Good riddance to bad rubbish!

The undeniably evil Australian cult leader and child abuser Anne Hamilton-Byrne has died in a nursing home. Should have happened inside of a jail.

Why did the Victorian authorities allow the many years of abuse to happen, and why did they fail to bring her to trial and convict her? 

https://thenewdaily.com.au/news/people/2019/06/14/notorious-cult-leader-anne-hamilton-byrne-dies/

http://neverheardofthebloke.blogspot.com/2017/12/vile-deeds-grave-accusations-non.html

A timely question

Has any journalist ever had the courage or the lack of regard for their career to ask former ALP Prime Ministers of Australia Bob Hawke or Paul Keating what and when they knew about the alleged child sex abuse activities of the late former ALP federal minister Bob Collins? It is too late to ask the over-rated Hawke, who died shortly before the recent federal election and will have a state memorial service in his honour next month at the Sydney Opera House, and will also soon have a new school in Perth named after him. I very much doubt that anyone has or will have the fortitude to ask the acid-tongued Keating what he knew, even though there has been an allegation reported that Keating's office was informed about Collins' activities when the ALP were in power (presumably during the Hawke/Keating era in the 1980s-1990s), to be told that they couldn't do anything without evidence. An allegation is counted as evidence when it is made in a court hearing, but like many men accused of child sex abuse crimes, Collins took his own life before he had to face a courtroom, saving the ALP and his supporters the trouble and dishonour of having to acknowledge any guilty findings of a court, and also denying his many alleged victims the "closure" and personal validation of a guilty finding. 

https://web.archive.org/web/20071224195947/http://bulletin.ninemsn.com.au/article.aspx?id=299532

https://web.archive.org/web/20071224195953/http://bulletin.ninemsn.com.au/article.aspx?id=301641 

https://neverheardofthebloke.blogspot.com/2017/12/vile-deeds-grave-accusations-non.html

New additions to list

My list about famous people accused or convicted of sexual exploitation of young people or children now has more names added and additions to notes on other names. Interesting and disturbing stuff, and lots of Australian names, but also many names from outside the Anglophone world.

https://neverheardofthebloke.blogspot.com/2017/12/vile-deeds-grave-accusations-non.html

Who is the "lion of the Left"?

A while ago I noticed something interesting. It appears that, for some reason, journalist Tracey Spicer, who has become the leader of the Me Too movement in Australia, has retracted an interesting detail from an article that she wrote for the Daily Telegraph that was published on April 29th 2018, and some time after publication that article was put behind a paywall. That article is about sexual assault accusations in regard to famous or powerful Australians. I'm quite sure I read the article in the original form without paying a while ago. When I looked up the full text of the article in an online article subscription database recently, the phrase "known as a ‘lion of the Left’," was missing. Fortunately the original article was quoted in another article that is still openly readable on the internet, including a quote of the paragraph that has been snipped, the quote still having the missing phrase intact 

"“One woman who contacted me with claims of being drugged and raped says her lawyer advised her not to report it because, ‘prosecuting a rape case against such a high profile man would be harrowing’. Another woman says she was drug-raped by her uncle — an Australian media icon — after he spiked her drink. A third alleges she was raped by a legendary politician, known as a ‘lion of the Left’, at the age of 15,” Spicer wrote."

So, I'm guessing someone from "the Left" has spooked Spicer or the newspaper that she wrote for, and caused an episode of self-censorship. If someone somewhere has already reported about this retraction I'd like to know the story behind it. 

Of course, I've wondered who this person is, bearing in mind that accusations are not proof of a crime. The phrase "lion of the left" could be a quote from a written source, and I've had a stab at a phrase search on Google, but I've found that phrase has been widely used to describe various politicians. I've assumed that this "legendary politician" of the left is Australian as Spicer is operating her campaign in Australia. For a moment I wondered whether this could have been an early disclosure from the daughters of the late Australian writer Dorothy Hewett, before they started naming names last month. They named Bob Ellis and an abuser when they were underage, and though he was closely associated with the left in politics in Australia, he never got elected as a politician. Another Bob, Bob Collins, was a known child sex abuser and an Australia politician of the left, but hardly legendary and as I am aware, chose boys as victims. My money is on Bill Shorten, if the allegation is true, and I have no reason to doubt. He has already been accused of rape by a female who has alleged that she was 16 at the time, a very similar accusation. Shorten could fairly be described as a legendary Australian politician who is a lion of the left. Perhaps the choice of the phrase "lion of the left" is a hint at Shorten's legendary record as a political predator? 

Could it be true that the man who is close to becoming Australia's next Prime Minister is a paedophile rapist at least twice over? Such a state of affairs is worse than my worst nightmares. Could it be seen as a less or a more horrible possibility that the accusation about a rape of a 15 year old girl does not have Shorten as the subject, but yet another famous name on the left of Australian politics, neither Shorten nor Ellis nor Collins? If that was true, would that make the ALP a paedophile ring? 

Famous pedos list leans a bit more to the left

The left of politics in Australia and that generation of Australian libertarian, left-wing, arts and culture tossers who made big names and big careers for themselves in the 1970s have lost a lot of shine in the last month, with the horrific disclosures from the two adult daughters of the late highly respected Australian author Dorothy Hewett, detailing their perverted mother's role in their underage sexual exploitation at the hands of a great number of paedophiles in the arts-leftie culture of that tumultuous decade. One leading figure from the ALP, a speechwriter and long-time supporter but I'm guessing never sober enough to get elected, was named as one of the arts community figures who had sexual relations with both of Hewett's daughters when they were both underage, one episode explicitly described as non-consensual. I'm not at all surprised. He always was a vile person who wrote vile things, and he had a huge career in the Australian film industry and screenwriting. 

Because of these recent accusations Bob Ellis has been added to my horrible list, to join the company of two other ALP figures. A very concerning inclusion was an ALP senator from the 1980s to the 1990s. The child sex charges against him were numerous and very serious, but as is often the case when paedophiles face a court hearing over their crimes, the fat piece of scum killed himself before the victims got a chance to see justice served. 

Bob Ellis and Bob Collins had a few things in common: both called themselves "Bob", a name famous in the ALP where the over-rated ex-PM Bob Hawke is still regarded as a living legend by some. Both were important figures in the ALP, and both were mates with the ABC radio broadcaster Phillip Adams, himself associated with the ALP for many years and a huge figure in the Australian film industry in the 20th century. Adams certainly knows how to pick his mates! Were the revolting Bobs products of their time and place in history, a permissive age and a booze-soaked social set? Are there kiddie-fiddlers in every power elite? Does the right of Australian politics harbour and cover up just as many of these offenders?

It is some comfort that these men are all dead or not far from it, but the third ALP figure in my list (see below) is a present and future concern. A BIG concern. It is very likely that one day he will be Australia's Prime Minister. Great. 

My views on disclosures of sexual misconduct within the skeptic/atheist community...

...and other pieces of writing critical of this community can be read at my other blog:

http://incorrectpleasures.blogspot.com.au/

Prof. Graham Burrows media reports

[I have no idea what's the deal with the colours of this text - the technical side of this blog is as bunky as a Malaysian airline]

The list below of details of text and video media reports is a compilation of available and lost reports. The details of these media reports were sourced from the Blond Ambition political blog, the PsychCrime anti-psychiatry blog and from Google searches. This compilation was created as a record of the misconduct of this once-powerful figure in Australian psychiatry. Many video reports by Louise Milligan for Seven News appear to be no longer available, which is a pity as they are an important record of the standard of misconduct that is possible in Australia by a professor and a psychiatrist who enjoys the authority of being at the top of his or her profession (in terms of power and influence). I’m guessing 7 News just don’t care to archive their news reports in video. 

A whitewashing of records of misconduct of the medical profession in Australia is clear in the glowing and entirely positive obituary of Prof. Burrows that was published in 2016 by the Sydney Morning Herald, and the apparent fact that Burrows was still a professor at the time of his death. After reading the remarkably detailed and complete obituary in the Sydney Morning Herald lacking any attribution of authorship, I’ve come to the conclusion that it was probably written by the man himself before his death, or someone very close to him.

One website that still publishes a lot of very negative views of the late professor is a doctor rating website that appears to be based in the USA. The United States has the right to free speech and a free press enshrined in its constitution, the “first amendment”. We have no such thing here in Australia. Our constitution includes no guarantee of free speech or a free press. Journalism in Australia can be held to ransom by the legal might of wealthy individuals and corporations who are able to use our defamation laws and gag orders as protection from the publication or sharing of criticism or negative information. 

Graham Burrows obituaries, tributes and reviews

'Workaphile' professor had a 25-hour day. 
Sydney Morning Herald.
MARCH 16 2016
http://www.smh.com.au/comment/obituaries/workaphile-professor-had-a-25hour-day-20160310-gnfcut.html

Other entirely positive obituaries and tributes from Australian media companies:

http://tributes.theage.com.au/obituaries/theage-au/obituary.aspx?pid=177253401

http://tributes.theage.com.au/obituaries/theage-au/obituary.aspx?pid=177253869

http://www.legacy.com/guestbooks/theage-au/graham-burrows-condolences/177253870?page=12

But the late prof did get a some very bad reviews from ex-patients at a US-based doctor review website:

RateMDs
Rate Dr. Graham Burrows, Deceased
https://www.ratemds.com/doctor-ratings/105216/Dr-Graham-Burrows-Melbourne-VIC.html

List of media reports in chronological order

Sack academic for giving evidence in Arthur Freeman case, says senator Julian McGauran.
AAP
News.com.au
MAY 11, 2011
http://www.news.com.au/national/sack-academic-for-giving-evidence-in-arthur-freeman-case-senator/news-story/39ac8f576d0bee363cc1cace81158d86
[Report exists in Dec. 2017]

Calls to sack Freeman trial psychiatrist.
ABC News
MAY 11, 2011
http://www.abc.net.au/news/2011-05-11/calls-to-sack-freeman-trial-psychiatrist/2710700
[Report exists in Dec. 2017]

Medical scandal uncovered.
Louise Milligan
Seven News
June 20th 2011
http://au.news.yahoo.com/video/vic/watch/25670720/

More complaints against Burrows.
Louise Milligan
Seven News.
June 21st 2011
http://au.news.yahoo.com/video/vic/watch/25693691/
http://au.news.yahoo.com/video/vic/watch/25670720/

Burrows Denies any Wrongdoing.
June 22nd 2011
http://au.news.yahoo.com/video/vic/watch/25670720/
[Existence of report verified using Wayback Machine but video not found]

7News exposes medical scandal. 
Yahoo7 
June 22nd 2011
https://au.news.yahoo.com/vic/a/9690341/7news-exposes-medical-scandal/
[Report still exists at this location and archived at Wayback Machine]

Call for Burrows Investigation.
June 23rd
http://au.news.yahoo.com/video/vic/watch/25670720/
[Video report page at 7 News Melbourne but not video itself archived by Wayback Machine]

Mental health charity probe.
Grant McArthur
Herald Sun.
December 23rd 2011
http://www.heraldsun.com.au/news/more-news/mental-health-charity-probe/story-fn7x8me2-1226228855616
[Report still exists at this location but not archived at Wayback Machine]

Burrows patient used as "guinea pig".
Louise Milligan
7News.
January 12th 2012
http://au.news.yahoo.com/video/sa/watch/27859872/248154/
http://news.yahoo.com/video/world-15749633/burrows-patient-used-as-guinea-pig-27859874.html#crsl=%252Fvideo%252Fworld-15749633%252Fburrows-patient-used-as-guinea-pig-27859874.html

Class action against Burrows.
Louise Milligan
7News (Melbourne)
January 15th 2012
http://au.news.yahoo.com/video/vic/-/watch/27901358/class-action-against-burrows/
http://au.news.yahoo.com/video/vic/watch/27901358/

1984 was supposed to be a work of fiction - not a policy!

http://www.couriermail.com.au/lifestyle/health/privacy-groups-outraged-over-failure-to-inform-aussies-about-a-new-government-health-record/news-story/5d1c7f980de28966d3ede764ae875cb6

Where's our free speech? Where are our consumer rights?

Paul Howes, what a piece of..........

"Faceless man" Paul Howes, one of the arseholes of the ALP/union clique who stole a Prime Minister from the nation in his first term of office and thus condemned his pals to a return to the political wilderness, always was and always will be a creep, and it appears he is a creep in every aspect of his life, a skid-mark on the fabric of Australian society. 
http://www.smh.com.au/lifestyle/celebrity/private-sydney/paul-howes-drama-takes-centre-stage-at-opera-house-ball-20141015-116h5t.html

Labor, Liberal; all members of the same elite social sets

http://redflag.org.au/article/don%E2%80%99t-worry-we%E2%80%99re-all-good-friends-here

Frightening report on the ABC about dangers of anti-psychotic drug Seroquel

Concerns grow over top-selling drug's side effects. 7.30.
Australian Broadcasting Corporation
Broadcast: 27/11/2013
Reporter: Louise Milligan
http://www.abc.net.au/7.30/content/2013/s3900419.htm

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2013-11-27/growing-concerns-over-side-effects-of-seroquel/5120554

"....doctors are warning the drug is being massively overprescribed and the potentially dangerous side-effects are being ignored."

This is a shocking and important report. Nice work Louise. 

The drug Quetiapine (brand name Seroquel) stands out among other anti-psychotic drugs for two reasons: the astronomical increase in the rate of prescription of this drug in the last ten years in Australia far outstrips the rates of prescription of other anti-psychotic drugs, and the measured rate of cases of serious harm to patients from side-effects of the drug also far outstrip those of other anti-psychotic drugs. As if that is crazy enough, consider the fact that that this drug is also prescribed for depression even though it comes with an increased risk of suicide compared to other anti-psychotic drugs. Something must be seriously wrong with medicine in Australia when increased potential for harm sit alongside spectacular prescriber popularity. 

Grave concerns about side effects are by no means the only reason why this drug has been hitting the headlines in the last few years. Readers of this blog might recall that the celebrity psychiatrist Prof. Patrick McGorry tried to trial this drug on patients thought to be at risk of developing psychosis in 2011 in a trial that was known as the NEURAPRO-Q study, but that study was closed down following objections from McGorry’s international peers. The drug has also been the subject of a deluge of litigation in the United States, which should surprise no one. So why does this drug continue to elicit such huge popularity with Australian doctors, and is even sought after by some as a drug of abuse? I think there’s no over-estimating the power of marketing and there’s no under-estimating the common sense of my fellow Australians. 

Please! More truth and less lies about Sri Lanka, asylum-seekers and the Tamil People

It's a disgrace that the Commonwealth Heads of Governments Meeting (CHOGM) 2013 is scheduled to be held in Sri Lanka, with its long, ongoing and deplorable record of serious and large-scale human rights abuses. If you don't approve of this, now is the time to make your opposition heard.

http://www.change.org/petitions/prime-minister-reconsider-chogm-2013-in-sri-lanka

http://www.amnesty.org.au/action/action/33166

Lili's political thought for the day

What's the deal with Joe Hockey, all sweating and pale? Regardless of politics, I hope it's just a passing and minor thing.