From Mark: People in our cities are building McMansions but giving to charity is at an all time low. The following is obscene: ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Once upon a time, kings had castles and the peasants were lucky if they had a hut to call their own. How things have changed. These days, the great Australian dream isn't of a mere bungalow on a quarter acre block. It's bigger, much bigger. In the past 20 years, the average house size has increased by 40 percent. That means the old three-bedroom family home is out. Huge McMansions are in - five bedrooms and more, with everything that opens and shuts. And what's more, they're being snapped up by average, everyday Australians. But as Peter Harvey found, one family's suburban dream can be another's nightmare. http://sixtyminutes.ninemsn.com.au/sixtyminutes/stories/2006_02_26/story_1578.asp ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Many elderly people have been found dead in their homes over the last few months. Some had been dead for months and the neighbours didn't know. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Third discovery: died alone, left to rot The skeleton of a Sydney recluse has been found eight months after he died in the loungeroom of his inner-city unit - the third such discovery in just over a week in NSW. The 64-year-old man was found yesterday in unit 1507 of the Waterloo Housing Commission block after a friend told police she had not heard from him in several months. It's believed the badly decomposed body, which has not been formally identified, was found partially slumped on a coffee table. Police believe the man died six to eight months ago, but are not treating the death as suspicious. A post mortem will be carried out. Next door neighbour Darika Poliniaeva did not know the man's name, but described him as a "very, very nice man'' who would say "hello'' when they passed in the corridor or lift. She detected a strong odour in January coming from his one-bedroom unit, which is situated opposite a window in the corridor, but the smell went away. Ms Poliniaeva said she had thought the man was on an extended holiday, and did not think it odd that she had not seen her neighbour in some months. "About the time of New Year, you know, one time, I was walking past and smell it a little bit, like somebody left the meat for one or two days,'' Ms Poliniaeva said. "But every other time I passed, maybe 10 times a day, you know, I never smelled it, I never smelled it.'' Another neighbour, Anthony, told Macquarie Radio he had befriended the man and was angry it had taken so long to find his body. Redfern police Superintendent Catherine Burn said the discovery was sad and tragic, but said the circumstances were inevitable when elderly people chose to live alone. "I have no doubt that it does happen ... we do have an elderly population living in this unit block and some choose to be alone for whatever reason,'' Supt Burn told reporters. "It's inevitable that unfortunately positions like this will arise.'' A review of checking procedures for public housing tenants was announced by the NSW government following the February 12 discovery of a skeleton in the Northcott housing commission block in Sydney's Surry Hills. The 62-year-old pensioner - who is yet to be formally identified - was found by three neighbours investigating a strong odour. Four days later, a 79-year-old woman was found dead in her bed at her house at Umina, on the NSW Central Coast, after postal workers alerted police following publicity over the Sydney death. A spokeswoman for NSW Housing Minister Cherie Burton said department staff checked on public housing tenants twice a year, but neighbours were encouraged to look after each other. "No amount of government checking or department of housing checking can replace neighbours knowing each other and knowing each others' routines,'' she said. "Neighbours are there on the spot every day, whereas frontline staff at the department of housing are responsible for over 200,000 tenants.'' http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2006/02/21/1140284029304.html ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ [Pm John Howard] must face the implications of an upheaval in social values over the past 30 years ... The orderly society held together by the glue of religion is long gone. More and more, the country is leading a bohemian life that 50 years ago was confined to an intellectual fringe. ..... The generation has thrown out the bath water of moral preaching, and the baby with it. ....A succession of worthy but seemingly unconnected social welfare measures arriving haphazardly won't do. What is needed is a rethink based on social reality. Look after those who cannot help themselves, but also look after those who can help the country ....
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