The protest riots at a Bob Jane store in Melbourne’s eastern suburbs on Friday night is more than just a national disgrace. It should be a turning point in the naming and shaming of the ever growing number of moron’s that perpetrate public pack crimes.

These people believe that they are immune to the repercussions of their actions because they are part of a pack or a group or in this case a riot. The senseless nature of this and other pack or group crimes must be dealt with and punished at levels beyond that of just the destruction of property.

They must be dealt with and punished for the long term damage that they do to the psyche of our youth and for the escalating levels of future actions that will no doubt come from this. The “one-up-manship” that exists today in many of the youth of this country mean’s that the next moronic incident will only be bigger and more damaging.

It is time for the government, the police and media to join forces to expose and publicly shame the people involved in these types of crimes. The punishment must go beyond that of the normal judicial process. It is time to fight fire with fire.

The internet is the greatest communication invention of all time. But it can also be a powerful weapon in the fight against and the punishment of criminals. It is time for a national “Online Social Protection Network” that allows people to assist in the identification and exposure of individuals who commit these acts against society.

It is time for an Online Community Name and Shame network!

www.youtube.com/watch?v=qooQOrNfPjU

THE Victorian Police say they will unveil its digitector to catch speeding drivers over Christmas.

But why don’t they use or unveil this throughout the entire year and not just Christmas?

Yes, there are more people on the roads this time of year, but surely it would help prevent a lot of other deaths throughout the rest of the year.

This is the problem; the police are rampant come holiday time and are barely seen other times in the year.

More consistency is needed for them and for the rest of the state.

They should also have more drug and booze buses around in other times of the year rather than just the holiday periods also.

When was the last time you got breath tested at a booze bus? Or drug tested?

Back onto the speeding game, the digitector is a tool that was used in the 80s and consists of two strips placed on a road that measures the speed at which a car has travelled between the two points.

Senior Sergeant Wayne Cully told The Age the digitector would catch drivers who believed they could outwit police.

“These days, repeat speeding offenders are always on the lookout for a police car with a radar attached, but they have all forgotten about the digitector,” he said.

“It’s pure mathematics. This device always catches the speeding drivers by surprise, they don’t realise they’ve been caught until they’re being waved in.”

FOOTBALL clubs have a lot to put up with off the field.

It’s a common theme for many with rape allegations hovering over the club’s reputation.

Montmorency of the Northern Football League is the latest to come under threat.

Three players have been charged after police alleged the women were held prisoner and repeatedly raped by footballers in Phillip Island.

The two 18-year-olds Trent Cantwell and Ruben James Mineo were named.

The 17-year-old wasn’t.

It should be a name and shame thing for all three despite their ages.

Surely it isn’t fair that two of the three cop the public humiliation and the other gets off with barely a red face.

There was a Werribee DVD rape allegation at Werribee Secondary College two years ago.

Because the alleged were under the age of 18, names weren’t identified but on community vote at the time, most were wanting to know the names.

Yes it would put the families in the firing line. But at least the alleged would learn a lesson.

It would be interesting to find a statistic of those not named and if they go on to form more criminal acts in the future than those named.

Maybe it’s time for judiciary to make a stance on this and help turn the spotlight off the football clubs and the sport in general and moreso on those who did the deed.

The Channel Nine news team had to keep their wits about them this week when a super sized image of a seagull gate-crashed the live set of the six o’clock news segment.

In a bizarre scene, a massively magnified version of the bird walked in front of a real-time projection of the Melbourne cityscape, directly behind news anchor Peter Hitchener.

At the time, the ever-professional news journalist was reading a story about a 27-year-old murder, and had to keep his wits about him due to the sensitivity of the report.

Rather than chuckling with laughter, like the majority of the news set did at the time, Hitchener remained calm, only mildly flinching in response to the rare occurrence.

Speaking out publicly yesterday, Hitchener said that he had to control his urges after seeing the main cameraman turn his head away from the set to hide his laughter.

“I was reading away, and it was a serious story, and I suddenly thought, ‘Oh my gosh that seagulls back again’, because we had bit of a problem last night,” Hitchener said.

“About 50 seconds to 6 o’clock this seagull arrived and started pecking at the camera and it had the beadiest huge eyes you’ve ever seen in your life.”

The incident comes only days after another TV news journalist made the headlines for an incident which occurred during a live segment.

ABC news presenter, Virginia Trioli, was forced to apologize to a Coalition senator, and viewers, after she was caught on air pulling a face and twirling a finger in the traditional manner of calling someone crazy.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=S90EUwVnUjY

WHAT’S YOUR OPINION?

Have you ever seen any other moments like these in Australian TV history?

Were you impressed with Hitchener’s professionalism?

Would it have been inappropriate to laugh during the incident?

Political correctness is yet again at the frontline of the media after the controversial midget racing event at a Victorian racetrack over the weekend

The event, dubbed the ‘midget’s cup’, was held down the home straight of the Cranbourne racetrack on Sunday, with short statured people dressed in racing colours acting as jockeys.

During the final few frantic metres, one of the men who was being ridden, fell on his face, sending a dwarf flying across the finishing line, uncanningly in first place.

Along with many other groups and individuals accross the nation, Victoria racing minister Rob Hulls has slammed the event, which was sanctioned by the Racing Victoria Limited marketing department, saying it does little to promote the sport and upcoming Spring carnival.

“At a time when racing should be fighting hard for that discretionary dollar and fighting hard to get young people back to the track, this type of event does nothing to promote the industry as vital, modern or innovative,” Hull said.

Megan Lilly from Short Statured People of Australia was also outraged by the display and has demanding an apology from the racing club.

“Well I thought it was a completely disrespectful and lacking in any real humour whatsoever. It’s just a very poor reflection of people that continue to find humour in belittling others,” Lilly said.

“They should issue a formal and public apology to the short statured people of Australia.”

On the back of the recent Red faces furore, Australia cannot afford the continued bad press it is recieving.

Issues such as this highlight the sensitivity of individuals across our nation and the need for Australia to generate a better understanding of political correctness.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=bWkoTveubzo

WHAT’S YOUR OPINION?

Did you find the midget racing offensive?

What punishment, if any, should be given to the Cranbourne Racing Club?

Is Australia being too sensitive?

Melbourne Storm last night defeated the Parramatta Eels to claim the NRL premiership and seal Victoria’s stake as Australia’s leading sports city.

In a dominating year, Melbourne has claimed just about every major sporting title in 2009, showing the nation that they are the ‘real’ sporting capital.

So far this year the state has claimed the AFL premiership with Geelong, the soccer A- League title with the Melbourne Victory, the current national basketball championship through the now defunct South Dragons, and the state Netball competition thanks to the Melbourne Vixens.

In addition, Victoria has triumphed in Australia’s most prestigious cricket competition – the Sheffield Shield.

Basically, Victoria has claimed every single major sporting title on offer in the country.

This begs the question why the state has not been given a team in the international Rugby Union competition, the Super 14.

In 2005, the league expanded from 12 to 14 sides, and instead of Melbourne being given a spot, Perth was the lucky recipient.

Many people have spoken out about what it is that has made the city so successful in the sporting world.

Experts believe it may have something to do with the colder weather, and the motivation to keep warm through physical activity.

Some put it down to the great sporting arenas and facilities the state possesses.

Others, however, believe the answer is simple: Victoria is just better.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=n1AYeCeRRss

WHAT’S YOUR OPINION:

What is the reason behind Victoria’s current purple patch?

Should Melbourne be given a side in the Super 14s Competition?

What is Australia’s second best sporting city?

65 revellers have been arrested for drug related crimes at music festival in Melbourne over the weekend.

The Parklife festival drew a massive crowd of 17,000 at Birrarung Marr to see headlining acts La Roux and Digitalism, with a bunch of dance based support acts.

Armed with a large group of sniffer dogs, and working in co-operation with the events organizers and security, Victorian Police arrested numerous party-goers for carrying drugs, including cocaine and ecstasy.

While Police have applauded the general behaviour of people at the festival, despite the discovery of drugs, the increase in drug related crimes at youth festivals has to be of concern for the public.

Last year 53 people were caught the same festival for drug possession and this year that figure has increased by 12.

At the same time, the number of overdoses and hospital admittances for drug use has also jumped over the years.

It indicates two things:

That the police have identified the issue as a real societal problem and have done their best to prevent drug use at festivals.

However, it also indicates that the public are not acting upon the message and are continuing to use drugs at music events.

With the year slowly coming to an end, and a plethora of New Years Eve and summer festivals about to hit Australia, the public need to understand the issues and dangers that are associated with drugs and partying.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=920Xo4x62zw

WHAT’S YOUR OPINION:

What punishment should those caught with drugs at festivals receive?

Do you think drugs are a major problem in our society?

What else should the government do to prevent the problem?

Footballer WAG’s and wannabe celebrities strutted their stuff on the blue carpet this Monday night in celebration of the 2009 Brownlow Medallist.

However, you would be forgiven for thinking they were there purely for self promotion, rather than to honour the best and fairest player of the AFL season.

For 85 years the Brownlow medal has been the most prestigious individual award a player can receive. The night is about individual performances, which is why it comes as no surprise to see the event evolve into what it is today.

The last Monday before the Grand Final used to about the players, and a reflection of the season that was, but it is now more about sexy red dresses, silver visible G-Strings, or outfits which reveal busty bras. 

The history and culture of the award has been washed away by a bunch of attention seeking individuals who refer to themselves as WAG’s.

In the past, viewers used to watch the arrivals to see their favourite football star and hear them talk, now we tune in to check out the latest girlfriends and wives of the players, and to marvel at their overpriced outfits.

It is no longer the players who are interviewed, but rather their guests who do the talking, plugging their designer and boasting about how much money they are wearing.

But is this what we really want the Brownlow Medal to be like? Just another American award night where we forget about what the night really means?

While the WAG’s may be great for advertisers and major sponsors of the night, who get the extra coverage and boost in ratings as a result of the glamour and sex appeal, they come at a cost.

The culture and quirkiness of our unique game has been compromised for commercial interests.

If this trend continues, it is only a matter of time before we scrap bouncing the ball, get rid of goal umpires, and recruit cheerleaders. 

www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZacfMoUBQWM

WHAT’S YOU OPINION?

Do you enjoy watching the glamour and style of the Brownlow Medal?

Do you wish they would spend more time covering the football side of the night?

Where has Australia’s obsession with celebrities derived from?

Do you enjoy watching the Brownlow Medal Count?

A Victorian man is facing life behind bars after being charged with 83 cases of sexual abuse against him.

The case has striking resemblances with that of Austrian Josef Fritzl, who imprisoned his daughter in an underground cellar and fathered seven kids with her, until last year.

It is understood, the Gippsland man raped his daughter daily for almost 30 years while holding her as a virtual prisoner.

The sexual abuse was reported to have begun in the 1970s when the victim was 11, and continued until 2007, resulting in four kids between the two.

All four children were born with health defects and had no father listed on any of the birth certificates.

Subsequently, one of the newborns passed away soon after birth. The surviving three are now in a safe house, being cared for by authorities.

The victim had reportedly spoken to police in 2005 about her abuse, but failed to take further action out of fear.

She has since returned to the police last year, giving a full statement of the years of torture she endured. DNA tests were conducted, and her father has since been arrested.

Child welfare group have called a full inquiry into the case, which is expected to draw worldwide attention in a period where child sex offenders continue to be caught.

After Josef Fritzl was imprisoned last year, American Phillip Garrido has since been arrested for his kidnapping and sexual abuse of Californian girl Jaycee Lee Dugard.

The case is already being talked about as Australia’s most disturbing child rape case, with one report claiming it is “every bit as bad, if not worse, than the Josef Fritzl case. Especially the fact that she had so many children to her father”.

The man, aged in his 60s, will face court in November.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=mmF3lmb_vyM

WHAT’S YOUR OPINION?

What punishment does the Gippsland man deserve?

What measures should the Australian Government take to ensure cases like this never happen again?

Why have witnessed so many similar cases in the past few years? What does it indicate?

Controversy has struck the Catholic community with prominent Australian figure father Bob Maguire fighting off his mandatory retirement.

Under the Canon law, priests must offer their resignation when they reach the age of 75, however, Fr Maguire, who turns 75 on September 14, says he is not ready to leave his South Melbourne parish and believes he still has something to offer.

“I am of a mind not to resign and I’ll write a letter saying that,” Fr Maguire said.

“They’ll say there’s a retirement village -- in other words, don’t be afraid, come to us and we will look after you.

“Then you end up dishonourably discharged and going into a retirement village. Now that’s not what I signed up for.”

The decision now lies in the hands of Archbishop Dennis Hart, who has recently publicly stated his respect and admiration for father Bob’s work.

“Father Maguire has for many years provided exemplary service to the Archdiocese of Melbourne and in particular to the people of South Melbourne,” Bishop Hart said.

“I am deeply grateful to him for his exceptional pastoral work over many years.”

The issue has sparked outrage in the public forum with many fans and media figures lending their support to Maguire, and demanding he be allowed to continue his pastoral work.

One of these figures is youth worker Les Twentymen, who was shocked by the news.

“I can’t be believe that someone as alive and spiritual -- he’s as sharp as a tack -- could be retired off,” Mr Twentyman said.

“He was the first one to recognise we had street kids in St Kilda 35 years ago -- I’m just staggered by this.”

Fr Bob Maguire, who has been priest of the South Melbourne parish for 36 years, rose to public prominence a few years ago when he starred in the popular SBS television program, John Safran vs God.

He has since teamed up with Safran in a weekly radio programme on Triple J.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=9OcitGcd-Xs

WHAT’S YOUR OPINION?

Should Father Bob be forced to resign?

Is the Canon law fair?