What a bloody nerve! I’ve come to expect all sorts of misinformation from social media, but this really takes the cake. Apparently, we Australians are ‘hunting’ down Indigenous people from remote communities and forcibly vaccinating them. Or locking them up in our own home-grown concentration camp at Howard Springs….
My thanks to Steve Bero for forwarding me the following article which refutes the nonsense going viral on the internet: https://quillette.com/2021/11/28/an-outback-conspiracy/
It’s a long article, but well worth the read, if only to counter the insidious and potentially lethal disinformation being spread by unscrupulous media personalities overseas. The Australian government deserves utter condemnation for its inaction on Climate Change, for blatant pork barrelling and a host of other issues, but this is not one of them.
Why? Because there are deeply committed Aboriginal groups who are doing everything possible to keep remote communities safe. The conspiracy theorists demean and insult the vital work they do.
Please pass the Quillette article on to everyone you know because the lies are literally killing all of us.
Meeks
Meeka's Mind 
December 3rd, 2021 at 4:14 am
I shake my head with disbelief, Andrea. What is wrong with people? I just don’t see the point of conspiracy theories and disinformation. As you probably know, the US is in the gutter when it comes to this craziness. And the problem is that it’s hurting/killing people. Sadly, I don’t think we’ve hit bottom yet.
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December 3rd, 2021 at 10:16 am
I don’t get it either. I mean, yes, there have always been anti-vaxxers, and there have always been conspiracy theorists, but they seem to have multiplied like the virus itself. If I weren’t ashamed of admitting to holding conspiracy theories myself, I’d wonder whether there isn’t something more than a purely grassroots movement going on. 😦
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December 3rd, 2021 at 11:02 am
Oh I believe it. Here Fox “News” spreads disinformation like crazy. There’s a concerted effort to end democracy and put the right wing in perpetual power.
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December 3rd, 2021 at 11:32 am
Ugh. Murdoch and Fox are big here too, but it’s hard to know exactly how much influence they have. Is it all just about being a ‘kingmaker’? Or is it all just about money. Create an army of followers who will lap up all the advertising? It just seems insane in a country that was for so long the poster child for democracy. This is all Machiavellian stuff. 😦
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December 4th, 2021 at 2:03 am
Fox has a huge following here and it’s the only “news” they watch. Money at all costs.
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December 4th, 2021 at 6:45 am
What makes a Murdoch? Over here we hold his late mother in very high regard. He, however, is our very worst export. He’s like a leech, tapping into something that was festering and bringing it to the boil. Sorry, awful mixed metaphors. 😦
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December 5th, 2021 at 2:10 am
That’s interesting. His network’s misinformation is responsible for the deaths of hundreds of thousands of mothers over here just from covid alone.
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December 5th, 2021 at 7:31 am
I can believe that. The death toll in the US is shameful, and if there is a hell, I hope he rots there.
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November 30th, 2021 at 7:28 am
It’s complicated isn’t it? I’ve seen footage of 8 indigenous people saying that the government ARE trying to coerce people into getting vaccinated, pleading for assistance… nothing is fully as it seems I fear. But ‘concentration camps’ is pretty intense…
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November 30th, 2021 at 7:42 am
I haven’t seen that footage but the writer of the article did talk about the eight, saying they were not representing anyone but themselves. One is supposedly a known crackpot conspiracy theorist. -shrug-
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November 30th, 2021 at 9:59 am
– shrugging with you- hug
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November 30th, 2021 at 9:39 pm
lol – I second that. 🙂
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November 30th, 2021 at 6:48 am
thats all so awful!
I’m sorry there is disinformation being spread about your country!
The media have a lot to answer for!
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November 30th, 2021 at 7:43 am
Integrity is in short supply everywhere these days. 😦
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November 30th, 2021 at 1:00 am
We call this particular kind of misinformation ‘disinformation’. It’s not accidental. It’s deliberate, l and meant to cause division.
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November 30th, 2021 at 7:59 am
You’re right, Yvonne. There does seem to be something behind the disinformation. I had a look at the website for the anti-everything protestors and it’s slick, really slick, not the kind of website thrown together by a bunch of amateurs.
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November 30th, 2021 at 8:03 am
Yes, when they have the Fascists and alt-right there is money and purpose behind it. Populism is the new brainwashing.
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November 30th, 2021 at 9:43 pm
Yeah, it does seem too well organised and…well oiled to be a simple grass roots movement. -sigh- And now we’re seeing conspiracies amongst the conspiracy theorists. It’s like a damn rabbit hole with no end.
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November 29th, 2021 at 5:19 pm
I’m all for freedom of the press HOWEVER not when it’s blatant mistruths and that needs to be stamped out firmly…
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November 29th, 2021 at 8:00 pm
Everything is so sensationalised now. The truth is much too boring.
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November 29th, 2021 at 8:43 pm
It’s about time that there was a reset and people were just happy that all was ok instead of all this what goes on now
… sigh…because I dread to think where it will all end and it won’t be a happy ending …sigh
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November 30th, 2021 at 8:00 am
Yes. It’s as if the western world has become a boil that has to be lanced. I dread to think what comes after though.
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November 30th, 2021 at 11:28 am
This is interesting https://theconversation.com/do-twitter-bots-spread-vaccine-misinformation-research-shows-its-not-that-simple-147192
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November 30th, 2021 at 9:38 pm
Hmm…that health literacy bit got me thinking. I have friends of very long standing who never vaccinated their kids. They’re also very much into natural remedies and good, unprocessed food. They are nothing if not health literate. The covid vaccines are literally a topic I have not dared to raise. Curiously, I’m probably more likely to distrust Big Pharma and the government. Despite that, I believe in vaccination. Maybe because I still trust in science. -sigh- It’s a conundrum.
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December 1st, 2021 at 1:31 am
I think you can be all of that but unless they are very learned do they know what every vaccine contains and possible side effects?.. My parents didn’t and neither did I when my children were vaccinated but like you I trust in science… Its the same with natural remedies they are not suitable for everyone given that they also can have a detrimental affect on certain individuals.. It is definiteky not cut and dried nothing is without consequences.. Just saying.
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December 1st, 2021 at 7:21 am
Yes, I consider myself health literate and prefer eating sour cherries instead of taking anti-inflammatories for mild discomfort, but that doesn’t extend to potentially serious disease. I wonder if it’s that old thing about ‘a little knowledge is a dangerous thing?’
I hear about people drinking /bleach/ as a remedy and I don’t know what to think.
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December 1st, 2021 at 10:23 am
I think anyone who drinks bleach is as my mum would say “Thrupence short of a shilling”…sigh
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December 1st, 2021 at 10:18 pm
lol!!! I haven’t heard ‘thrupence’ or ‘shilling’ for that matter since I was a kid. And yes, totally agree.
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November 29th, 2021 at 3:39 pm
HI Meeks, South Africa is currently bearing the brunt of a whole lot of media misinformation and overreaction across the world over Omicron. Firstly, it didn’t originate here and it was merely that our virologists are a step ahead and identified it’s properties first. Secondly, it is already world wide so treating South Africans like lepers isn’t going to change anything. I am all for safety, but this is ridiculous and unfair.
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November 29th, 2021 at 8:05 pm
Ugh. The media strikes again. Actually Dr John did say that the case you picked up came from Botswana, and there are two cases here already. The horse has already bolted so Omicron could really come from anywhere. I guess all the politicians are too afraid to just close down international travel, period.
We’ve also heard conflicting reports about the severity of the cases in South Africa. Some sources say it’s mild, others say that it’s hitting the 20-40 year olds.
I guess we’ll just have to wait and see. How are you keeping?
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November 30th, 2021 at 10:14 pm
Hi Meeks, my sister’s daughter and husband have this new covid and both are quite sick [but not chronic]. They have high fevers and bad chests. They were both vaccinated… My family are currently fine and everyone is at home. I am very grateful the boys got through their exams before this hit us.
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December 1st, 2021 at 7:26 am
Damn, I’m so sorry to hear that, Robbie. You and your sister must be so worried. I’m glad you and the boys are safe. Some people here are saying Omicron might be milder than Delta. Others are saying the vaccines should ‘hold’. Doesn’t sound like it. We’ve only had a few cases here [so far] but the Offspring and I are staying isolated. Hard to believe we’re heading into our third year of this pandemic.
Stay well! -hugs-
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December 1st, 2021 at 8:10 pm
HI Meeks, my sister’s husband and daughter seem over the worst. They were very sick but their fevers broke last night so they seem to be on the mend. It looks like the vaccines are holding – thank goodness!
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December 1st, 2021 at 10:17 pm
Oh that’s such a relief!!!! Your poor sister must have been so worried. You and your parents too. -huge hugs-
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December 2nd, 2021 at 9:07 pm
Hugs back, Meeks.
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December 3rd, 2021 at 10:19 am
Saw an interview on Dr John this morning. The guy is from South Africa and like your brother-in-law and niece, fully vaxxed, caught Omicron, but didn’t get terribly sick. I’m hoping these anecdotal experiences prove to be true across the board. 🙂
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December 4th, 2021 at 6:19 am
Me too
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