Herald Sun Resident Gutter Scribe Sue Hewitt Strikes Again..
The Herald Sun's Sue Hewitt has again adopted the classic gutter entertainment reporter tradition of just making up stories if you don't have any real news. Today, she's trying to draw a very long bow indeed to connect the death of Maria Korp to that of Herman Rockefeller.
So whats the link between the two cases? Not that they were both swingers? No, that doesn't suggest any real link, its a coincidence.
The link, according to Hewitt is because that the lovers in the Korp case used to visit Heathcote. And police were searching land near Heathcote in relation to the Rockefeller murder. How the hell is that a link? Or is there something you aren't telling us Sue?
"Maria Korp twist in case. The murder of businessman Herman Rockefeller has a curious link to the "body-in-boot" case. The lovers who left Maria Korp to die in a car boot in 2005 met secretly in the central Victorian town Heathcote, where police searched for Mr Rockefeller's body. Police spent hours combing isolated bushland on the outskirts of Heathcote on Friday and invoked the Coroner's Act to lock out intruders."
The story goes on to give a basic summary of the Korp murder case. Well thanks very much Sue.
Does Sue Hewitt know more about swinging than she is letting on? Or is there indeed a connection between Sue Hewitt, Herman Rockefeller and Maria Korp? Maybe Hewitt has been to Heathcote before. That's enough evidence of a link for me.
Ive never been to Heathcote so i think I'm in the clear. No connection here. Although i have tasted some nice wines from the region so you cant be too sure.
Bad Boys Bad Boys Whatcha Gunna Do - Whatcha Gunna Do When They Come For You? Comedy Gold from the NSW Police
So seriously folks, is this what policing in Australia should be about? Not content with tipping off the media when they are about to conduct an arrest or operation - NSW Police have now resorted to bringing their own cameraman along for the ride - Cops style.
But does it work? For the media - yes. They lap this stuff up. It saves them a cameraman because after all, its free footage.
For the rest of us, this stuff borders on the farcical yet bloody hilarious. I'm telling you, this is pure comedy gold. Not only do the NSW police need some help in the editing department (leave those titles on a little longer next time), they could do with some assistance in the directing field.
Check out the first video - if this isn't just a little bit put on, I'll eat my shorts. Sure, its a real arrest. But we have a police officer leap out of a car and scream at the driver and passenger of another car "Police get out of the car" with gun drawn. Its almost a scene from Law and Order.
How real was the danger? Did he need to be so aggressive? Have a look at the attitude of the copper on the other side of the car. Ahhh...hmmm.
Note to Director - if you want to make this more real, get rid of the guy in the shorts. Bloody extras, always ruining the shots. Then again, he does have a thumb gun.
And real danger? If there was, the camera guy would be the primary focus - yes, he's the first dude on the scene!! And the SOG guys? They took a back seat for this little short film. They werent required for the fist half of the scene. I guess they were following the script and that is to be commended. Nice to get the dogs in on it too for added effect.
Or, have a look at Men In Black. And ask yourself the questions - what is that man carrying? And whats with the Dirty Harry sunglasses?
Why is it that NSW Police need to engage in such PR stunts? Or are they planning submissions for Tropfest?
Crushing Hoon Cars Will Reduce Dangerous Drivers on Our Roads
The wheels of government often move very slowly indeed. They only seem to act quickly in the wake of a major media expose or campaign, or in the event of a serious disaster. Take the Victorian bushfires as an example - the Brumby Government moved with extreme haste in dishing out funds and recovery relief for the victims.
So why is it taking governments so long to do something about hoon drivers on our roads? Simple answer - not enough people have died. Until more die - they may not do anything. Its like the way they treat many of the black spots on our roads. Until somebody dies at a dangerous intersection, it usually doesn't get fixed.
There needs to be more pressure put on governments around Australia to make them act. Usually, that pressure comes from a media campaign. And as much as i criticise the media, they are the ones who should kick off the campaign to crush hoon cars.
You hear a lot from Victoria Police about how crushing hoon cars isn't the answer. They roll out a tired line about how people caught hoon driving and whose cars are impounded usually don't re offend. According to Police Commissioner Simon Overland "I intuitively understand why people want to crush cars, but again I go back to the evidence that 99 per cent of people that lose their cars in the first instance don't reoffend." Assistant Commissioner Ken Lay says the same thing.
Now i have the greatest respect for Overland and Ken Lay. In fact i credit Ken Lay as being one of the main reasons for keeping road safety on the agenda. He is truly one of Victoria's best assets.
But on the issue of crushing cars Overland and Lay are missing the point. There have even been suggestions about psychological screening of people before they get their licence. That's wishful thinking at best.
No, the point is that its not about hoon drivers re offending. While its terrific that 99% of them don't - its about not allowing them to do it in the first place. Over the last 2 and a half years, more than 10,000 hoon cars have been impounded in Victoria alone. Think about that figure. That's more than 10 cars impounded every day.
But without doubt, that figure would pale into comparison with the hoon cars which aren't caught. We recognise that police cant be everywhere. Hoons know that too - they are willing to take the chance of getting caught. Drive on Dandenong Road on a Thursday, Friday or Saturday night, or indeed on one of the new drag strips, the Burwood Highway and you will see dozens of hoon drivers trying their luck.
But even if they do get caught, whats the penalty? Sure they could lose their licence for a few months or pay what the government considers a hefty fine. Not so hefty considering the value of the car itself. And then for the biggest slap on the wrist. Their car impounded for 48 hours.
48 hours? And that does what exactly? They get the car back in two days. Not that they can drive it again for a few months - well not legally anyway. You can increase the length of impounding to 28 days. But so what? They have lost their licence! But in the end, there it is, back in their hands.
Yes, 1% is not a large amount, but it still equates to at least 100 drivers in that 10,000 who will reoffend. They will hoon again.
And while that headline figure of 99% of hoon drivers not reoffending sounds good, 10,000 were out on the roads, potentially being the victims of a serious car crash - or worse, ending up in a twisted metal wreck like seen in Mill Park.
What will crushing the cars actually do? Its a direct disincentive to drivers not to hoon. Many of these guys, and they usually are guys, love their cars more than life itself. Tens of thousands of dollars are spent obtaining the car, followed by more money to maintain, modify and repair it.
Take away the car for 48 hours and they might suffer mild withdrawal symptoms at best. Crush the car and it would be like crushing their own child.
We can talk about the psychology of young male drivers until we are blue in the face. Unfortunately, understanding the psychology of young males is not just about understanding their bad driving and perhaps finding a solution. The psychological problems of of some young men which leads to hoon driving are probably the same as those which have seen indiscriminate violence on the rise. Not just here, but around the world. In other words, its a societal problem and one without a quick fix.
We need to stop hoon drivers in the first instance, not try to stop them reoffending. Throw in the possibility of a loss of car and you will kill part of the problem overnight. And its not about selling the car either – it has to be destroyed. While that may seem like a waste, it’s the only way to ram home the point. Selling a prized possession to another hoon isn't the answer – and it wouldn’t have nearly the same impact on the driver.
But no doubt you will get some “expert” in response, giving varying points as to why crushing cars is a bad idea. Why we should try something else first. Impound their cars for longer or some such idea. I say to them good. Keep talking. It is experts and bureaucrats who keep positive solutions from taking off. And you are the reason that more people die.
Crush the cars and you crush the problem. Otherwise we wont be talking about five young men being killed when their car hits a tree. We will be talking about a family or kids wiped out when a hoon car smashes into them.
Mourners Attack the Media at Mill Park Crash Victim Funeral
I'm not sure who i hate more. White trash or the tabloid media. Dang, that's a tough one. I'll reserve my judgement. I'm sure if i was at a funeral of a loved one i wouldn't want the media there to gawk. But on my list of worries, it probably wouldn't rate very highly.
But bogans will be bogans. They will be angry. And somebody else will be the recipient of their "someone else is to blame" culture.
So that's that. Now to my next question. When oh when did it become acceptable for mourners at funerals to turn up looking like strippers? One of the girls who attacked the media was wearing a skirt that would make Brittney blush and long knee high leather boots. WTF? Its a funeral love. You ain't there to pick up you know.
The more i think about it, the more i think that kids think life is just a game. A funeral is just part and parcel of it all, a social occasion if you will. Lets face it - many of these kids actually think the driver of the Mill Park car was a hero. Yeah, sometimes i think they just don't get it.
But in a few weeks, life will be back to normal, the dead will be forgotten. There wont be so many flowers and signs on the tree. And in a few days, weeks or a few months, another group of young kids will die in a car crash.
That means more funerals and more trashy black stripper outfits.
Attempted Murder Charge - 21 Year Old Alleged Machete Attacker Khoshaba Younan Granted Bail
Anyone who reads this site will know that I'm reluctant to resort to profanity. But in this case, i believe it is warranted. So I'll start with this: What the Fuck? What the Holy Fuck?
Khoshaba Younan is accused of dragging a passenger from a taxi on St Kilda Road in 2008. Why? Allegedly because the taxi driver beeped his horn at Younan. The passenger was allegedly dragged 15 metres by Younan and four of his friends. They allegedly beat him, then Younan is alleged to have slashed him in the head with a machete. The innocent man was seriously injured.
Two other passengers of the taxi were also allegedly beaten in the unprovoked attack.
I say allegedly a lot because 21 year old Khoshaba Younan should be granted the presumption of innocence. That's the way our legal system operates and i respect that entirely. But when a man is accused of engaging in a seriously violent crime and evidence appears to suggest the prosecution has a strong case, surely to God they should be kept on remand.
And yes, from all reports the prosecution does appear to have a strong case. The police have done some serious work on this one. So much serious work that they were concerned enough to last week dispatch the Special Operations Group to arrest Younan in Warrigal Road Chadstone. You may have read about that one - it was quite a big story.
Who are the Special Operations Group? They are the best of the best in Victoria Police. Heavily armed cops, they are dispatched only for the most serious and dangerous incidents.
So Victoria Police were concerned enough about Younan's alleged violent tendencies to send out the SOG to catch him. That's the first signal that maybe Younan isn't the safest guy to be let out into the community.
But wait - there's more. In a separate incident, Younan is accused of laying in wait outside a McDonalds restaurant in Footscray in December last year to attack three African men. Their indiscretion? They looked at Younan's girlfriend.
And yet, there's even more. Police were so worried about Younan and so determined to catch him that they secretly recorded more than 4000 phone calls he made over a six week period. In those calls, Younan is allegedly heard to admit to the slashing of the taxi passenger with a machete.
He is accused of admitting that he "sliced some guy" and "opened him up with a machete". Further, Younan is accused of referring to himself as a gangster who hates Australians. Police have also alleged that the attack on the taxi passenger was racist in nature.
Still, you want more. The Melbourne Magistrates Court heard that 1000 of the tapped calls were allegedly about drug transactions. So he is allegedly a drug dealer too.
Ahh, so after all that you would normally expect the man to be remanded before facing trial for attempted murder and other charges. 19 charges in fact. You would expect a guy who was arrested by the SOG to be locked up wouldn't you?
But you wouldn't be Magistrate Peter White who has obviously just stepped out of a sheltered workshop to sit at the bench. White claimed that Younan had strong ties to his family and was an acceptable bail risk. Acceptable. Like allowing Peter Dupas back into the community was acceptable.
I'm sorry Peter White? Are you seriously fucking mad or have you been taking too many of the happy pills? Holy fucking God is all i can say. Life isn't all about bleeding heart lefty rehabilitation you know.
When will Victorian judges learn? It is often said that politicians are disconnected from mainstream society. But some judges must almost be from Siberia. Peter Fucking White - you are the tosser of the year so far. Please bugger off back to the sheltered workshop where you cant do any more damage. Fuck me and Jesus Holy God.
When Sanitised Car Accident Photos Aren't Good Enough
I've seen countless car accident scenes. Usually on TV news or in newspapers. Sure, they look bad enough. Cars wrapped around trees, just like the one that claimed the life of five young guys in Mill Park.
These photos are graphic - the destruction of the car is plain to see. But they aren't that graphic. After all, what is it that we are really seeing? Its just a car. Sure, the car is destroyed beyond recognition. But its not like the car was alive - it didn't hurt when it hit the tree. Know what i mean?
In other words, these are sanitised images. They are the scenes of the car accidents AFTER the bodies have been removed. Good luck in finding even a speck of blood or guts. This is what commercial networks and commercial newspapers give to us.
Its apparently perfectly OK to see the dead bodies of people in places like Haiti, but God forbid if we were to ever show the real result of a car crash.
So i looked, i needed to see. I google imaged it. "Fatal Car Crash Photos". All i can say is that it is a real eye opener. We've seen some awful images on TAC and other road safety advertisements. But this stuff is real.
Blood everywhere. Body parts strewn all over the car. Internal organs. Brain matter. Torn off limbs and heads. Sound disturbing? It is. Very.
That is what a fatal car accident really looks like. After looking at these images i can understand how tough paramedics, police and rescue services must do it.
I'm not going to say that i didn't feel a little bit sick in seeing some of these photos. But i have to say that it has affected me enough to make me be even more aware on the roads - and i consider myself a pretty good driver.
So why is it that some of these kids who speed don't actually get to see what happens to a body in a high speed crash? If we showed them the real result of a crash, and not just the smashed up car, it might just change some of their behaviour.
They could google it. But they likely wont. So maybe we need to shove the images in their face.
Yes kids, it can happen to you. The photos prove it. And it ain't pretty at all.
Speeding 19 Year Old Driver Wraps His XR6 Around a Tree - 5 Men Dead
"Both vehicles, being driven by p-platers were detected travelling 170 kilometres per hour in an 80 km zone.
The driver of the Toyota, an 18-year-old from Springvale South who has only had his licence for six months, seemed to think the whole thing was amusing and continued to smirk and laugh as police spoke to him."
And welcome to 2010. Just 24 hours after a speeding P Plate idiot laughed at police in Vermont South, five young men are dead after their car smashed into a tree on Plenty Road Mill Park. Main reason? Speed.
So here we go again. Friends and family will arrive at the site to place copious amounts of flowers. Signs will be erected and facebook memory sites will be created. Talkback radio will be consumed with questions of how we can fix this problem of hoon drivers and speeding. There will be full page spreads of the photos of the car crash and victims in Melbourne's newspapers.
And in a few months, all but the closest family and friends will forget these kids. Then what will happen? The cycle will start again. Yes, in a few months time, another car full of kids will smash their way to their own 15 minutes of fame. Not that they will be be here to see it.
Avoidable accidents? You bet. These 5 young kids could almost be replicating a number of TAC commercials. Were these guys just unlucky or stupid? Probably a bit of both. Because the amount of young people speeding and hooning is on the increase.
What can we do? For a start we could stop by removing these ridiculous 48hour hoon impound laws. What the hell does 48 hours do? Yes, Ive changed my mind. Its time to start crushing cars. If we are truly serious about saving lives, kids driving expensive cars like XR6's need to realise that if they hoon - then bye bye goes the car.
Something has to give. Or more young idiots will die.
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