14 October 2005

Canberra Fascists Uber Alles (Squeegees A Go Go)

| johnboy
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ABC Online is reporting on John Hargreaves’s musings on the banning of windscreen wipers.

Sometimes my window needs a wipe and I wave them in. Sometimes I shake my head and they move on. If i don’t want it and they do it anyway then I don’t pay them.

And folks so gutless as to pay for things they don’t want aren’t deserving of further protection.

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People are kidding themselves to imagine this must be great work. If it was that pleasant lots of people would be doing it. It doesn’t appeal to me. Not many opportunities for promotion. A lack of ergonomic furniture, a drafy office with a leaky roof and really cranky and ungrateful customers.
Dickson guy used to have a sign asking for other work opportunities. I guess noone offered him anything else.

It’s got nothing to do with hardship, privelage or class. It’s one thing to give change to a charity and have your windows washed. It’s another thing to cheat the tax system and play it as a full time occupation. (I only say that beacause I can’t do it.)

People are shitty about it for any number of reasons, so before people get on there free love holier than thou high horse and proclaim Canberrans are overtly privelaged and sobs, look at it from other angles.

It wouldn’t be hard to make a bundle of money doing that, so don’t give me the underprivelaged hardship bullshit. Likewise, don’t make rash statements based on fiction about delaing drugs.

In summary, I don’t give a damn. If he can screw Costello, more power to him; I know I would if I could. if you don’t like it, don’t let them wash your windscreen, wind up your windows, turn up your stereo, put some sungalsses on and lock your doors. Heaven forbid someone is walking around in public.

All said and done, because they romp around the middle of intersections we can await darwin’s law to be enforced. Furthermore, they should lose all chance of recourse if unintentionaly run down.

Anyway, i really don’t give a damn as I rarely see any squeedgee men.

…and I say Ralph, good luck to the said fella if he received 15 seconds of fame with Magnetmart and inadvertedly promoted his occupation further.

There are others who have started out with less – those who are overtly privileged (most Canberrans)will probably never experience the levels of daily hardships that person and his family endure, to say otherwise is sheer hypocrisy!

BTW, a year ago or so, a girl’s netball team were doing windscreen washing to help them raise money for their endevours – again, they were young, attractive and well presented, and I don’t think many people would complain about ’em.

So the problem is probably more that you just plain don’t want to have to look at unattractive people…

Where did we get the idea these guys deal drugs?

It seems to me one poster speculated about it and now we’ve taken it as gospel.

Well the one on the corner of Barry Drive and Northbourne Avenue has already made a cameo appearance in one of the Magnet Mart ads.

A subject that is close to my heart. Windscreen washing…

I have often thought as I earn my $200/day wage what it would be like to stand outside, do something menial, meet lots of people job.

Yes I have thought of becoming a window washer myself.

There’s something of a finesse involved with earning a tax free dollar, and knowing that most of my $200/day wage was going into my pocket other than the governments really impresses me.

The intimidation factor is merely an excuse. If you don’t like somebody wind up your window, then they have to break through that to get to you. Hrmms that sounds just like everyday driving to me, perhaps these people should be looking at suits of armour or batcars or something.

Of course these chaps don’t look like the most scrupulous of people, but that’s just a load of steryiotyping issues that we have as a society perception of them.

Ok they might deal drugs, but as said earlier, arrest them.

Once while driving to work on Daffodil for whatever it is cause Day, as a fundraising measure some people had gotten out with buckets of daffodils and were offering windscreen washing for a donation as well.

They were clean, uniformed, washing your windows and selling you flowers.

I think they made money off every car that passed as well too, not just the 200 estimation.

I say when the RiotACT T shirts finally get produced, the major players at windscreen washing (corner of Barrie Drive and Northborne and the Dixon shops corner guy) should get a free T shirt.

On a side note, I saw a camel last week.

I find it amazing how excited everyone gets when someone seems to operate outside the offical box they should be in. Do we really think these people have it so good? They shouldn’t be abusing people but otherwise let them go. I think there are cleaner, higher paid, tax dodgers to worry about first.

They manage to look after themselves well enough to wander through traffic all day.

I’ll use the heroin excuse for not filling in my tax return. Everything is always someone elses fault and society owes me.

If they like cleaning things, they could always get a job as a cleaner with a commercial company. Oh, that’s right, why should they have to do that when the average taxpayer can carry them through life, because they have issues of some sort. If they can stand at an intersection all day long, then why can’t they work in a real job and pay tax just like all us other suckers? Too many people are on welfare for the wrong reasons and nobody’s prepared to do anything about it.

if these people are shooting shit into their veins then do you really think they file tax returns ?

instead of banning them, social services should send a case worker down there.

society owes a duty of care to people who live on the fringes and cannot look after themselves.

i think the standard that needs to be applied here is – what harm are they causing ? answer – none.

while i dont want my windows cleaned, id rather they did this than bust into the stanley steamer and steal the wireless.

im sure they are very aware of the consequences of stepping in front of an 18 wheeler.

‘they get angry with young girls alone in their car and scare the shit out of them.’ And also – older solo women drivers who don’t want their ‘services’ !

A modest estimate of 100 cars per day at an average of $1 or $2 per car. I bet they don’t declare it for taxation purposes and still happily collect their Centrelink payments.

Why should we change liability laws for people who chose to walk through traffic when they shouldn’t be there. Issue tickets for crossing against the dont walk signal, not crossing at the desiganted crossing at $70 odd a pop and they’ll soon go away.

These guys are doing squeegy work, dude. Do you really think they’re raking in the dough, or that they’ve got the brains, brawn or anything other than their own willingness to stand on a corner all day to get them through life?

They could always try something really novel, like, getting a real job? Nah, that’d probably be far too hard! 😉

If they’re dealing smack then arrest them for dealing smack, if they’re being offensive arrest them for being offensive.

The problem is that they get angry with young girls alone in their car and scare the shit out of them. Otherwise they are using the cover of window washing to deal smack. I wouldn’t think for a minute that they are window washing to make an honest living. Get rid of them.

G

“Yes, but I bet a lawyer would have fun with that!”

OK, so get the laws straight so there’s no liability issue.

Let them alone. I let them do my windscreen sometimes, and I give them some change – sometimes only 60c or so. And if they do it if I didn’t ask I don’t pay. When I had a terible old car they would always do it for free out of sympathy!

Personally they don’t bother me. At least they’re not sitting on their arses all day. The bloke at Dickson knows not to ask me anyway.

The Es-Sense8:03 pm 15 Oct 05

Dr. Evil: If you’d rather have a jobless guy burgle your car than try to make an pretty honest living, go with Hargreaves.
I’m with JB on this one. Let them stay.

“if they get hit they get hit, they know the risks they’re taking.”

Yes, but I bet a lawyer would have fun with that!

if they get hit they get hit, they know the risks they’re taking.

as for tax compliance that’s a federal responsibility. Personally I don’t think there should be any tax below the poverty line and I doubt too many squeegee guys are raking in that much.

they work hard for their money.

I reckon they should be moved on, because what do you think will happen when one of these idiots is hit by a car one day? The number of near misses at Dickson that I’ve seen means it’s going happen sooner or later.

I’d also like to know if these individuals are declaring their income from washing windows to Taxation and/or Centrelink?????

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