A possie in Aussie

Last week I wrote in outrage about the ‘news’ item about refugees and Centrelink benefits on Channel Nine, in which they claimed that three quarters of refugees are claiming Centrelink benefits.

Media Watch examined the claims last night on ABC TV, and showed that any figures that Nine could have obtained from Centrelink would related to all persons in the Australian population who are from a refugee background – and that means as far back as the 1950s.

Nine is ‘standing by’ its story. Howard Sattler said that Nine must be ‘innumerate’.

Or deliberately beating up refugee and asylum seeker hatred?

Or perhaps Nine executives have been innocently taken in by the spam emails that periodically do the rounds. Immigrant facts and furphies

If Nine believes its figures, perhaps they will even take Ben Pobjie seriously: 😉

“The Rudd Government’s border protection laws, passed in 2008, state specifically that any foreign national can live in Australia rent-free and with full dental cover if they:

a) make landfall on any shore within an 800 mile radius of Broome;
b) have comprehensive identifying documents, or an entertaining story as to how they lost them;
c) promise under oath to sew their lips together or give a convincing impression of psychological distress if not allowed in, and;
d) are not actually carrying an improvised explosive device at the time of interview.

“The laws also state that any asylum seeker shall be granted access to massive Centrelink payments drawn directly from the bank accounts of pensioners and disabled war veterans, and that they have the right to force local primary schools to tear down Christmas decorations at any time.” Asylum Seekers: A User’s Guide

And it’s not even a Sunday Funday! “Stop treating us so equally!” they cry. “It’s creeping us out!”