COVID19 - Melbourne Protest Should've Been Cancelled Until a Safer Time [Poll]

[Deactivated] on 11/06/2020 - 12:16
Last edited 12/06/2020 - 10:13 by 3 other users

I don't have anything against peoples right to protest. but there is a level of stupidity about protesting in the middle of a pandemic. Considering the whole country has been in a level of lockdown for months and the protesters where urged 'not to protest' if they could keep social distancing, until things got 100% clear the state government needs to be held accountable and the organizers of this protest need to at least given heavy fines.

Coronavirus live updates: Black Lives Matter protester in Victoria tests positive for coronavirus

What are peoples thoughts?

Poll Options

  • 1415
    I agree the protest should have been cancelled till a safer time
  • 199
    I disagree i think the protests timing was no issue
Health & Beauty COVID-19

Comments

                • payton on 11/06/2020 - 15:24
                  +6

                  @[Deactivated]: So much assistance and goodwill given to them, yet the response is still to be disruptive and pile on some imagined guilt.

                  • [Deactivated] on 11/06/2020 - 18:28

                    @payton: They have the right to do that because of what was done to them.

                    Just because they have the right to do that doesn't mean it is the right thing to do both in terms of virtue and pragmatism.

                • mooney on 11/06/2020 - 15:42
                  +9

                  @[Deactivated]: I should say, every racist I have met towards aboriginals talks about all the sweet stuff the government gives them and feels slighted they don't get the same. That is an issue to take up with the government, not aboriginals.

                  If the government decided to give all white Australians double what they are currently giving aboriginals would you be on the streets demanding aboriginals get the same as white people? Or would you just accept it and get on with your life? (I think I can guess the answer there)

                  And as for your PSA- if you don't want people to question if you are a racist, maybe offer a balanced view of minorities, not some woeful skewed take on them being 'privileged'

                  • [Deactivated] on 11/06/2020 - 16:28
                    +12

                    @mooney:

                    if you don't want people to question if you are a racist not PC, maybe offer a balanced view of minorities, not some woeful skewed take on them being 'privileged'

                    Just because someone is not PC does not make someone a sexist, racist, etc.

                    Perhaps Ontheshred may be insensitive, he may have some prejudice, he may be a lot of things but calling someone racist at every opportunity just makes the word lose its potency.

                    • mooney on 11/06/2020 - 21:42
                      +1

                      @[Deactivated]: I also said he might be uneducated, give me that.

                      Good to know you're so concerned about the power of the word racism. For a brief second I thought you were massively trivialising the protest in Australia and I realise now I've misinterpreted, you're messages were coming from a place or concern.

                      Bless you tshow. Keep fighting the power.

              • Trying2SaveABuck on 11/06/2020 - 15:16
                +20

                @mooney: Im not against Aboriginals i simply stated a fact

                "a per person basis, government welfare expenditure was $13,968 per Indigenous Australian, compared with $6,019 per non-Indigenous Australian in 2012–13—this equates to expenditure of $2.32 per Indigenous person for every $1.00 spent per non-Indigenous person."

                https://www.aihw.gov.au/reports/indigenous-health-welfare/in…

                There is my source

                I am just saying how can aboriginals compare themselves to what is happening to afro Americans they are given more privileges then people who migrated here with NOTHING after the 2nd world war yet they are still complaining

                What happened to them is horrible i dont deny that and those who are responsible should be brought to justice but lines like burn 'Australia down' i will never support - I will certainly not support any mass gathering when a pandemic is on.

                • mooney on 11/06/2020 - 15:31
                  +12

                  @Trying2SaveABuck: We give every aboriginal an extra $1.32 per person vs non indigenous therefore they should shut up and not complain about anything?

                  I think what you are failing to grasp is offering indigenous Australians money mightn't be what they are after, they have had their tradition trampled, their families torn apart, they are a shell shocked race… then the lovely white man who has caused all of this devastation chucks a few quid and say stop complaining.

                  Why do you even care what they get? If you are unhappy with what the Australian government gives to white Australians or recent immigrants then fine, you should raise that as an issue and fight for a better social contract, but to look with envy at all the great stuff that the indigenous Australians get is misguided.

                  As for 'Burn Australia Down' - I dont support that sentiment, but would be good to understand why someone feels like that, no?

                  And you mightn't support a protest during a pandemic but its possible that is because the cause isn't one that is important to you. If the government passed a new tax rate of 80% on your earnings I bet you might have something to say… not sure you would wait a couple of months whilst the virus dies down a little??

                  • Trying2SaveABuck on 11/06/2020 - 15:41
                    +5

                    @mooney: Im going back to my original point GF died at the hands of a police officer there is a argument that afro Americans are treated like 2nd class citizens in the USA. Your whole tangent about Aboriginals has nothing to do with what happen to GF

                    Other then being 'black' there is no connection Aboriginal people get 130% more funding then non-Aboriginal people in AUSTRALIA

                    In the USA Afro Americans are not afford this privilege

                    I dont like what happened to the Aboriginals like i dont like what happened to the Jewish and Yugoslavic Communities in WW2 but that isnt what these protest were meant to be about the fact that a pandemic is going on and the organizers still held to push there agenda is reckless at selfish.

                    • mooney on 11/06/2020 - 16:07
                      +15

                      @Trying2SaveABuck: I think we will go around in circles. Because you don't see the racism and lack of opportunities afforded aboriginals you think the 130% more funding is a solution to their underlying problem. It isn't (otherwise it would've fixed it)

                      Who are you to say why people protested recently? For some I am sure it was solidarity with the USA, for others it will be a stand against police brutality, for others it is fight for equality, for others it is against systemic racism in Australia, etc etc… just because these issues might not affect you, doesn't mean they aren't real.

                      I am sorry you are so offended that people rose up whilst we are at the tail end of the coronavirus, you see it as reckless… I saw it as desperation and frustration so whilst I wish it didn't happen during a pandemic I also respect peoples right to stand up for themselves.

                      Nice to talk. Take care.

                  • brendanm on 13/06/2020 - 12:56

                    @mooney:

                    We give every aboriginal an extra $1.32 per person vs non indigenous therefore they should shut up and not complain about anything?

                    Is that actually what you took from all those numbers? I suggest you reread.

                • ThithLord on 11/06/2020 - 15:38
                  +10

                  @Trying2SaveABuck:

                  Indigenous Australians were twice as likely as non-Indigenous Australians to have severe or profound disability

                  The unemployment rate for Indigenous people was 4.2 times as high as the rate for non-Indigenous people

                  Almost half of Indigenous adults reported that either they or their relatives had been removed from their natural family

                  This just breaks my heart, OntheShred.

                  Did you think the Indigenous population lived like this before colonisation? Do you think they battled obesity, alcoholism, drug addictions, poverty, genocide, racism, introduced diseases before colonisation? Every single affliction is due to colonisation. Atrocities have been committed against the First Nations people, mate. Western Society has had thousands upon thousands of years to deal with to these issues and vices. We then thrust capitalism amongst them, bringing all these issues that they NEVER had to deal with and will be felt for generations to come.

                  Can you even tell me one thing they have to be thankful for? The amount of money spent on trying to help them is money we sorely, sorely need to spend and pales in comparison to the damages inflicted upon the First Nations people.

                  • Trying2SaveABuck on 11/06/2020 - 15:48
                    +5

                    @ThithLord: Once again what does that have to do with George Floyds death?

                    We have known about the "obesity, alcoholism, drug addictions, poverty, genocide, racism, introduced diseases before colonisation?"

                    Prior to GF death we have known about what the British did for a long time what does that have to do with a Police man killing an afro american half way around the world?

                    • ThithLord on 11/06/2020 - 15:53
                      +5

                      @Trying2SaveABuck: You brought up the expenditure of Aboriginal vs everyone else. You are obviously not interested whatsoever in learning anything, so we'll finish this thread here.

                      • Trying2SaveABuck on 11/06/2020 - 16:05
                        +9

                        @ThithLord: Lol i brought up this had nothing to do with GF death my point about expenditure is that Afro and Americans and Aboriginal have a very different situation and to liken them to each other is a bit of a disgrace.

                        You and others have gone on about the past tragedies that though i agree were HORRIBLE my point stands what does this have to do with GF death…. The answer is nothing the two are unrelated because as I pointed out Indigenous people are privileged to opportunities Afro Americans could only dream of - Weather they take them or not is a different debate and should be a different protest. Putting your fingers in your ears and shouting 'racism' is exactly why things will never get better and one the who-ha is over no one will care and sadly the indigenous community will be the ones to suffer

                        I think your the one who doesnt want to learn anything…

          • p1 ama on 11/06/2020 - 16:30
            +6

            @Trying2SaveABuck:

            Im not indigenous and im not white i've never really been given anything from the government

            I don't know enough to comment about your other points, but this is a stinking crock of bullshit.

            You've never taken public transport, never driven on publicly financed roads, never gone to school, never gone to university, never gone to hospital or your local GP with medicare, never sat at home on OzBargain using the NBN, never sat on a park bench, never gone for a walk on a nature reserve, never flown anywhere from an airport, never posted or received anything from AusPost, never called the police or the firies, …etc.

            You've never been given anything from the government? Come on, just come on.

  • DashCam AKA Rolts on 11/06/2020 - 12:57
    +10

    COVID19 - Melbourne Protest Should of Been Cancelled till a Safer Time

    FTFY COVID19 - Melbourne protest should have been cancelled until a safer time.

  • rompastompa on 11/06/2020 - 13:03
    +11

    #elderlylivesmatter

    Same principle applies, this minority group is in danger in the current pandemic. We should focus on the groups that need our attention and do what we can to help them. Every day world wide, an elderly is brutally drowned to death from the inside. We need to stand together against the Covid Contagions.

    Who is with me?

    • Clear on 11/06/2020 - 14:38
      +10

      Nah it's Black Lives or nothing /s Much like how violence against men doesn't exist apparently ;/

    • abb on 11/06/2020 - 20:26
      +1

      Yes, that's why we've all modified our way of life quite significantly, continuously, for the last 4 months.

      If we had shut down the country every time there was a hate crime in the past 5 years, well, I don't think there'd be any pubs or restaurants left to close for covid.

  • ausdday on 11/06/2020 - 13:17
    +6

    Where's the option Fine him $1600 and then treat him, same for all the protesters.

    Victoria will have extra 16 millions to spend.

    • Zephyrus on 11/06/2020 - 16:26
      +1

      Yeah, because we should really let politicians know that a legitimate response to protests is to fine the lot of them.

      Personally, I think the right to protest is an integral part of a well functioning democracy, but if you'd rather live in an authoritarian dictatorship, there's plenty of places willing to take you in. I hear North Korea is lovely this time of year.

      • [Deactivated] on 11/06/2020 - 16:31
        +9

        The $1,600 fine is because people ignoring the pandemic protocol places a financial burden through our healthcare system.

        The penalty wasn't introduced just prior to these protests. It does not target protesters. Protestors are not exempt from disease nor the penalty for spreading diseases.

      • ausdday on 11/06/2020 - 16:46
        +10

        Personally, I think the right to protest is an integral part of a well functioning democracy

        Totally agree with this.

        However, did they break the law, yes. Should they be immune to prosecution because they are protesting, don't think so.

        There are ways they can protest, they can occupy bourke street, observe social distancing rule, keep everyone safe, but no, they have to gather shoulder to shoulder, and do the marching in a group of 10000.

        If they spread the virus and cause someone's death, e.g., their family member, friends, society, should they be charged manslaughter? Why should someone be immune to prosecution just because they are protesting?

  • wallet72 on 11/06/2020 - 13:32
    +9

    I don't know the alternative, but I think the age of the protest being effective is over. Politicians tend to ignore them, media apply spin to them, sometimes they dissolve into vandalism, I just think they are not the force they used to be or could be.

    I mean look at the protests from the weekend. The media and focus is more on how 'thoughtless' the protesters were, how they should be locked away, etc etc. It's not really getting the message through.

    What else can be done?

    Would something like a week/month long blockade of something important be better? I have doubts because of the media spin and the 'instant hit' headline mentality that would see this fade into the background.

    • mooney on 11/06/2020 - 13:37
      +16

      Hmmm, what is happening in USA right now suggests otherwise.

      NFL has changed its tune, Nascar has banned the Confederate flag, the funding of the police is being reviewed, police qualified immunity is being challenged. This was ALL unthinkable a month ago.

      Maybe nothing will come of it (history suggests it wont) but the people are definitely being heard.

      • wallet72 on 11/06/2020 - 14:29
        +6

        yeah that's a good point, the US has seen changes. I wish we had the same changes here.

        • abb on 11/06/2020 - 20:29
          +4

          I dare say if Sydney and Melbourne had riots for 2 weeks straight we'd see a lot of changes too.

  • kanmen on 11/06/2020 - 13:40
    +11

    If you walk into your local shopping centre, markets and local parks, you'll see that they are packed with people not wearing masks and not observing social distancing as if nothing was ever awry.

    These protests were organised, with hand sanitiser and masks widely available and people knew they had to be cautious. The only other difference is with one you're going to know whether you may have caught COVID-19 because it was a highly publicised event with attention drawn to it, and the other you're not because no one knows who was near a confirmed case when and where. I'm sure there are people out there who have COVID-19 in public but you'll never know if you came into contact with them.

    • ThithLord on 11/06/2020 - 13:46
      +12

      Also, let's open the footy! but protesting incarceration rates and deaths of the Indigenous population in custody is bad.

  • DingoBilly on 11/06/2020 - 14:02
    +3

    I feel like people here don't understand the point of protests/how they work.

    It's not a picnic you just reschedule to a convenient time… a lot of it is timing-specific and it's about showing that these issues are more important than worrying about a pandemic. Yeah, maybe people do get sick, maybe people even do die - but the point is that it's more important to get out there and protest than to worry about that aspect.

    It's such a bizarre notion. Like "Oh, it looks like it'll be cloudy today, sorry guys, let's reschedule for a sunny day! :)." I imagine the poll is largely dictated by people who don't care about the issues and so for them it's more about protecting their interests which in this case is getting back to normal by not spreading COVID rather than recognizing the importance of the protests.

    Understand that people don't care about certain topics but bit disappointing overall.

    • ThithLord on 11/06/2020 - 14:10
      -4

      I imagine the poll is largely dictated by people who don't care about the issues and so for them it's more about protecting their interests which in this case is getting back to normal by not spreading COVID rather than recognizing the importance of the protests.

      Ding, Ding, Ding, Ding.

      I love all the down-voters - absolutely cowardly just down-voting and not responding.

      • tsunamisurfer on 11/06/2020 - 14:37
        +21

        I love all the down-voters - absolutely cowardly just down-voting and not responding.

        Isn't it lovely when people who don't agree with you can be labelled cowards, uneducated or racists?

        • ThithLord on 11/06/2020 - 14:38
          +3

          Uhh, you're the one whom deducted that that's what DingoBilly meant. I guess you've got a guilty conscious.

      • SnakeCasablanca on 11/06/2020 - 17:22
        +4

        I love all the down-voters - absolutely cowardly just down-voting and not responding.

        I love how when people are feeling as righteous as you the rules change.

        Have you lambasted downvoters who don't comment as cowards before.

        Have you ever downvoted before without leaving a comment?

        Was this due to you being a pitiful coward?

        Or is it alright when you do it to others but not when others do it to you?

        Do you not think the downvoted exists to say… "I disagree but couldn't be effed discussing it with you"?

        Anyway. Just pointing out how stupid your self righteous indignation is.

    • Tech5 on 11/06/2020 - 14:12
      +5

      Your argument doesn't address the issue here.

      You state that "It is more important to get out there and protest than to worry about (Corona virus morbidity and mortality)." Who says this? What kind of proof or moral and ethical standing are you relying on to make that statement? What if we made it personal and said, choose between protesting or one random loved one of yours dying. Which would you pick?

      You use the example of a cloudy vs. sunny day to support your argument. Let me know when rain causes infectious disease and death, then I will believe you. At the end of the day, competing interests needs to be judged not only from an ethical perspective, but also from a public health perspective. Priorities need to be made in extreme circumstances like this.

      Noone says that people "dont care". I'm sure all decent human beings care. But they also care about lives being lost. I would call myself left on the political spectrum, but I still do not support protests at this time. I volunteer for homeless services in a city with the highest percentage of Indigenous population in Australia. I give free Dental treatment to those Indigenous in need. I fly out to communities to perform these as well. This is not boasting or tooting my own horn. This is to make you understand that people who do care about Indigenous issues, also care about other issues too.

      Noone is saying don't protest. We are saying don't protest in the middle of a pandemic. It needs to be a balance.

  • bhm133 on 11/06/2020 - 14:33
    +1

    I give it two weeks.

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0uYB2y3zP-s

  • p1 ama on 11/06/2020 - 14:37
    +4

    I think it's disingenuous to use science for political purposes.

    Don't believe me? When the effects of the lockdown were largely felt by the poorer working class (who are increasingly leaning right, especially in the US) and the effects on the managerial class (who are increasingly leaning left, especially in the US) were quite small, of course "the left" were generally for lockdown measures and perceived anybody who defied these orders and went to protest as irresponsible and tyrannical.

    Of course, now that "the left" has found a cause to protest dear to their hearts which "the right" disagrees with, of course, "the left" think it's fine to go outside and all of a sudden "the right" (who were all just protesting a few weeks ago) are criticising those out protesting.

    Basically my view is that this is all horrendously stupid and cherry picking. I'm left leaning, but I'm a social libertarian. I supported the right of those protesting the lockdowns before, I support the right of those protesting today.

    Ultimately, I think that all of this is a false dichotomy. Lockdown measures were way too harsh. They've killed the worldwide economy and the only reason we locked down was because China did and told everyone that it was a successful policy. History will judge us poorly for locking down.

    The latest data from Bergamo, Italy shows that up to 57% of the population already got COVID-19 and now have antibodies (https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2020/06/09/half-people-test…). If we generalise this number to the Lombardy region in general, the population is around 10 mil, with deaths in the region sitting at around 16,000. If around 5 mil people have gotten COVID-19, the CFR (case fatality rate) is only 0.3% (which is around 3 times higher than the flu), but not that much higher.

    Ultimately, in terms of seriousness, this should have been similar to the swine flu outbreak and probably would have followed the same trajectory in terms of public policy if it weren't for China coming out and lecturing to the world about lockdowns and trying to portray themselves as better than they are. Comparing COVID-19 to the Spanish Flu (which had a CFR over 10 times higher) is silly and irrelevant.

    The problem is that most people want to "do the right thing" and talking about deaths is uncomfortable. However, the truth is that the majority of us will get COVID-19 anyway, 25% of New York has already gotten it, 17% of London has already gotten it. The truth is that we're going to have a hugely vulnerable population. Countries like Australia have gambled on a vaccine being found in a short amount of time.

    If there's a vaccine in the next few months, then the bet would have paid off. If there's no vaccine for another 3 years, then the US, Europe and the UK have gotten a huge leg up on us.

    • [Deactivated] on 11/06/2020 - 16:57
      +4

      History will judge us poorly for locking down.

      Here's Sweden's covid graph. > 4,000 deaths

      Here's Australia's covid graph. < 110 deaths

      My relative died of cancer alone in hospital and I couldn't attend their funeral.

      To think that more loved ones would be "captured" in a statistic like Sweden's is not something I'd want for myself or anyone else.

      If there's a vaccine in the next few months, then the bet would have paid off. If there's no vaccine for another 3 years, then the US, Europe and the UK have gotten a huge leg up on us.

      Agreed. But if we allow the virus to spread over a period of time, isn't that giving it more opportunity to mutate? Would a person who contracted version 1 of covid-19 be just as susceptible to version 2, 3, and so on? It ends up being a seasonable flu but becomes increasingly deadly each year, maybe not because of the strain itself, but because we'll be aging each year. If the outbreak keeps happening year after year, what happens to our economies year after year? We'll be playing continual chase-up with a new yearly vaccine. (Big Pharma would love that!).

      I have no knowledge in diseases and its mutations so I'll leave it to the experts to comment on that. But it's something that I've been wondering.

      • Triple J on 11/06/2020 - 23:06
        +2

        Sorry for your loss.

      • stewy on 11/06/2020 - 23:38

        Yeah nice cherry pick Sweden because they are worse.

        Why not maybe have a look at Taiwan, similar population to Australia yet a fraction of the COVID cases and deaths, plus no lock down.

        What was the difference? They have a competent Government that acted quickly and didn't do stupid stuff like letting a shipload of infected passengers out into the community.

        • [Deactivated] on 12/06/2020 - 01:32
          +4

          Here's Taiwan's covid graph. 7 deaths

          What was the difference?

          Taiwan citizens were also very committed to wearing face masks. Would you be willing to wear one? Would we get a high compliance rate in Australia?

          Government that acted quickly and didn't do stupid stuff like letting a shipload of infected passengers out into the community.

          Yep. Taiwan have experience with this sort of stuff. I guess Australia now has hindsight from this encounter and can do things differently/better the next time if something like this happens again. The cruise incident was beyond idiotic. I still can't fathom the decision actually.

          Agreed. I also think that the government should have shut the borders earlier, but they didn't or couldn't due to political and economic reasons. Earlier recovery would have led to an earlier resumption of the economy and a much shorter lockdown period!

          Each country has different factors to deal with. Some similar. Some different.

    • Trying2SaveABuck on 11/06/2020 - 17:29

      @P1ama maybe look at how Sweden are doing with pretty much no measures…

    • trapper on 11/06/2020 - 17:59

      If there's no vaccine for another 3 years, then the US, Europe and the UK have gotten a huge leg up on us.

      You could not be more wrong. If there is no vaccine for the next three years then these places will probably still be under restrictions the entire time.

      • [Deactivated] on 11/06/2020 - 21:01

        So will we.

    • Mrgreenz on 12/06/2020 - 16:33
      +3

      Where are you geting your figures from?

      25% of NYC already had it?

      Swime flu more comparable to Covid than spanish flu? On what metric?

      The telegraph?

  • whooah1979 on 11/06/2020 - 14:42
    +2

    People make their own choices. Anyone that attended the protests knew that it was a possibility that they could get infected. They can now enjoy their 14 days of isolation.

    • p1 ama on 11/06/2020 - 14:46
      +3

      People make their own choices.

      You would think that this is just the common sense solution.

  • Seraphin7 on 11/06/2020 - 14:50
    +7

    I'm livid on this topic.

    Here in NSW, you have a government and its police force that told people who don't restrict funerals to the requisite number of people that they will instruct the coroner to collect the body of the deceased MID-SERVICE.

    On the other hand, when angry mobs of THOUSANDS want to gather with no regard for social distancing requirements, they're suddenly completely impotent when to enforcing the law.

    This is the same government that's brought you 20 DEATHS linked to the Ruby Princess debacle and it seems to be business as usual in Macquarie Street.

    One has to wonder at precisely how many BILLIONS these two decisions alone have already and will cost the country.

    • GG57 on 11/06/2020 - 15:23
      +2

      In NSW, the government did attempt to prevent it legally, but the protest was deemed to be legal on appeal, before it started.

    • whooah1979 on 11/06/2020 - 15:32

      The NSW Court of appeals ruled that the protest in Sydney was lawful. There was nothing the police could do but stand and watch.

      VIC in the other hand go it right.
      https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-06-06/melbourne-black-lives…

      As the protest was breaking up, Victoria Police issued a statement saying each of the organisers would be fined $1,652 for breaching the directions of the Chief Health Officer.

      Old news but related.
      https://www.sbs.com.au/news/melbourne-refugee-protesters-fin…

      Victoria Police has arrested one refugee advocate and fined dozens of others a total of $43,000 for breaching coronavirus stay at home orders by conducting a protest

      • GG57 on 11/06/2020 - 15:58
        +3

        End of discussion then.
        The (state) government did what it could.

      • Seraphin7 on 11/06/2020 - 16:03
        +3

        The Court of Appeal only allowed the protest to happen. Why was no one fined for breaching the social distancing rules? Why did the Police Minister and Police Commissioner not adopt a "zero tolerance" approach here?

        Mob mentality rules again … all while those who wish to grieve the passing of loved ones with family are told to go jump.

        • whooah1979 on 11/06/2020 - 18:22

          The CoA allowing the protest to proceed was effectively saying "stuff the Public Health Act 2010 No 127". Anyone that received a fine during the protest could use CoA ruling as a defence.

      • Aneurism on 12/06/2020 - 02:12
        +1

        Organizers should be held financially accountable to be sued for future deaths linked in relation to virus spread by people who attended the protest if shown that they did not adequately implement and enforce proper protections

  • Godric on 11/06/2020 - 14:52
    +9

    It puts everyone's effort who have been in lockdown at risk of being for nothing

    • GG57 on 11/06/2020 - 15:26
      +2

      Not everyone.
      Certainly the people that attended the protest, or other large gatherings recently, have put themselves at risk.
      And potentially the people that the protesters subsequently come into contact with, but if they follow the social distancing and hygiene recommendations those contacts should be ok.

      • ssquid on 11/06/2020 - 15:50
        +9

        Yes everyone.
        More infections make it less likely that restrictions will be relaxed in the near future.
        The longer restrictions are in effect, the more the economy suffers which ultimately affects everyone.

        • trapper on 11/06/2020 - 17:44
          +5

          Exactly. Every single new locally acquired case pushes out the end of restrictions.

          Everyone pays for this stupidity.

          • abb on 11/06/2020 - 20:32
            +1

            @trapper: Except the people who prefer lockdown ;)

    • nwa on 11/06/2020 - 15:53
      +3

      I think people especially business people don't like the fact there was a rule for them different rule for others, simply because all branches of power did not want to handle or confront the mass mob.

  • Muzeeb on 11/06/2020 - 16:15
    +5

    Plenty of people rocked up to the Melbourne F1 GP and got told to bugger off and go home.

    What makes these protesters so privileged and entitled to be allowed to proceed?

    • DarwinBoy on 12/06/2020 - 09:45
      +1

      That was 3 months ago. The world then was a completely different place and if we haven't learnt anything since then we are in more trouble then I realised.

  • [Deactivated] on 11/06/2020 - 16:17
    +2

    Where's the option SCOMO could have stopped it by actually listening to the grievances of 1,000s of Australians? The best way to stop a protest from happening is to take away the need for people to protest. He chose not to.

    • Mrgreenz on 11/06/2020 - 19:11
      +3

      Lmao if u actually belive that

    • [Deactivated] on 11/06/2020 - 19:22
      +2

      I'll protest for free speech to be written into the Australian constitution.

      I'll protest for hate speech laws the next day.

      Where's your diplomacy now? Jajajaja

      • [Deactivated] on 11/06/2020 - 19:26

        This is what they are asking

      • abb on 11/06/2020 - 20:33
        +1

        @tshow - cool, hope to see you the rest of your activist organisation on the streets after the pandemic. I support both your causes, if there's no cheap parmie deal at the pub that day I might join you.

        • [Deactivated] on 11/06/2020 - 20:46

          Ah you fair weathered parmie thrifting comrade. May your crumbs be soggy and your meats too dry.

  • newydeals on 11/06/2020 - 16:20
    +1

    When is there going to be a safer time to protest? Until a vaccine is provided to everyone? Community transmission are very rare at this point, testing is readily available, everyone is concerned about hygiene.

  • GG57 on 11/06/2020 - 16:26
    +3

    Has no-one raised the "but we couldn't have Anzac Day" argument yet?

  • michaelTito on 11/06/2020 - 16:28

    No one saw that coming at all.

  • Ononono on 11/06/2020 - 16:40
    +10

    I hope the protesters are punished the same way any other lockdown violation would be punished. How is it fair to fine people for having a dinner party or closing down businesses for months but then allow tens of thousands to gather in a protest with no consequences? Do we live in a society ruled by mob now?

    Personally I think protesting is such a lazy solution, if they really wanted to help the indigenous communities then there are better constructive ways than yelling loudly and high fiving each other over their wokeness and virtue signalling. The fact it was done during a pandemic is even more stupid and selfish.

    If you really look at our issues, they are in fact very different to the situation in America and conflating them together is just lazy and detracts from the real problems that exist in our Aboriginal communities.

    • GG57 on 11/06/2020 - 16:45

      Re the punishments, whooah1979 posted this earlier:

      "VIC in the other hand go it right.
      https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-06-06/melbourne-black-lives…

      As the protest was breaking up, Victoria Police issued a statement saying each of the organisers would be fined $1,652 for breaching the directions of the Chief Health Officer."

      • BluebirdV on 11/06/2020 - 21:07
        +1

        They should have issued fines to everyone attending.

    • [Deactivated] on 11/06/2020 - 17:11
      +4

      wokeness and virtue signalling

      In this clip, you can see a protester take off her face mask when she realised she was on television.

      The phenomenon seems to be: this.

      our Aboriginal communities

      The mid-pandemic protest is also self-defeating from a health perspective.

      The most vulnerable populations are those in our Aboriginal communities. If the covid-positive protester had started another infection chain, guess who's more likely to get sick?

      • seabombs on 12/06/2020 - 16:54

        you can see a protester take off her face mask when she realised she was on television

        Which person? The girl at the start? She already had her mask down at the beginning of the clip.

        Also, great effort by the in-the-field reporter to make the protest look like it was on the verge of rioting or something. She was way too amped up reporting on people walking down a street. The buses had to wait? Good lord! What hath these vile protestors wrought upon our fair city?

        • [Deactivated] on 12/06/2020 - 20:10

          Which person? The girl at the start?

          No, the one on the LHS who removed her mask. Around 15 second mark.

          the protest look like it was on the verge of rioting or something

          Fascinating. I thought it was a peaceful march. What made you see it that way?

    • abb on 11/06/2020 - 20:34

      Do we live in a society ruled by mob now?

      That is a fair approximation of democracy, so yes.

      • nwa on 11/06/2020 - 23:06

        Mob rule is not a form of democracy because the rest of the people have not voted and I'm only guessing if they had voted given by this forum poll majority did not want protests to go ahead. This is quite the opposite of democracy i.e the principle or practice of equality of rights, opportunity, and treatment.

  • OzzyOzbourne on 11/06/2020 - 16:47
    +4

    Doing something illegal that might cost someone's life or cause others great suffering doesn't seem to be the best way to protest about something illegal which took someone's life and caused suffering.

  • Intoxicoligist on 11/06/2020 - 17:11
    +4

    Wow the comments here are (profanity) up. BLM

    • Tech5 on 11/06/2020 - 17:14
      +1

      I see a lot of (profanity) up comments in America where they say all lives matter. That is wrong in the way they use it. That is, why focus on black lives, why not white lives, why not asian lives. They use it to divert attention from the problem.

      This is different though. This is all lives matter in the literal sense. There is a pandemic that disproportionately kills the elderly and frail, regardless of colour

      • kanmen on 11/06/2020 - 17:35
        +1

        Well actually, in the US it does seem to impact people of colour more disproportionately. And in Australia, Indigenous people are amongst the most vulnerable, yet they organised this protest? Doesn't that say something to you?

        • Tech5 on 11/06/2020 - 17:42

          One person cannot decide to risk someone else. I read above there is a forced 14 day quarantine? If thats the case, im more than happy for people to protest

  • trapper on 11/06/2020 - 17:36
    +3

    The continuing trickle of new community acquired cases keeps pushing the end of this disaster further and further away.

    These protests will certainly contribute to this and absolutely should not have gone ahead.

    It's not about individual risk.

  • Herbse on 11/06/2020 - 17:45
    -7

    Virus was a hoax. Who cares.

    • Tech5 on 11/06/2020 - 17:47
      +2

      There is always one

    • ssquid on 11/06/2020 - 17:49
      +11

      Man, those 405K people who pretended to be dead. What pranksters!

    • TEER3X on 11/06/2020 - 18:46
      +2

      Nah it's real, 5g caused it

      /s

  • umoddbro on 11/06/2020 - 17:55
    +3

    Very reckless, I'm all for the protests but nows not the time. We've been doing so well with stopping the spread why risk another wave?

  • [Deactivated] on 11/06/2020 - 18:12

    No normal person is actually out there 'protesting' so..

    Just leave this here for the rainbow hairs…
    http://stonetoss.com/comic/black-and-white/

  • MementoMori on 11/06/2020 - 18:17

    Whilst it's good to over react at the start when we don't have good data, history will show the government response to COVID was completely overblown. Mortality rate more or less same as the flu.

    5 mins of looking into the George Floyd event will tell you it's suspect. Sadly, 20 people have died in these 'protests' (rioting and looting) over one death, mostly Black people, including David Dorn (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Death_of_David_Dorn). RIP David.

    Do you really think this is about a virus or caring about fellow humans?

    Deep down you know something doesn't sit right about all of this…

    This is about sowing division and hate (notice how everyone is at each others throats?), this is about the 2020 election.

    Hold onto your seats, we still have 5 months to go and it's just heating up… The craziness is about to go into hyperdrive.

    • Tech5 on 11/06/2020 - 18:26
      +4

      Thing about this is, if we over react, we will never know. If we under react, we will definitely know.

      Mortality rate may or may not be same as the flu, but the morbidity is much higher. In countries where it is not under control, a lot of the damage being done is to patients without COVID. People who need to go for dialysis, chemo etc. can't anymore.

      • MementoMori on 11/06/2020 - 18:30
        -1

        Like I said in my post overreacting initially, was the right thing to do.

        The morbidity rate also same (more or less) as the flu. Not to mention - can we really trust these numbers?

        People who need to go for dialysis, chemo etc. AREN'T going to hospitals right now either because they are scared of COVID.

        I wonder how many cancers are not being diagnosed?

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