SmoCo books panic flight home as east coast goes up in flames

By in Australian Politics

| 108 comments

Fires are everywhere. Two firies are dead in NSW:

Two Rural Fire Service volunteers died when their fire truck rolled as they battled a bushfire south-west of Sydney late on Thursday night, authorities say.

A further three RFS volunteer firefighters were injured in the crash in Buxton just before 11.30pm, on a day of ferocious bushfire activity and searing heat across the state.

Police said the fire truck was believed to have hit a tree before rolling off Wilson Drive in Buxton, as firefighters attempted to battle the Green Wattle Creek fire that continued to burn at emergency level into Friday morning.

More:

At least 12 homes have been destroyed, hundreds of thousands of hectares razed and three Rural Fire Service volunteer firefighters left with serious burns to their bodies and airways after becoming “enveloped in fire.”

Thursday marked another ferocious bushfire day across NSW during which Premier Gladys Berejiklian declared a state of emergency for the second time this fire season.

Conditions on Saturday are “shaping up to [bring] a worse fire threat” again, the Premier said.

At the peak, four fires were burning at emergency warning level, while soaring 40-plus degree temperatures and choking smoke covered greater Sydney on what was the hottest day of the summer so far.

Around 70 blazes are burning in SE QLD. SA is about to join them:

Catastrophic fire conditions have been forecast in South Australia today as the state’s stifling heatwave continues into a fourth day — with temperatures hitting almost 50 degrees Celsius in some areas yesterday.

The Bureau of Meteorology (BOM) said December temperature records had tumbled in more than a dozen locations, while some towns set all-time highs.

The heatwave conditions will take a dangerous turn tomorrow with extreme temperatures and high winds combining to produce catastrophic bushfire conditions in six districts.

Lower Eyre Peninsula, Yorke Peninsula, the Mid North, Mount Lofty Ranges, Kangaroo Island and Lower South East districts have all been given the highest fire danger rating.

Smoko is also ablaze. John Hewson puts the boot in:

Morrison’s conversion needs to start with honesty – simply with two admissions. First, Australia is a hot and dry continent and he should acknowledge climate change’s contribution to making it hotter and dryer. Second, our emissions are still rising, and we can’t reach our Paris targets without carrying forward our Kyoto credits. Neither admission should be that difficult, especially with the prospect of bi-partisan and widespread community support.

Tim Flannery too:

Scientists have been warning for decades that Australia is exceptionally vulnerable to risks from a changing climate, including reduced rainfall, extreme heat and bushfire. The link between greenhouse gas pollution, rising heat across Australia and declining cool season rainfall in mainland southern Australia is clear. These trends are contributing to drier soils and vegetation, increasing the probability of bushfires.

The significance of what is at stake here, of what we have to lose, should not be underestimated. Our environment, so iconic around the world and so fundamental to who we are as Australians, is under threat like never before.

In NSW and Queensland, world heritage areas including Gondwana rainforests have been damaged by fires. These rainforests are a living link to the vegetation that covered the southern supercontinent Gondwana about 180 million years ago. The Gondwana rainforests include the largest areas of subtropical rainforest on the planet, some warm temperate rainforest and nearly all the world’s Antarctic beech cool temperate rainforest. The rainforests are spread across about 40 separate reserves between Newcastle and Brisbane.

Phil Coorey:

Here’s a bit of free advice. The next time the Prime Minister decides to take a holiday, don’t try and hide it. People find out.

And when they do, they assume you are doing the wrong thing because you tried to cover it up.

Even the RBA and APRA are into it:

Australia’s biggest banks and ­insurance companies will be forced to protect themselves against risks caused by climate change, as the Reserve Bank and prudential regulator gear up to test large businesses’ readiness to shift to a low-carbon economy.

As part of a global push, the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority and the central bank are expected to adopt a series of “stress tests” that will take stock of the vulnerability of banks and insurers to changes in asset prices brought on by global warming or policies to limit emissions.

Banks and financial insti­tutions could also be forced to reveal their exposure to climate risks in their financial statements.

The silence at the Murdoch Coalition Press Agency is deafening but even it can’t bury everything, via News:

Meanwhile, Smoko:

While at Kirribili House 10 year old kids are rounded up and squashed:

The image of a young protester has gone viral after she stood her ground against police while marching outside the Australian Prime Minister’s residence.

Issy, 13, was with her father outside Kirribilli House along with other protesters, who were demanding Prime Minister Scott Morrison take action on climate change.

The young girl was holding a sign saying: “look at what you’ve left us, watch us fight it, watch us win”.

If the Albotross around Labor’s neck had not inexplicably just gone all-in on coal, this overall national display would have been life threatening for Smoko.

And, late breaking, LNP polling clearly rocked the tanning PM:

“Over the course of the past week I have been taking leave with my family.”

“Our leave was brought forward due to the need to cancel our scheduled leave in January because of our official government visit to India and Japan at the invitation of Prime Ministers Modi and Abe.

“I deeply regret any offence caused to any of the many Australians affected by the terrible bushfires by my taking leave with family at this time.”

“I have been receiving regular updates on the bushfires disaster as well as the status of the search for and treatment of the victims of the White Island tragedy.”

“As noted, given the most recent tragic events, I will be returning to Sydney as soon as can be arranged,”

Updates over a Mai Tai in a hammock. Nice.

Houses and Holes
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Comments

      • lone christian conservative

        I don’t understand what “Scummo” is meant to mean? It just sounds like “PoopyPants” to me. “Smoko” is a vast improvement.

    • Strange EconomicsMEMBER

      From the time when he approved the campaign
      “Where the bloody hell are you”?
      What was wrong with a weeks holiday at the Gold Coast…

      • Chase

        He’s now finally succeeded in getting the people to Australia…………….it’s just now it’s through mass migration and an open gates policy.

      • lone christian conservative

        Yep, it’s no co-incidence that politics is full of convenient Christians on both sides. It is a bit weird how Smoko is only one whose faith gets tied back to his apparent hypocrisies. Pretend Catholics don’t bother anyone. Pretend Anglicans don’t bother anyone. Seemingly genuine Pentecostal drives people crazy. What’s that about?

        • dennis

          Rubbish, you must been here only 5 min to make that statement, Abbott, Abetz and half the Christian RW in the lnp have been panned here. Not many on the Labor side because they don’t use their so called beliefs in a political manner.

          Scummo is a hypocritical liar.

          • lone christian conservative

            Nah, I’ve been here for years. The ridicule on Smoko is next level. Every day. It’s the joke that never gets old.

          • C.M.BurnsMEMBER

            that’s who you are. How are you 3d ? I noticed you were back with your original moniker but not as a member.

            Was the original login to damaged a brand ?

          • lone christian conservative

            Yeah, but Malcolm was the boss, and he said he was Catholic. No one cared. I guess everyone knew he was only pretending? That would make sense, Abbott actually being a Catholic made him a target.

        • dennis

          Next level yes, because Scummo has taken mixing his faux Christian beliefs and politics to the next level.

  3. Nikola

    what worries me is that there are people out there that see nothing wrong with the PM going on holiday while the country is burning. If I was one of those holiday makers I would have been telling the cvnt to fck off back home and deal with the situation instead of taking photos with the cvnt.

    • He He

      Frankly, the PM is totally useless at a time like this, give me a Fire Chief in a hard hat. The PM has a go well before the fires, or long after they have abated, but during the actual fire, the PM is useless.

      • Mr Walker

        Have to agree with this. People are doing hard, dangeorus work, the last thing they need are useless pollies and their entourages showing up to seagull over everything. A waste of resources.

      • mark777

        Imagine the political points Labor would rake in if they had a few out there on the front line, or just in the towns showing their support?
        Wasted opportunity, Albo supports the PM’s holiday cos he probably has one booked, useless the lot of them

    • darklydrawl

      Yeah, I am not sure what the attraction would be of having your photo taken with any of them to be honest. Oh well… But I agree with your comment that he should be back here. What the hell was he (and his advisors) thinking?

    • DPM

      Incredible isn’t it. State of emergency is a situation that is also used in war time.
      1000’s of structures destroyed, millions of hectares burnt and people loosing lives is as close of a war you can get without an enemy state.
      If this was a war would the commander in chief leaving his post and going on holidays cut it?
      This is a sack-able offence that should be brought to the governor general.

    • Dominic

      If you read that older fella’s lips he’s quite clearly saying: Thanks for the franking credits, fcken!

  4. GramusMEMBER

    Scummo got caught. That is the only thing he is sorry about.
    I hope some of the firefighters arrange for a little Scummo ‘appreciation’ session on his return…
    A dark alley might suffice.

  6. Frostilicus

    Prepare for a double load of thoughts and prayers, now that SmoCo paid his HillSong cult to pray and think for him … it’s going to be… magical!

  7. TrotsMEMBER

    Next year Smoko’s lung (Frydenberg aka fried n burnt) will be praising himself for a lift in the construction sector as all these houses destroyed by the fires are rebuilt.

  8. mikef179

    “As part of a global push, the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority and the central bank are expected to adopt a series of “stress tests” that will take stock of the vulnerability of banks and insurers to changes in asset prices brought on by global warming or policies to limit emissions.”

    I’m sure the stress tests will find that everything is perfectly fine with Australian banks. Either that or it will be used as the excuse for why they are not fine. Because, deliberate asset price inflation policies can’t be seen to have anything to do with it.

    • GramusMEMBER

      He had already been outed so I think the photo was part of a strategy to take control of the narrative.
      Definitely deliberate.

  9. haroldusMEMBER

    I find it difficult to believe that SmoCo would have allowed that pic to be taken.

    What did he think would happen? His office continue to refuse to report on on-holiday matters? So it would all be sweet?

    • PaulMEMBER

      Agree. I also find it ironic that Smoky the Cvnt’s office told the media not to report his holiday. Then he issues a statement to the media that he’s cutting his holiday short and everyone reports it.

      Sucks to be found out. But when you do, release an apology to get on the front foot. It’s crisis comms 101 and it just makes him, his office and all members of the Libs look like dirty cvnts

  11. HadronCollision

    Just wow

    Poor old Albodross was given the opportunity to sink the boot in this morning and failed, again

    What the truck is with Labor? They should be out and about at every RFS coordination/shift change/feeding place, feeding the troops

    They SHOULD be politicising the sh%t out of this

    “what are the libs doing on global heating ? what about money for more fire appliances? what about special leave payment for volunteers” etc etc

    Pss weak

    • footsore

      I heard that interview as I was heading into work. While I’d like to see more bite from the opposition regarding Morrison and the LNP’s lack of action the rest of the interview was reasonable. He highlighted that Labor has been pushing for more action and planning for a while. It was also nice to not hear a politician showing some restraint in such a difficult time. There are a lot of free kicks to be had here. Morrison is making an absolute mess of this. Hopefully they are waiting until it is over before going in for the kill.

    • jimbo

      They’re just dumb. Between the lot of them you wouldn’t find one who’s ever had a piece of sh1t stuck under a fingernail. Being an ex legal industry hack or union shill doesn’t qualify you for anything other than sitting in an ivory tower.

    • Seldom Seen

      Because the Quiet Australians will be upset if Labor criticises the LNP in any way, so Labor has decided not to do that and hope that people will vote for them for some unclear reason.

      It hasn’t worked for the German Social Democrats but for some reason, it’s supposed to work now.

      Meanwhile, Americans rewarded the Democrats for their rabid behaviour with the US House of Reps.

      • The Windy City

        hahaha, yes, and it’s got kinda hard to seeing as the greens aren’t corrupted by the fossil fuel industry and have devised plans to tackle climate emissions and tree protection for decades.

  12. SnappedUpSavvyMEMBER

    the irony is, we’d be better off if the psycho stayed out of the country – for fckn good

  15. MB readerMEMBER

    I am curious to know whether our emissions target includes the emissions caused by the bushfires. I guess not!

    • footsore

      They don’t. The models were built looking at the output of greenhouse gases from human activities. The feedbacks, while recognized, are now being put in. The means that as human input continues to grow the environmental response will grow with it and things will worsen at a quicker rate. The three worse things that we can do for the environment is have children (especially if you live in a developed country such as Australia), catch a plane and start a bushfire. Most of us won’t intentionally do the third. The first two are understandably more difficult to avoid as most want children and flying places is convenient, accessible and normalized. We’ve definitely gotten ourselves into a pickle and are struggling to work our way out of it.

  16. LSWCHPMEMBER

    Two blokes dead today. They had little grommets. I can be a hard hearted bastard but that brought tears to my eyes.

    Those brave men are our actual leaders. Smoko is not.

    Salute.

    • HadronCollision

      Word. Volunteers.

      We’re going to have to rethink the model for this.

      Told wife will be joining our local unit when kids a little older.

      PS: also now convinced holding the 410/.22 is a good cheap insurance policy.

    • bolstroodMEMBER

      +1000
      When Smoco gets back the first thing he shoud do is order a special contirbution to the families of these brave Aussies.
      That their families are looked afer for life, without having to go thru the Centrelink BS.
      Also the firies who lose their homes while saving the houses of others. Full replacement of everything they lost, again without the Bureaucratic B/S
      If Hillsong can get $100,000 these people must be looked after.

      • Curious

        I like your sentiment but am not hopeful given the way Army veterans are treated by Govt especially Dept Veterans Affairs, and have been for many many years now, going back to WW1. No shortage of officious bureaucracy there.

  17. wobert

    Saw a comment on another blog, that Smoko ” not the first PM to disappear without a trace in the middle of December.”

  18. patrick

    @footsore,
    ‘…worse things that we can do for the environment is have children (especially if you live in a developed country such as Australia),…’
    The problem isn’t developed countries like Australia having children, the problem is their imposed massive immigration policies.

    ‘ Issy, 13, was with her father outside Kirribilli House along with other protesters, who were demanding Prime Minister Scott Morrison take action on climate change.

    The young girl was holding a sign saying: “look at what you’ve left us, watch us fight it, watch us win”.’

    If only brainwashed little Issy was holding a sign demanding an end to the “Big Australia” immigration ideology, then she would be attacking the climate problem at its root.

    • footsore

      It’s both. The environment doesn’t care where someone was born. However, given that I was assuming that the readers of this blog are living in Australia, and that their children would either live here, or move to another developed country, then the decisive action at the individual level is whether or not you have a child.

      • patrick

        Afraid your wrong.
        The decisive action is to drastically cut the imposed mass Third World immigration program.
        The imposed program contributes 60% to Australia’s population growth as I’m sure you know.
        That is something we can fix … leave the Third Worlders in their country where they make a smaller carbon footprint per capita.

        • drsmithyMEMBER

          The increased carbon footprint from immigration is irrelevant, even if you assume they are consuming as much as the average Australian (which they clearly aren’t).

          The only meaningful way to address climate change from a population perspective, is for either billions of people in undeveloped countries to die (and even that just kicks the can down the road a few decades) or for half a billion or so in the developed world to die (which, to be fair, probably still only buys a few decades).

          • patrick

            The increased carbon footprint from immigration is relevant because the immigration program intake is almost entirely from developing countries which have in most cases a far lower carbon dioxide emissions per capita than Australia.
            The immigration program is the driver of the huge population growth and hence much greater carbon dioxide emissions and environmental changes.
            If Australia wants to begin to improve the environment, the best way is to slash the net overseas immigration.

          • drsmithyMEMBER

            The increased carbon footprint from immigration is relevant because the immigration program intake is almost entirely from developing countries which have in most cases a far lower carbon dioxide emissions per capita than Australia.

            Yes. I understand the reasoning. It is specious because the increase in overall emissions from extra people is small.

            If Australia wants to begin to improve the environment, the best way is to slash the net overseas immigration.

            Actually the best way would be to stop exporting coal. Probably followed by stopping large-scale land clearing and water-intensive farming practices. None of which have anything whatsoever to do with immigration.

    • Chairman Meow

      Meow. I always admire grown adults who attack a child for holding an opinion they disagree with

  19. NelsonMuntzMEMBER

    In the picture above, is that NSW burning in the background behind Smoko and his boozing holiday chums?

  23. skippy

    Good thing Smoko has security … because as a piece of wh!teslice trotting down the beach sand and popping off a hang loose at locals …. wellie he would probably would wish he was back in Oz fighting bush fires himself …

    • skippy

      There are strong networks in Conservatism and they have a very simple world view, even the stuff they don’t all completely agree upon does not repeal the commonality between them. Remember when the Brethren got face time with Howard.

    • drsmithyMEMBER

      Have you not been paying attention ? The Turnbull blip aside, it’s been a pretty straight line from Howard to here. Dutton is the next step, he will be happy to let the Church run mostly unchecked so long as he gets his fascist police state.