« Lest We Forget | Main | Newt Defects to the Enemy »
April 20, 2008
Australian Health Experts Push toward Totalitarianism
From Australia, a nation once known for its rugged, independent spirit:
Smoking would be banned for everyone born next year, junk food would be taxed and everyone would be subjected to a fitness test by 2020. […] These are just a few of the ideas from 100 of the nation's health experts who discussed the best way to combat obesity, reduce illness and promote a healthy lifestyle.
Health Minister Nicola Roxon said one idea put forward in a submission was an annual national fitness test where citizens would receive a financial incentive if they pass.
Free money for passing a fitness test? That's great — except the money isn't free; bureaucrats take it from you and then give you a little bit back if you live as you're told.
Surprisingly, there was no mention of mandatory telescreens, so that authorities can make sure everyone does their morning calisthenics. But then, it goes without saying that anything mentioned in 1984 will be implemented as soon as politically feasible.
Food is to be priced according to "environmental and health impact." I hadn't realized Australia is already a communist country where prices are set not by the market but by politicians.
Another idea is to promote death as a "positive experience." Moonbattery just keeps getting scarier.
On a tip from V the K.
Posted by Van Helsing at April 20, 2008 10:56 AM
Comments
Moonbat frieks decide it isn't enough just to live a life wallowing in narcissistic global warming elitism. Now you must die properly too.
Except for the wet cardboard biodegradable coffins, which are quite an unsightly problem during rainy funerals, there's a huge added cost, but that doesn't bother the rich climate change frieks: "It's about choice, not price".
http://www.breitbart.com/article.php?id=D905FE700&show_article=1
Posted by: mega at April 20, 2008 11:08 AM
Not Australia too!
Posted by: forest at April 20, 2008 11:41 AM
If death is a positive experience, how do they square that with their insistence that people try to live as long as possible?
Posted by: KGB at April 20, 2008 12:54 PM
The smiling face of one of Hollywood's useful idiots makes the totalitarians seem so caring. And the baby is a nice touch as well. It is always for the children.
They Complain that health spending will consume the state budget. How about not having any health spending and let people take care of (or not) themselves?
Posted by: mandy at April 20, 2008 1:08 PM
So people born AFTER next year (which would be Jan 1, 2010) cant smoke? So what will be the penalty? So if some 30 year old guy takes a puff in 2041, is he subject to fines, arrest and imprisonment? Who exactly is going to keep track of this? After all it will like be 2025 or so before kids born in 2010 start smoking. That is absurd. So are cops going to walk abound carding everyone smoking (years from now)? What about people born up to 12/31/2009? They get a pass?
Posted by: Anonymous at April 20, 2008 1:46 PM
How will they reconcile giving everybody fitness tests which are "pass/fail" with the liberal idea that everybody gets to be a winner and equal? I foresee an endless string of lawsuits by "differently abled" persons who can't pass the discriminatory tests and are thus deprived of their government bonus checks.
At one time, virtue was its own reward, now it needs an incentive program...
Posted by: PabloD at April 20, 2008 2:25 PM
"So are cops going to walk abound carding everyone smoking (years from now)?"
Can't wait for the green police to be going around demanding: "Your papers, please!"
Of course, this kind of stuff will probably only apply to citizens. It would be a violation of "human rights" to ask a foreigner for ID.
Posted by: forest at April 20, 2008 2:29 PM
Y'know, one of these days, the notion of unintended consequences is going to make a HUGE comeback in the popular imagination. But not quite yet...I'd be sad about this if I wasn't too busy laughing at the utter stupidity of it all.
"PARIS (AFP) - Hailed until only months ago as a silver bullet in the fight against global warming, biofuels are now accused of snatching food out of the mouths of the poor."
http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20080420/ts_afp/foodbiofuelsclimatewarming
Posted by: mega at April 20, 2008 3:14 PM
Good grief! I used to think of Australia as one of the last places to embrace political correctness but they have descended into PC and environmental idiocy, rivaled only by the UK in absurdity.
Posted by: Ed at April 20, 2008 4:09 PM
"Nutritionist Rosemary Stanton suggested increasing the cost of artificial and packaged food."
- - -
Ms Stanton went on to say that no-one who farmed less than ten acres for their own veg and fruit or who did not have at least one rifle for hunting should be forcibly emigrated. "We can easily sustain over 1.2 million people without having to package and ship food. And food you do not grow and pick or slaughter and butcher yourself is an artificial contrivance which must be done away with."
Posted by: teqjack at April 20, 2008 4:14 PM
Hi all,
Australia is really a nice place. But, just like all nice places, a 'left-leaning' government gets voted in (too many young people who don't remember 'the last time') and starts to stuff things up straight away!
The Labor party here is just a group of ex-union delegates, whereas the Liberal (conservative) government is teamed by real workers, and led this country to prosperity for the last eleven years. Now it looks like the country has to be 'broken' by the lefties just so the conservatives can fix it....again.
Posted by: Aussie-John at April 20, 2008 5:04 PM
Ms. Stanton went on to say that no one who farmed less than ten acres for their own veg and fruit or who did not have at least one rifle for hunting should be forcibly emigrated.
So the 4,300,000 residents of Sydney only need 43,000,000 acres of land, or approximately 173,000 square kilometers to feed themselves. Yep, that'll work.
Oh wait, she said that any population over 1.2 million residents should be deported. That's 95% of the country. Yep, that'll work.
Posted by: ent at April 20, 2008 6:07 PM
Just wait until genital chains become mandatory. Get it? MANdatory?
Lee, you fake queer, get off the internet if you're not surfing for porn.
Posted by: Dick Quest at April 20, 2008 6:29 PM
The road to hell is paved with good intentions. And idiocy.
Posted by: conservativeteen at April 20, 2008 6:37 PM
You know I'm always so much on the run, CNN did an exclusive story on me.
They called it Mobile Dick, Quest for White Tail.
Posted by: Dick Quest at April 20, 2008 6:41 PM
hee hee... the "Dick Quest" poster is even better than the "Dan Quayle"poster...hey... wait a minnit... Dan Quayle... Dick Quest... DQ.... THIS IS ALL A CONSPIRACY CRAFTED BY DAIRY QUEEN!!!!
Posted by: monsterforge at April 20, 2008 8:04 PM
wow that's a twofer for labor on moonbattery. they manage to f*ck up the LNG industry and lose $29 billion in foreign investment, but when it comes to protecting australians who aren't even born yet from being able to want to smoke they've got it covered.
what the frick rudd, i wasn't much of a fan of howard but could we have him back please.
Posted by: mandible claw at April 20, 2008 10:34 PM
Man, and here I always thought Australia was a pretty cool place. It brought us Mel Gibson, Hugh Jackman, Steve Irwin, Rebecca St. James (My favorite singer), and other neat celebrities, and it seemed like it would be a pretty awesome vacation spot. Hopefully soon, they'll boot out the moonbats currently controlling it.
Posted by: Adam at April 21, 2008 5:35 AM

