical self elsewhere for a bit.

Take care all,
-Doc out 🌸

And the rare politician that truly gives a shit, that manages to juggle the soul-sucking compromises between greedy corporate entities and their own principles, that actually manages to make a difference and *still* move up the ranks… isn’t likely to get to the top.

24/25

The Minister doesn’t need any expertise in, experience with, or compassion for that portfolio.

They need to be a politician, because that portfolio has to be given to SOMEONE who is already a politician.

Someone who has already forgotten what it means to need help, if they ever knew.

23/25

I am not a political animal. At all.

But from the outside, it looks like getting *anywhere* is a game of deals and compromises.

Until every bold, impactful policy gets whittled down to nothing, a negative space that underscores the status quo.

Cabinet positions are the worst example.

22/25

Go further.

“Interrupt me when I demonstrate a lack of compassion and empathy.”

And your reaction to that interruption?

“Interrupt me again if my position sounds an awful lot like ‘fuck you, I got mine,’ or ‘oh well, sucks to be you.’”

21/25

And that nonsense is “when I say something that is predicated on the assumption that my advantages and position, the basic necessities, even the minor indulgences that I take for granted, are due solely to merit.”

Alternatively: “smack me if I start sneering and parroting rise’n’grind shit.”

20/25

And that’s the question when you get a fucking HOUSING MINISTER PORTFOLIO.

You start by making a list of shit you take for granted that other people can’t. Then you talk to the social workers / liaisons:

“I’m going to talk through my position. Interrupt me when I speak nonsense.”

19/25

And if someone asks me for advice — for whatever thing, it varies — I don’t just have to make sure I stay within the limits of what I know, and add that disclaimer.

I also try to think about *why* this advice isn’t obvious. What barriers might be in place that I can’t even see.

18/25