Hug a fire fighter today....

Is it just me or does everyone think our fire fighters are very precious and deserve community support?

A busload of Sunshine Coast firies are heading for Brisbane this morning to march for better pay and conditions.

I’ve got a couple of really good friends who are firies – can’t name them obviously, because they might get sacked and nobody wants that!! But the bottom line is firies are not really paid that well.

The hourly rate is not that different to a person working behind the counter in a shop. Nothing wrong with shop work, but it’s clearly not as specialised, stressful or dangerous as fire fighting.

Fire fighter wages were set back in 1994. Acknowledging the job has changed significantly since that time, two years ago the Queensland Government agreed to appoint independent consultants to evaluate the work performed by fire fighters.

Probably much to the surprise of the government, the review found the job was worth up to 47% more in 2008 than in 1994.

On the back of that finding the firies have asked for a 30 per cent pay rise over two years, but the government isn’t coming to the party.

Anyway – we’re all safe on the coast today, all fire stations remain fully staffed – only staff with time off are taking part in the protest.

First kiss....

Is it just me or does everyone think your first proper kiss is just about the most exciting thing that can happen to a person?

A new survey has found more than 60 per cent of blokes in Britain believe remembering their first car is significantly more exciting than remembering their first kiss. In fact, while more than forty per cent of these unromantic cads can rattle off their first number plate – while just thirty percent can remember the name of the girl they first locked lips with!

My first car was a baby blue Corolla my dad bought at the government auctions – not bad – I liked it well enough, but my first kiss? So much better….

I was nearly 16 (so I was terrified of ‘sweet 16 and never been kissed) – it was a balmy April night in a beach side Perth suburb - I had been let out of boarding school on a Saturday night to attend a netball wind up…

I should mention here I can tell you EXACTLY what I was wearing (great outfit by the way….1984 was an awesome year for fashion) – I was waiting out the front of the Scarborough Hall towards the end of the night.

Anyway, there I was, leaning against some bogan’s hotted up yellow Monaro when wham bam thank you ma’am – suddenly I’m have my first kiss with a drunk bloke called Brad!

And the best bit? We hadn’t been at it long at all, when my friends came out of the hall and caught us in the act! Kissing and kudos – couldn’t have planned it better if I tried – and it was INFINITELY more exciting than a baby blue Corolla!

No Lameducks!

Is it just me or does everyone feel very nervous about the upcoming council elections?

A lot of people are focussed on the mayoral race. Today the Sunshine Coast Daily and Channel Seven have published the results of their ‘your coast your say’ survey, which claims Noosa’s Bob Abbott is way ahead of Joe Natoli in the mayoral race.

It’s great that people are thinking about who should be mayor but it’s vital we understand it’s not all about whether we give ‘Big Bob the job’ or ‘Joe a go’.

Let’s say you’re keen on a council that has an environmental focus and a commitment to stick to the town plan (let’s pray, actually, that’s what most of us are keen on). Well, you can’t just rely on the mayor to achieve that – you have to give him a council to work with.

Joe Natoli doesn’t bang on about it – but he’s had a tough time with Maroochy council this past term. I believe Caloundra’s had its fair share of problems too.

Once you know what you want from the super council, you need to do your homework. Find out what division you are in and who the candidates are.

If a sitting member of council is standing again, ask around about their voting record. Have they been committed to upholding the town plan or not?

In the case of new applicants, look at their background and be sure they’re the type of person who will vote for what the people want, not just to keep their mates happy.

Pickled in Home Ec?

Is it just me or does everyone fear we might be getting a bit hysterical about teen drinking?

The headline this morning is about the scourge of alcohol abuse reaching plague proportion in teenagers. www.news.com.au/story/0,23599,23269606-36398,00.html

The “proof” behind the claim is a new survey which found one in five 16- and 17-year-olds now binge-drink – that is, drink to get drunk – in any given week.

The same survey found that one in eight children live at risk of exposure to an adult drinking at harmful levels.

Delve a little further and what does binge drinking actually mean to the people who conducted the survey? It means people that don’t drink much as a rule, but admit to more than four drinks for women on a Saturday night and more than six drinks for men. That’s how we define binge drinking! Having a few too many.

My children are most definitely at risk of exposure to that.

I believe with all my heart that we have to manage teenage drinking – but writing scaremongering articles doesn’t help!

I think the numbers of kids drinking these days is probably the same as it always was, (one in five 16-17 year olds actually sounds a bit low to me) the difference now is that parents let them do it on the street.

I don’t dispute that parents need to be reminded to keep their little darlings at home when they drink, but I don’t think we need articles drunk teenagers turning up to school – it’s just not happening!

Never negotiate with teenagers!

Is it just me or does everyone wonder how our kids will parent their own children?

Every generation thinks they can do it better than the one before.

The parents of my generation did it tough. As a result I think they tried to smooth the way for their kids.

They bought us houses, took us overseas, and I know I’ll get into trouble, but across the board I think they made us soft.

In turn, I think my generation is guilty of wanting to be best friends with our kids.

In general, we saw our dads as disconnected and our mums as uncool. We were determined to do better. As a result, somewhere along the way, I think we gave up our authority.

When our number-one son was a baby, he didn’t like going to bed. His demands started with story reading. We always read two.
By the time he was three years old, Gabe was demanding six or seven books before he would even pretend to lie down.
Then it was a demand for water, for mummy to lie down with him, for the light on, to sleep with mummy in her bed, and on and on until eventually John and I couldn’t watch TV or go to bed until Gabe finally crashed exhausted on the couch in front of a Thomas video. We’d put him to bed asleep; an hour later he’d wake furious, and head straight for his rightful place, wedged between John and I.

We were saved by a couple expecting their sixth child who ran a parenting course in their home. They were amazing.

Every kid in their family had a job, including the four-year-old who was expected to put the folded washing at the foot of each person’s bed every afternoon. It wasn’t boot camp; it was calm and orderly.

I learned such a lot from that course, most of all that parents have to believe they are in charge and your child will always love you, especially if you learn to say no.

Michael Carr Gregg is a Melbourne-based psychologist who believes there has been a meltdown of parents in Australia.

He says he is blown away by how helpless parents feel these days.

Recently, a mother asked him: “How can I get my daughter off the internet?”
“Who pays for the internet?” he asked. Of course, the mother paid for it.
“But I can’t get into her bedroom,” she wailed.

Dr Carr Gregg was contacted by a pre-school because a mother couldn’t get her four-year-old out of the car in the mornings.

Another family came to him after cancelling a family holiday because the 10-year-old refused point blank to get in the car, which was already loaded with luggage.

My favourite, though, is the story of a mother who said her 10-year-old had been engaging in “unco-operative behaviour”. A letter from school claimed he had stolen three laptop computers.
“That’s not unco-operative behaviour,” Dr Carr-Gregg told the mother. “Your son is a thief.”

It’s easy to pussyfoot around your kids – everybody hates a confrontation. But in my experience the more you show you mean business, the less confrontation you ultimately face.

Kids aren’t as tough as you think they are.

Sometimes the smartest thing to do is lay down the law and just walk away – only crazy people willingly test their negotiating skills against a teenager!

Most of all, if the inmates are running the asylum, don’t be scared to seek help. A really good course is the Positive Parenting Program, or Triple P, check them out at www.triplep.net

John and I were saved by our parenting course and it’s lucky for our two girls we were, because without the section on getting that kid out of our bed, conceiving new ones would have been mighty tricky!

You know you're Australian if....

This was sent to me by Nola Murphy of Beerwah!! It's not entirely original...but pretty cool.


You know you're Australian if …
1. You know the meaning of the word "girt".
2. You believe that stubbies can be either drunk or worn.
3. You think it's normal to have a leader called Kevin.
4. You waddle when you walk due to the 53 expired petrol discount vouchers stuffed in your wallet or purse.
5. You've made a bong out of your garden hose rather than use it for something illegal such as watering the garden.
6. You believe it is appropriate to put a rubber in your son's pencil case when he first attends school.
7. When you hear that an American "roots for his team" you wonder how often and with whom.
8. You understand that the phrase "a group of women wearing black thongs" might be less alluring than it sounds.
9. You believe the letter "l" in the word " Australia " is optional.
10. You can translate: "Dazza and Shazza played Acca Dacca on the way to Maccas."
11. You call your best friend "a total bastard" but someone you really, truly despise is just "a bit of a bastard".
12. You're secretly proud of our killer wildlife.
13. It makes sense to have a $1 coin that's twice as big as its $2 coin.
14. You understand that "Wagga Wagga" can be abbreviated to "Wagga" but "Woy Woy" can't be called "Woy".
15. You believe that cooked-down axlegrease makes a good breakfast spread.
16. You believe all famous Kiwis are actually Australian, until they stuff up, at which point they again become Kiwis.
17. Hamburger. Beetroot. Of course.
18. You know that certain words must, by law, be shouted out during any rendition of the Angels' song Am I Ever Gonna See Your Face Again.
19. You believe, as an article of faith, that the confectionary known as the Wagon Wheel has become smaller with every passing year.
20. You still don't get why the "Labor" in "Australian Labor Party" is not spelt with a "u".
21. You believe, as an article of faith, that every important discovery in the world was made by an Australian but then sold off to the Yanks for a pittance.
22. You believe that the more someone shortens your name the more they like you.
23. You understand that "excuse me" can sound rude, while "scuse me" is always polite.
24. You know what it's like to swallow a fly, on occasion via your nose.
25. You understand that "you" has a plural and that it's "youse".
26. Your biggest family argument over the summer concerned the rules for beach cricket.
27. You still think of Kylie as "that girl off Neighbours".
28. When returning home from overseas, you expect to be brutally strip-searched by Customs - just in case you're trying to sneak in fruit.
29. You believe the phrase "smart casual" refers to a pair of black tracky-daks, suitably laundered.
30. You understand that all train timetables are works of fiction.
31. When working on a bar, you understand male customers will feel the need to offer an excuse whenever they order low-alcohol beer.
32. You find yourself ignorant of nearly all the facts deemed essential in the government's new test for migrants.
33. You know, whatever the tourist books say, that no one says "cobber".
34. And you will immediately forward this list to other Australians, here and overseas, realising that only they will understand.

What footballers don't know about sex....

Is it just me or does everyone think a new DVD for AFL players should be compulsary viewing for all?

The AFL has decided to tackle the problem of oversexed footballers head on, by spelling out the rules in no uncertain terms.

Apparently, they've produced an interactive DVD asking what some might think are pretty basic questions…

For instance, should you pretend to be your best mate so you can have sex with his girlfriend?

If a girl who has had too much to drink do you: (a) get her some water, (b) call her a taxi or (c) take her back to your place for sex?

If your mate and his girlfriend are having sex and you can see them, do you: (a) stand and watch or b shut the door?

Last year my nephew graduated from an all boys private school in Brisbane, before the eager young lads left for schoolies they were handed a piece of paper which said something like...

You cannot have sex with a girl who is....

Drunk
Drugged
Asleep
Has said no
Is still at school
Is the only girl in a group of your mates
Has already had sex with one of your mates (very recently).

The note told the boys these rules were non negotiable…

For most of us, they might seem pretty basic. It’s certainly very easy to scoff at a quiz telling footballers not to rape their best friends girl - but to be honest, I don’t think it matters who you are, if you haven’t had a conversation like this with your kids, maybe it’s time you did.

Happy Birthday to me....

Is it just me or does everyone wish they were more famous?

Nelson Mandela and I have a little bit in common. We're both anti apartheid….we’ve got big dysfunctional families that sometimes get us into trouble….we’re both celebrating a major birthday ending in zero this year….and obviously, we’re both big music fans…

I read today that Mr Mandela has convinced the Spice Girls to reform (AGAIN) for his90th birthday in June. Apparently he first met the girls in 1990 and absolutely adores them!

Not only is he getting the Spice Girls - others taking part include the Rolling Stones, Annie Lennox and Bono from U2. If that's not enough, Queen have also confirmed they will perform AND NOT ONLY THAT but Robbie Williams is rumoured to be planning to sing with the band dressed as their legendary frontman Freddie Mercury.

I too am having a big birthday this year. I’m turning 40 in August - and I want a big party too. I'm thinking The Waif's, Paul Kelly (obviously)….Powerderfinger….Midnight Oil maybe…(not sure how busy parliament is in August....)

Let me know if you can help.....

A tragic affair...

Is it just me or does everyone think do unto others is a really good motto to live by?

If you’re a single woman on the Sunshine Coast and you’re over 35, apparently the joke statistic is increasingly true - you’ve got more chance of being hit by a terrorist bullet than finding a good man.

The Queensland government says women make up 51.3 per cent of the population. Bad news. Not only that but reports suggest internet websites are increasing filled with married people - men and women who are just looking for a bit of fun, checking what’s available, whether they’re interested in a relationship or not!

Affairs are a fact of life, but I thought an email I got this morning was worth sharing – just in case you’re thinking of indulging.

A woman (who wants to remain anonymous) wrote to tell me she’s been through two marriage break ups and has two children, aged 17 and 14. She says she finds it impossible to meet men and that married people on dating websites make her sick!

According to her email, this woman has a friend who has just met a bloke on a dating website and guess what? He’s married. Despite numerous warnings, her friend says she’s not concerned that he’s married and just says ‘you can’t break up a happy marriage’.

All that is probably pretty old news – nothing out of the ordinary. But this is the bit that really got my attention. The author of the email told me her 17 year old daughter overheard the conversation about the married man. Later on, she asked her mother if the married man had any children. Upon hearing that he actually has two children, both of them at a private school on the Sunshine Coast her daughter responded, “Well someone should call those kids and tell them to prepare for a new step mother.” She said, “ ….they should start saving now because they’ll be buying their own car and they might as well say good bye to their friends because they probably won’t be at their private school very long either….”

Still think an affair is such a good idea?

Sorry shouldn't be the hardest word....

Is it just me or is everyone very proud of what took place in Australia’s parliament this week?

In another life I worked briefly as a journalist for SBS.

Way back in 1997, immediately following the release of the Bringing them Home report, I was sent to La Perouse in Sydney to talk to local elders about the idea of a National Sorry Day.

Michael Mansell was still pretty famous back then and a lot of what was reported suggested Aboriginal Australia was very angry.

To be honest, I was nervous about the assignment and more than a little defensive.

I accepted that white man had been disastrous for indigenous Australians. I understood that they had a right to be angry. I just got the feeling I was being blamed personally for something I didn’t do, and I wasn’t very comfortable with that.

So anyway, I made it to La Perouse just in time to see the ceremonial dancing in the marquee, then lined up for a warm scone and very hot tea in a Styrofoam cup. The woman next to me in the tea line was called Nan and she wasn’t angry at all, but she was desperate to tell me her story.

In the late 1930’s, Nan was the youngest of three children living with both parents on a mission outside Moree in New South Wales.

One fateful Tuesday Nan wasn’t feeling very well and her mother kept her home from school.

Mid morning, word had spread through the camp that ‘the government cars’ were in town.
Big, black and hard to miss in pre-war Moree.

That afternoon, without any warning at all, none of the camp kids returned from school.
Not one. No word, no explanation, no promises, just no kids.

As the afternoon ticked away, Nan remembers being held very close by her shaking mother while the camp adults gathered to formulate a plan.

In 1997 remember, I was the reasonably young mother of three children.

They were five, two and six-months old. Back then, sometimes I used to dream that they were drowning, and the only way to save them was to go under myself and hold them up.

Listening to Nan’s story, and the story of her mother was the moment I finally started to get it.
As they gathered in the fading light, that group of parents knew for a fact their babies were still somewhere in town, yet they didn’t have the guts to demand them back.

Instead, they waited until after dark to creep through the streets.

First, they went to the school house, tiptoeing, whispering and listening at the door for the sounds of stolen children.

They tried the police station, the church and finally the cricket oval.

To this day, Nan doesn’t know where the white man was keeping the black kids of Moree that night, because they didn’t find them.

The government cars rolled out of town the next morning and Nan never saw her brother and sister again.

What struck me most about Nan’s story was the emasculation.

The fact that parents who had done absolutely nothing wrong were too damn scared to bash down the door of the school house and demand their children back.

That’s how powerless the Aboriginal man was in 1930’s Australia. That is what we had done to him.

The long and the short of it, Nan says she lived the rest of her childhood like she was on the run.

She and her parents moved from town to town until eventually they split.

Her mother never lost her fear of authority and rarely let Nan out of her sight.

Nan never married and never had children of her own.

I am so sorry that happened to Nan and her family.

Yet, they are just one case in one hundred thousand.

They’re funny things, apologies.

When I was younger, I used to find them very difficult.

As I’ve grown older, less so.

Maybe Australia is finally growing up too.

No compensation for pain....

Is it just me or does everyone think it’s crass and inappropriate to be talking about compensation today?


Kevin Rudd today apologised, on behalf of the Australian Parliament, for the 'profound grief, loss and suffering of generations of indigenous Australians'.


For my money, the apology, a promise that Australian history will be taught, warts and all – and a renewed effort to close the gap between black and white Australia is what today is about.

I just don’t believe in compensation cheques…for anyone…black or white. I think they’re like lotto wins….gone in sixty seconds…

In matter of compensation, the only real winners are lawyers and psychologists. In fact, I think psychologists need to seriously consider their role in compensation cases – from my experience, these are health professionals who stop putting time and effort into healing people – instead turning their patients into victims, allowing them to tell and retell their stories of trauma - to highlight the negative (for the benefit of the courts) until that’s the only part of the story that remains.

Australia has made terrible mistakes with it’s indigenous population - we must never take a step back from that. There should be no limit to money spent on health and education for our precious indigenous population - but I think big cheques for individuals will do nothing more than create a whole new generation of victims

I am very sorry.

Is it just me or does everyone worry that some people in Australia will just never get it?

Tomorrow, Prime Minister Kevin Rudd is planning to apologise to the stolen generation on behalf of the federal parliament.

Even the liberal party – who resisted all calls for an apology has got on board.

Apologies are very important things – when I was young I used to find them difficult – as I’ve got older – much less so.

Sometimes I think an apology is as therapeutic for the giver as it is for the receiver and that’s how I feel about the apology to the stolen generation.

Having said that – it makes me very sad to tell you that people keep sending me a horrible email doing the rounds (again) about ‘apologising’ for giving aboriginal people medical services and welfare. In this 'apology' there is even a sick and quite erroneous line in this vile piece about 'white people' being sorry for stopping indigenous Australians eating each other’s flesh….where on earth did that come from?

If you read that email carefully – I think you’ll find it originated in South Africa – only because it mentions something distasteful about being sorry for 'making the most of your oil and diamonds instead of letting them lie useless in the ground.'

Worst of all, I’ve been sent it four times - obviously by people who don't know me very well!

If you’ve got a copy of it – don’t pass it on, delete it – it’s mean spirited white supremacy stuff…. just think of the ramifications of such an ugly loveless piece of bile.

The bottom line, if you hurt someone – even if it’s by accident – even if it’s not your fault – you say sorry.

Kokoda

Is it just me or does everyone think it’s easy for Australians to be arrogant when dealing with poorer neighbours?

Yesterday, at a village around the highest point of the Kokoda Trail, locals felled two trees to block the track and declared trekkers unwelcome.

6000 Australian trekkers were expected to make the journey this year, but village spokesman Barney Jack says that’s not going to happen.

Mr Jack says 65 years after the close of the WWII, his countrymen are still poor, children do not attend school and locals are working incredibly hard – earning just 20 dollars a day carrying the packs lazy Australian trekkers, including the pack of Prime Minister Kevin Rudd.

The unrest is largely motivated by mining, led by an Australian mining company.

Mr Jack says locals want Frontier Resources to be allowed dig up 600 metres of the trail to mine a 7 billion dollar copper and gold deposit.

The villagers have been offered a 5 per cent stake in the mine, about $US100 million over the proposed 10-year life of the mine. It’s a lot of money (not as much as the Australian mining company is going to make…obviously) and you can understand why it’s an attractive offer.

Digger’s groups and the Australian government are totally opposed to the mine, but I say that means we have to step up.

Schools, hospitals, no exploitation for the locals by tour groups - c’mon Kev, that’d be a good start I reckon

Wayne Bennett's big year...

Is it just me or does everyone just love Wayne Bennett?

I’m not saying we’d ever be good friends, I work in the media, I’m pretty sure he wouldn’t give me the time of day….but I love him anyway.

I love what he’s done with the Bronco’s. I love that on the whole they have been a team that young boys could look up to. The Bronco's have a policy, it’s far more important to be a good person off the field, than a champion on. Even those who can’t stand Wayne Bennet don’t deny he is the driving force behind that culture.

Having said that - no man is perfect and I suspect Mr Bennett could take the odd chill pill.

I have no problem with the fact that he didn’t feel secure at the Bronco’s and sought offers elsewhere – like Wayne himself said yesterday, "No point waiting around for them to do a Sheed’s on me."

The sad thing is, if you believe what you read, Mr Bennett might have trashed some important relationships along the way. Bruno Cullen and Wayne Bennett used to be a good team – by all reports, that’s gone now…because Wayne wouldn’t trust Bruno.

At the end of last season Wayne was made a life member at the Bronco’s, surely the most fitting life membership ever awarded, but he refused to make a speech, simply saying "thanks" and walking off stage….I don’t think that showed best judgement.

Wayne Bennett will remain at the Bronco's for the 2008 season, I hope he uses this last year to mend those bridges.

I love that club.

I love that man.

I have no problem with their need to part ways – but it will be a tragedy if they don’t part friends.

Fat Bridesmaids!

Is it just me or does everyone think agreeing to be a bridesmaid can be a tricky business?

According to a UK magazine, one in five brides want bridesmaids to sign contracts promising not to put on weight or get pregnant before the big day. Most of the bridezillas admit they would never actually do it – but in a perfect world, they’d rather not have a fat bridesmaid ruin the photos…

The suggestion of a bridesmaid ‘pre-nup’ is a fairly new development and thank the lord for that, because just four or five years ago, I almost certainly would have got the sack before the big day.

I was bridesmaid for my friend Rebecca Grisman when she married the lovely Keith….
Bec was a pretty organised bride, everything ran like clockwork - except perhaps for one of the bridesmaids.

I went home to Mum for a couple of weeks before the wedding (not a great idea), got back to Queensland with a week and a half to go and uh oh - couldn’t get that sucker on! That’s not true actually, I could get it on …just couldn’t do it up…

At the bridal shower, I confessed to my friend, I’ll call her Leanne Reed (because that’s her name) and she ABSOLUTELY wet herself laughing, that’s right - spectactular support….

With five days to go, I did the only thing I could and gave up eating altogether….I promise you….nothing but green tea and cabbage soup….and the morning of the wedding (I’m not kidding, the night before it wouldn't fit)…only on the morning of the wedding did I manage to jam that baby on. It wasn’t pretty, but considering I was almost the only bridesmaid sporting safety pins and poncho…I think it was a pretty good result…

My article in 'The Daily'...

Is it just me or does every parent think it’s time to ignite the teen drinking debate?

This is not something I ever wished to share with you. It is my private family business.

However, if a newspaper column is good for anything, it should kick-start important conversations.

Underage drinking is a problem on the Sunshine Coast, and I am not blameless.

But before I confess the sins of my family, I want to be very clear.

If your 15, 16 or 17-year-old child belongs to a reasonably social peer group, if they go to parties, regularly attend sleepovers or hang on the street after dark, then I think you can safely assume they are drinking.

Not every teenager drinks but the socialites do, whether their parents choose to acknowledge it or not.

When I was a kid, I had two older siblings and my dad was a publican. By the age of 16, I was allowed to drink at home with friends, occasionally. We weren’t always sensible but we were out of harm’s way.

In a similar vein, from the beginning of Year 11, our son has been allowed the odd light beer, although in truth he has never pushed as hard for it as I did with my parents.

By the end of Year 11, he and a couple of mates had progressed to the occasional big night in.

I know some people won’t admire me for it, but I am comfortable with that situation.

Having said that, Gabe’s now in Year 12 and it’s possible he will want to raise the stakes.
That makes me uncomfortable.

We have always been very clear with Gabe about our expectations.

He is allowed to drink at home with friends.

We are prepared to negotiate about parties but he is never allowed to take alcohol to the homes of people we don’t know.

He is never allowed to drink in a public place or hang out at Mooloolaba (sober or not) for no good reason.

Do I think that means we have total control, that we will never be compromised by Gabe’s behaviour or that he will remain safe?

Absolutely not; 18 is still a very long way off.

It doesn’t make me proud to write any of this.

Like most parents of teenagers, I would like alcohol to go away. Despite my upbringing and my belief our plan made sense, a big part of me wishes we never let the genie out of the bottle.

I don’t know if parents with zero tolerance on alcohol will ever live to regret their decision, but right now I admire their courage.

Police claim that on Saturday night there were more than 500 drunken teenagers on the streets of Mooloolaba and Noosa.They were pushing and shoving, mouthing off to young families, and generally ignoring police directions.

This week I spoke to a long-term copper who says he’s had enough.

He says Queensland police are already using capsicum spray almost daily – often on children. In less than six months, every cop on the beat will be carrying a taser.

I believe with all my heart that if you let your child out on a Saturday night without managing their access to alcohol, how and when they get home or who they are with, then you can’t complain if they suffer capsicum spray or, God forbid, a taser strike.

A 90kg drunk bloke causing trouble is a problem for police; it doesn’t matter how old he is.

Teenagers do not run the world. Public drinking and disorderly conduct are illegal for everyone – being a kid is no excuse for being a public nuisance.

Not only that, in these increasingly volatile times, if your kid is drunk and in public (quite possibly behaving like a tool), then they are at risk of being king-hit, stabbed or raped. It happens every single weekend.

I certainly don’t have all the answers, and I’m crossing my fingers and praying just as often as you are.

But I do know this: As parents it is our job to protect our children, especially from themselves.

Putting you money where your mouth is!

Is it just me or does everyone think an alcohol free month might not be a bad idea?

We’ve all been banging on about teen drinking…well, probably me, mostly…but I just heard about something started in Melbourne.

Last year, two friends decided to shake off the excessives of summer with a month-long, booze-free fast…after all, they rationaled…February is the shortest month….

IN a month, the girls raised 910 dollars to help young people with substance abuse issues.

In a year, it’s gone crazy..like Movember….

Today the staff of AFL headquarters (including Andrew Dimetriou), Victoria Police, the health department, AGL and the Melbourne Magistrates Court begin their Febfast…and are expected to raise more than 900 thousand dollars.

Participants ask sponsors to help keep them on their track to abstinence. But if the going gets too tough or a special event arises, one $15 "Time Out" certificates can also be purchased to allow people to have a drink for, say, Valentine's Day, their birthday, wedding anniversary…whatever arises..,

If you want to find out more www.febfast.com.au

or check out www.theage.com.au/articles/2008/01/31/1201714153329.html?s_rid=smh:top5