The Bywong Soapbox

How Greasy can you get?

I just saw an interesting ad on television tonight….  It was one of those ‘Political Statement’ type adverts, by none other than ‘Kingsley’s Chicken’.

Kingsley’s is accusing the Rudd government of holding back their chicken joint expansion in the Canberra area.

How, you ask?….  They blame the government of refusing to allow 457 Visa applications to be filled.  The 457 Visa is for overseas immigrants who want to work in Australia..  Now what does that suggest to you?

It suggests to me that the greed of Kingsley’s Chicken has gotten the better of them. It also suggests to me that this chicken outfit want to hire cheap, overseas labour, so they can expand their greasy chicken empire in the Canberra area and put a few more dollars in their pockets.

Get a grip Kingsley’s.. Hire local Australians to run your chicken outlets.  Too expensive, you say?  Tough shit… Plan on building fewer chicken outlets and pay a bit more for local labour.

What’s better for your image? Greed or Civic Duty?

And nobody really gives a shit.

So if the Federal Government really gave a shit about the horrendous P-Plate accident statistics, you’d think they’d have instituted some sort of program to enlighten these suicidal, post-pubescent, little fools who think they’re indestructible.

What’s the solution?  OK Government, grab your chequebooks and listen closely….

One day a week, let’s say…. “Wednesday”, year 11 Physical Education Classes or Sport practice shall be replaced by a qualified, full-blown Drivers Education class.  This means the Phys-Ed teacher goes to attain a certificate and becomes a Driving Instructor. A demountable with full Driving simulators are provided at each school facility and a few Driver Training cars are leased from local car dealerships under an advertising subsidy program.

Instead of a Wednesday Phys-Ed class, once a week ALL year 11 students will rotate into the classrooms, demountables and ultimately, road training vehicles, under instructor/teacher supervision, and learn how to drive, defensively. Learn how to drive a controlled skid, how to swerve, how to brake.

Most importantly… How NOT to be an arsehole showoff for one’s peers. Which usually (according to the carnage I’ve been seeing on TV), ends up in the death of the the automobiles’ passengers.

Wake Up Australia!  Shock-horror TV commercials and the cops dragging half crushed – blood encrusted cars around to the shopping malls aren’t going to save YOUR kids from killing themselves on the road.

P-Plate parallel parking

The Government must stop and consider the outcome if these kids keep killing themselves.  Whoops! Three more voters dead.. Whoops! 2 more voters dead..  Whoops! 4 more voters dead.  A terrible analogy, but it seems to be the only thing (besides sex scandals) that the government pollies seem to understand.

C’mon Rudd.. Abbott.  Some P-Plater might someday be responsible for the death of your kids.  Pull yer finger out and put a good Driver Education program in place.  I’ll even step aside and say you guys thought up the idea. You could even put your ridiculous political mud-slinging aside and call it a bi-partisan effort to stop teenage road deaths.

This Government has initiated much lamer programs for millions of dollars in tax payer dollars, what have they got to lose by trying this one for awhile…  Even if it saves one P-Platers life, it might be worth the cost.

That is, of course, if the government really gave a shit.