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What are you guys annoyed about? The Fair Work Commission awarded him compensation (presumably for increased costs, or costs thrown away) for unfairness arising from a "rushed and appended disciplinary process". If you're going to fire someone, you need to do it properly. He still got sacked.
 
Toebash said:
What are you guys annoyed about? The Fair Work Commission awarded him compensation (presumably for increased costs, or costs thrown away) for unfairness arising from a "rushed and appended disciplinary process". If you're going to fire someone, you need to do it properly. He still got sacked.
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Never let facts and reason get in the way of generalised sanctimonious outrage.
 
tsf said:

​

Cruise boat captain sacked after sleeping in front of passengers​

Millie Muroi

Millie Muroi
July 22, 2026 — 11:59am
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A cruise tour boat captain has failed to win back his job after being sacked for unsafe and “cavalier” behaviour including sleeping and snoring in front of guests and leaving unqualified staff to steer the boat.
The man, who worked for Queensland business SeaLink Whitsundays on their “Wildcat” vessels from June 2024 to June 2025, was employed as a casual master — responsible for the safe operation of the boat — and was found by the Fair Work Commission to have been validly dismissed.

In June last year, one of SeaLink’s deckhands made a complaint about “very unsafe behaviour” from a “current skipper within the company”.
The allegations included the man sleeping on the vessel and snoring in front of guests to the point where they asked “what’s wrong with the skipper?”, constantly vaping on board, and making other crew members drive the boat despite their lack of qualification.
Several other staff deckhands also gave evidence against the man.
Fair Work Commission deputy president Nicholas Lake said that during the hearing, while the man was “perhaps not deliberately dishonest”, he often deflected and blamed others when asked about his own behaviour.
“He appeared to enjoy the theatrics of being on the witness stand,” Lake said, adding the man tried to dismiss the evidence of the young women involved in the investigation, calling them “a junior group of girls who have nothing better to do than gossip”.
The man also compared a girls-only group chat for women working on the boat to the movie Mean Girls.

Lake said the man’s suggestion that the witnesses were less reliable because they were allegedly gossipy young women was “condescending at best and sexist at worst” and noted he was the least credible witness of all the witnesses who gave evidence.
The man admitted to falling asleep on multiple occasions but said it was common practice in some instances such as when the boat was moored and guests were on the beach, and that in another instance, he had taken sleeping tablets before his shift and in retrospect should not have gone to work that day.

The cruise captain was found to have dumped food into the water while guests were snorkelling nearby.
The man also admitted he vaped on board occasionally, but said he did it to help him quit smoking after seeing a hypnotherapist.
One deckhand alleged the man said, “I just don’t give a f---, let them die,” in response to a conversation about snorkel control measures, but he denied this and the commission found there was inadequate evidence to prove this had occurred.

​

The commission also said the man asked his deckhands to take the helm without supervision despite them not having the appropriate qualifications to drive the vessel, although the man argued he hadn’t put them “in control” of the boat.
“They were following direct orders from me to drive in a straight line,” he said. “There were no manoeuvres, they were not asked to change direction, they were not asked to change engine speeds.”
The man admitted he had thrown a tray of rice salad overboard during one trip out of frustration with the crew and acknowledged this was an error in judgment as it breached marine pollution regulations. However, one witness alleged it was a more significant amount of food including bread rolls, meats and salads, thrown into the water while guests were snorkelling, and that the man had said he did not want to carry heavy bins of food at the end of the day.
The man argued that his conduct amounted to “a number of rather innocuous indiscretions”, but the commission ultimately found there was a pattern of inappropriate behaviour.
However, the commission noted there was some doubt about whether the man had a fair opportunity to respond to the company’s allegations before a conclusion had been reached on them and to have his say on whether the conduct warranted dismissal.
“I consider the rushed and appended disciplinary process in this matter was unreasonable and, as a result, caused some unfairness,” Lake said, ordering $5000 in compensation to be paid to the man.


WTF
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If you to read about another piece of shit try this bloke.

en.wikipedia.org

Francesco Schettino - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org en.wikipedia.org

Captain of that Costa Concordia ship.
 
This thread tends toward a populist left vs right-wing paradigm. I think that's a distraction. The real issues aren't dealt with through culture war. It's addressing the sense people have of global poly/perma crises.

That sense coincides with the unprecedented power of a whole multi-billionaire class (and recently the first trillionaire), occupying and hollowing out public institutions and deepening distrust in the legitimacy of institutions like liberal democracy. This is directly leading to a sense that quality of life is in decline generationally. Most governments now have less reach, influence and spending power than a handful of near untouchable billionaires despite being significantly more accountable via the democratic process (for all its many flaws).

It's oligarchy and feudalism. But so long as people are distracted by mass cultivated outrage and division between citizens on immigration, genders, sexual reproduction, identity etc etc, nobody is really capable of pushing back on the global existential threats, much to the delight of the billionaire class.

1784849978906.png
 
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Punchanello said:
This thread tends toward a populist left vs right-wing paradigm. I think that's a distraction. The real issues aren't dealt with through culture war. It's addressing the sense people have of global poly/perma crises.

That sense coincides with the unprecedented power of a whole multi-billionaire class (and recently the first trillionaire), occupying and hollowing out public institutions and deepening distrust in the legitimacy of institutions like liberal democracy. This is directly leading to a sense that quality of life is in decline generationally. Most governments now have less reach, influence and spending power than a handful of near untouchable billionaires despite being significantly more accountable via the democratic process (for all its many flaws).

It's oligarchy and feudalism. But so long as people are distracted by mass cultivated outrage and division between citizens on immigration, genders, sexual reproduction, identity etc etc, nobody is really capable of pushing back on the global existential threats, much to the delight of the billionaire class.

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Have been having the very same conversations lately... Nothing helps control a population better than the twin pillars of fear and greed.
 
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Punchanello said:
This thread tends toward a populist left vs right-wing paradigm. I think that's a distraction. The real issues aren't dealt with through culture war. It's addressing the sense people have of global poly/perma crises.

That sense coincides with the unprecedented power of a whole multi-billionaire class (and recently the first trillionaire), occupying and hollowing out public institutions and deepening distrust in the legitimacy of institutions like liberal democracy. This is directly leading to a sense that quality of life is in decline generationally. Most governments now have less reach, influence and spending power than a handful of near untouchable billionaires despite being significantly more accountable via the democratic process (for all its many flaws).

It's oligarchy and feudalism. But so long as people are distracted by mass cultivated outrage and division between citizens on immigration, genders, sexual reproduction, identity etc etc, nobody is really capable of pushing back on the global existential threats, much to the delight of the billionaire class.

View attachment 8425
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Now that would be Musk and altman etc...with ai cooming to take everyone's jobs....but mexicans!
 
tsf said:
Now that would be Musk and altman etc...with ai cooming to take everyone's jobs....but mexicans!
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They are just the tip of the iceberg.

Here in Australia, the vast majority of taxpayer revenue flows directly to private enterprise in one form or another. Government costs more and delivers less to tax-payers and it has nothing to do with dole bludgers, immigration or incompetent public servants. There hasn't been one major structural public interest reform since the popular take off of social media (nearly two decades) that hasn't been killed off or watered down by rent-seekers and vested interests.

The next battles will be in regard to our private data and human and workplace rights impacted by AI. Regulators are already losing that fight or choosing not to bother.
 
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Perceptions shape politics more than anything in 2026. We're in a period of acute political anxiety, evident in the surge of parties like One Nation tapping into these frustrations.

Public perceptions are fuelling heated debates on immigration and AI in Australia. A recent poll I saw showed 55% think migrant numbers are too high, despite falling net migration. Many blame the post-COVID surge for exacerbating the housing crisis with skyrocketing rents, unaffordable homes, and strained services. AI heightens the fear while economists tout productivity, everyday workers dread job losses compounding their already everyday financial pressures.

Vested interests (businesses, universities, tech firms) push high migration and rapid disruption, but governments fail to fix the housing supply or support smooth transitions. The gap between elite/billionaire narratives and lived reality breeds backlash.

Governments need to be far better at informing the community — with transparency, clear trade-offs and visible action on housing and reskilling. Honest communication and practical reforms could rebuild trust and defuse anxiety.

Honestly, no matter which party they represent, politicians are rubbish at fixing or even dealing with the basics.
 
Punchanello said:
This thread tends toward a populist left vs right-wing paradigm. I think that's a distraction. The real issues aren't dealt with through culture war. It's addressing the sense people have of global poly/perma crises.

That sense coincides with the unprecedented power of a whole multi-billionaire class (and recently the first trillionaire), occupying and hollowing out public institutions and deepening distrust in the legitimacy of institutions like liberal democracy. This is directly leading to a sense that quality of life is in decline generationally. Most governments now have less reach, influence and spending power than a handful of near untouchable billionaires despite being significantly more accountable via the democratic process (for all its many flaws).

It's oligarchy and feudalism. But so long as people are distracted by mass cultivated outrage and division between citizens on immigration, genders, sexual reproduction, identity etc etc, nobody is really capable of pushing back on the global existential threats, much to the delight of the billionaire class.

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It's right the billionaires are fine and have their influence and control. Due to their own fumblings, many governments are now stupidly giving the cookie to migrants in the face of a local populace. That doesn't help anything.

The fraud that happens with benefits in Europe from those who've come from elsewhere is immense. Sure some locals do it to but it's totally out of proportion.

Ukrainians waltz into Germany where the vast majority of the country isn't a conflict zone. They get an apartment fully paid, health insurance and over 500€ a month. Someone working full time in retail has less after expenses. Who was in the classroom next to me yesterday? Vietnamese learning Germany to become aged care workers. Brilliant to have them but it just reinforces the absolute lack of will to help the local populace into work with lack of pathways and bring in cheap and controllable labour from abroad.

There's the sentiment that you must be really stupid not to find work when you've got foreigners around who can't speak the language. Not at all, companies just go for the cheapest and now almost non viable option in service jobs. I'm shocked how few staff in Berlin service roles speak incredibly little German. The standards 20 years ago just wouldn't have permitted it.
 
JS96 said:
It's right the billionaires are fine and have their influence and control. Due to their own fumblings, many governments are now stupidly giving the cookie to migrants in the face of a local populace. That doesn't help anything.

The fraud that happens with benefits in Europe from those who've come from elsewhere is immense. Sure some locals do it to but it's totally out of proportion.

Ukrainians waltz into Germany where the vast majority of the country isn't a conflict zone. They get an apartment fully paid, health insurance and over 500€ a month. Someone working full time in retail has less after expenses. Who was in the classroom next to me yesterday? Vietnamese learning Germany to become aged care workers. Brilliant to have them but it just reinforces the absolute lack of will to help the local populace into work with lack of pathways and bring in cheap and controllable labour from abroad.

There's the sentiment that you must be really stupid not to find work when you've got foreigners around who can't speak the language. Not at all, companies just go for the cheapest and now almost non viable option in service jobs. I'm shocked how few staff in Berlin service roles speak incredibly little German. The standards 20 years ago just wouldn't have permitted it.
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While it is easy to view immigration as the root cause of economic and social strain, the underlying culprits are often underfunded public services, a lack of investment in vocational training for un or low-skilled locals, and systemic corporate practices....

Putting the blame on immigration often masks the structural failures that have been building for decades.

You're also looking at the demographic cliff. With aging populations and shrinking workforces, industries from healthcare to food production rely heavily on foreign labour simply to keep basic infrastructure running.
 
Football us life said:
While it is easy to view immigration as the root cause of economic and social strain, the underlying culprits are often underfunded public services, a lack of investment in vocational training for un or low-skilled locals, and systemic corporate practices....

Putting the blame on immigration often masks the structural failures that have been building for decades.

You're also looking at the demographic cliff. With aging populations and shrinking workforces, industries from healthcare to food production rely heavily on foreign labour simply to keep basic infrastructure running.
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I don't think it's the root cause yet it is a strong factor that is detrimental to social and economic cohesion as it's done so poorly. Thankfully Australia is still better at immigration than Europe. I've acknowledged the failure of governments and why couldn't they have just set up systems for organic growth? Now the chickens have come home to roost they're relying on flooding places with people from elsewhere with different cultural values at a cut price. This doesn't help anyone. It's influenced by billionaires and politicians implement it.

It's not just the west. You've got Mexicans protesting against Hondurans. Colombians want the Venezuelans gone. South Africa have been hunting people from neighbouring countries.
 
JS96 said:
I don't think it's the root cause yet it is a strong factor that is detrimental to social and economic cohesion as it's done so poorly. Thankfully Australia is still better at immigration than Europe. I've acknowledged the failure of governments and why couldn't they have just set up systems for organic growth? Now the chickens have come home to roost they're relying on flooding places with people from elsewhere with different cultural values at a cut price. This doesn't help anyone. It's influenced by billionaires and politicians implement it.

It's not just the west. You've got Mexicans protesting against Hondurans. Colombians want the Venezuelans gone. South Africa have been hunting people from neighbouring countries.
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Yep... Good post!
 
JS96 said:
I don't think it's the root cause yet it is a strong factor that is detrimental to social and economic cohesion as it's done so poorly. Thankfully Australia is still better at immigration than Europe. I've acknowledged the failure of governments and why couldn't they have just set up systems for organic growth? Now the chickens have come home to roost they're relying on flooding places with people from elsewhere with different cultural values at a cut price. This doesn't help anyone. It's influenced by billionaires and politicians implement it.

It's not just the west. You've got Mexicans protesting against Hondurans. Colombians want the Venezuelans gone. South Africa have been hunting people from neighbouring countries.
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I presume that by 'organic growth' you mean increase population by the locals. Countries around the world are seeing local population growth decline, regardless of wealth or social status. It was originally thought that as women became more educated the number of offspring decreased but that hasn't been the whole story. Then came the idea that couples wanted to be financially secure before starting families but that would contradict the ethos of a market economy. Then came the social change that people wanted to live a life before settling down, that is, travel, do things that you would not have time to do when you have kids. And the latest observation is that with the introduction of 5G and cheap telephony, people are just that not interested in having kids (hence low income people in 3rd world countries no longer have large families). Then of course there is the added welfare net of aged care (who needs kids), longer and better quality of life expectancy.

Have governments tried different policies? Yes. Of all political persuasions and economic school of thoughts. From tax breaks, subsidised education and housing, etc. So short of declaring a dictatorship where people are forced at gun point to have kids, nothing has worked. The only communities that do have more kids are the religious fanatics.

Australia and Japan are lucky in that they do not have a shared land border with anyone, unlike Europe or the USA. So for Australia & Japan you need to look at internal migration, that is people that are natural citizens but move to live elsewhere. I have lost count of the number of Sydney refugees that I have met in Melbourne. Most of my friends are refugees from rural Australia. Indeed 50 years ago you could travel between Ballarat & Bendigo and see lots of towns with populations n the 5000s. Not anymore. In japan, although the population has dropped from 128M in 1999 down to 124M today, Greater Tokyo has increased from 30M to 34M. Osaka has also grown.

As people from different cultures values arriving here? Well for starters, don't invade those countries. Oh, and the Vietnamese have now settled quite well as have the Italians and Greeks before them.
 
WhatAmIWatching said:
I presume that by 'organic growth' you mean increase population by the locals. Countries around the world are seeing local population growth decline, regardless of wealth or social status. It was originally thought that as women became more educated the number of offspring decreased but that hasn't been the whole story. Then came the idea that couples wanted to be financially secure before starting families but that would contradict the ethos of a market economy. Then came the social change that people wanted to live a life before settling down, that is, travel, do things that you would not have time to do when you have kids. And the latest observation is that with the introduction of 5G and cheap telephony, people are just that not interested in having kids (hence low income people in 3rd world countries no longer have large families). Then of course there is the added welfare net of aged care (who needs kids), longer and better quality of life expectancy.

Have governments tried different policies? Yes. Of all political persuasions and economic school of thoughts. From tax breaks, subsidised education and housing, etc. So short of declaring a dictatorship where people are forced at gun point to have kids, nothing has worked. The only communities that do have more kids are the religious fanatics.

Australia and Japan are lucky in that they do not have a shared land border with anyone, unlike Europe or the USA. So for Australia & Japan you need to look at internal migration, that is people that are natural citizens but move to live elsewhere. I have lost count of the number of Sydney refugees that I have met in Melbourne. Most of my friends are refugees from rural Australia. Indeed 50 years ago you could travel between Ballarat & Bendigo and see lots of towns with populations n the 5000s. Not anymore. In japan, although the population has dropped from 128M in 1999 down to 124M today, Greater Tokyo has increased from 30M to 34M. Osaka has also grown.

As people from different cultures values arriving here? Well for starters, don't invade those countries. Oh, and the Vietnamese have now settled quite well as have the Italians and Greeks before them.
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Fair points that women’s roles have changed and lifestyles and technology have distracted.

Yet migrants from the Orient and Africa have a lot of children in the west. That shows the role women have and as they've moved from what is a much lower base, the money provided by the state is enough for them to live and not complain compared to their home country.

A lot of westerners born up until 1996 had ideals of having a family but for many the economic squeeze only got harder and that ship has sailed. Had there been policies to support them then more local births wouldn't have needed knee jerk migration spikes.

The Vietnamese aren't an issue anywhere but if people from anywhere are brought in en masse to undercut local wages that's an issue.

The ME countries with past conflicts have settled a lot since then so there's no reason for people to leave. There are millions who live there and enjoy their culture and country. These countries are gladly letting their criminals and deviants go to Europe to then send money home. European welfare is a great drive of economic activity in Syria and Afghanistan.
 
JS96 said:
Fair points that women’s roles have changed and lifestyles and technology have distracted.

Yet migrants from the Orient and Africa have a lot of children in the west. That shows the role women have and as they've moved from what is a much lower base, the money provided by the state is enough for them to live and not complain compared to their home country.

A lot of westerners born up until 1996 had ideals of having a family but for many the economic squeeze only got harder and that ship has sailed. Had there been policies to support them then more local births wouldn't have needed knee jerk migration spikes.

The Vietnamese aren't an issue anywhere but if people from anywhere are brought in en masse to undercut local wages that's an issue.

The ME countries with past conflicts have settled a lot since then so there's no reason for people to leave. There are millions who live there and enjoy their culture and country. These countries are gladly letting their criminals and deviants go to Europe to then send money home. European welfare is a great drive of economic activity in Syria and Afghanistan.
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The Orient refers to the countries in the East and South East of Asia, that is, China, Japan, the Koreas, Indonesia, etc. And the first three have negative population growth.
I was born in the 60s and by the time I finished high school (cohort of 120) no one wanted a large family. And when we have high school reunions, only a handful have more than two kids and about a quarter opting not to have kids. A sample of one but a generalisation that 'up until 1996' really needs evidence. Indeed, when Napoleon Bonaparte conducted the first census about 30% of the adult population did not have kids.
First generations migrants may have a lot of kids but a pertinent question is what happens with second generation migrants.
The ME have settled? Lebanon is getting bombarded, Yemen is a hell hole, Syria remains in a state of conflict, Iraq remains in a state of conflict, Iran is getting bombarded, and the African Arabic countries are getting bombarded and Lybia remains in a state of civil war. Basically all around the Sahara is in a state of conflict. If this is your idea of settled, then so be it but I would not consider going there on a work trip let alone on a holiday.
The Economist over a decade ago had a chart that remittances from migrants from poor countries account for a large % of GDP. IIRC The Phillipines was about 12%. If the money was earnt through the selling of their labour or investments, then what they do with the money is their choice.
One topic that is never raised is how long does it take for people to pacify when they flee conflict or are part of the conflict. It was noted that domestic violence increased after the WW1 & 2 veterans returned home - read 'My Brother Jack' for an autobiographical description (note that the book bored me to death). This is pertinent because the rise of crime by the ME migrants isn't being done by the adults who fled, it is by their children. So even, if countries were so well run that they could determine who were the criminals & deviants, they would have to detect them in the children.
Another topic that is rarely raised is why are men increasingly not wanting to have children (see example above).
Fully agree with the undercutting of wages and increase strain in resources. And I reiterate, that policies have been in place in some shape or another for the last 60 years in Australia.
Finally, why does it matter about population growth? Culturally, today's generation would struggle to have a conversation with someone born 100 years ago. If you have an interest in the English language, see how far back you can read text in the original. Even experts who translate these text into modern English caution that the context and meanings have changed through out the centuries. Example, see the etymology of the word 'humour'. Economically? Well all that means is that economic theory is flawed with an increase in robotics and AI we should be fine.
 
I wouldn't think it's fake news when the constant headlines are we're having fewer children but some numbers would be interesting.

By Orient is was referring to Turkey and surrounding areas stemming into the ME. Syria and Iraq and functional now with people leading more regular lives than decades past. You've got Western vloggers and European diaspora visiting. Libya has always been a basket case while the rest of North Africa is a European holiday destination. As for Lebanon, why isn't the Lebanese national army retaliating? They're on the sidelines due to Hezbollah being the instigator.

Undoubtedly some migrant groups make net economic contributions but in many European countries there are select sets that don't and are simply on welfare. Their home nations are glad to have them off their hands. The crime is exported and the money is also sent home. In turn educated people from the same country and fed up with those types giving them a bad name.

I guess what makes a certain group a 'problem'? Vastly cultural differences lead to some unfair interpretations but when stats show crime way out of proportion it's just pattern recognition. In Europe you don't hear about the Vietnamese, Brazilian or Canadian kids running gangs. Algerians, Afghans and Syrians meanwhile.
 
I have recently returned from Sweden visiting family. Middle Eastern & South American gangs are a problem. I haven't ventured to Spain but I have Spanish colleagues that claim that South American gangs are a problem. Canadians are never a problem although in the 70s & 80s they had some awful bands that would qualify Canada as a destination for nukes.
 
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