Whilst most city-based Australians are not accustomed to the current usage restrictions our country folk and visitors from abroad have always been amazed at our profligate use of this precious commodity.
Given the size of our continent, its geography and propensity for droughts it is mind boggling that conserving and recycling H2O has only now emerged at the centre of policy making in all levels of government.
Whether more dams is the answer or not, it is clear that water usage and levels of consumption are issues of national importance which have been woefully neglected for over fifty years.
Activists of all kinds are usually considered the ‘lunatic fringe’ by the establishment when they first start to gain recognition and it can be decades before they are finally identified as legitimate visionaries who could just see the ‘problem’ before everyone else did.
Climate change is the latest bandwagon and policy initiatives on carbon trading from both sides of federal politics in the lead up to the next election have for the first time started to belatedly address this truly global threat.
It has been suggested, perhaps tongue in cheek, that the best way to lead a country into the future is from behind … and in this regard our current mob of pollies certainly seems to be following this pessimistic advice.
Let’s hope for our children and grandchildren’s sake it’s not another 50 years before they actually do some dam thing.
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Are there limits to protecting our children and when does the public good over-rule parents’ privacy concerns?
It sometimes seems as if we are being bombarded with stories about the unwelcome attention of known sex offenders to the activities of young children playing in public spaces or at the beach.
But are these exaggerated beat ups by a mass media starved of newsworthy stories or are they in fact symptomatic of a major problem being spread with the aid of modern technology?
To date most concerns have been about the use of small camera phones concealed on the perpetrator and directed at topless bathers or up the dresses of unsuspecting young girls.
However it seems these very real and legitimate concerns are adversely affecting some parents’ attitudes towards the proper and often specifically authorised taking of photographs (and increasingly videos) of team activities during games.
So what rights do parents have to ban photos/videos of their children in such circumstances?
Most importantly: when the person concerned is a known convicted sex offender call the police immediately.
However in most circumstances (how would you know if a person was in fact an offender) there are surprisingly few legal remedies immediately available.
Unless the person concerned can provide a credible reason for taking the images a parent should simply warn them off.
If they won’t go when first asked, find a club official and tell them your concerns and if the person will still not leave after being requested by a club official call the Police.
But do not attempt to physically restrain them or you may inadvertently become personally liable for assault.
Of course you could always take a photo of them which they couldn’t refuse since you would be relying on the very freedoms the perpetrator is claiming for himself.
It should be remembered that any established media organisation will require their staff to make themselves known to officials on the ground before any activities are started and insist they carry identity cards or letters of authority at all times.
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