Punk Human

SINCE 2024 | THINK FOR YOURSELF

WHY ARE PEOPLE

SLEEPING IN THE STREETS ?

EMPTY & ABANDONED IN SYDNEY

RHODES
LEUMEAH
INGLEBURN
MIRANDA
RYDE
SUTHERLAND
NORTH SYDNEY
CHESTER HILL
RIVERSTONE
HOMEBUSH
MARRICKVILLE
PENDLE HILL
TELOPEA
LEICHHARDT

EMPTY & ABANDONED IN MELBOURNE

COBURG NORTH
NEWPORT
DANDENONG
NORTH MELBOURNE
ALBION
ABBOTSFORD
ALBERT PARK
BRUNSWICK
BELGRAVE
FOOTSCRAY
ST ALBANS
CREMORNE
CARLTON
FITZROY

EMPTY

PROPERTIES

REGISTER

A FREE TO USE DATABASE THAT RECORDS AUSTRALIA’S EMPTY & ABANDONED PROPERTIES DURING A NATIONAL HOUSING CRISIS

Punk Human Art Exhibition

A JOURNEY INTO THE UNDERBELLY OF SYDNEY

Over the course of one year, I have documented Sydney’s deepening accommodation crisis. This has involved visiting numerous homeless encampments around Sydney. Where I often discussed the causes of homelessness with those living on the streets. Causes identified included fleeing from domestic violence, having little to no money following eviction, experiencing a sudden crisis or misfortune, being without family or friends who could temporarily accommodate, likely mental illness, and no access to useful and appropriate social services.

A VOICE FOR PALESTINE

WEEKLY PROTEST CONTINUES OUTSIDE PM’S FORMER OFFICE IN MARRICKVILLE

EVERY THURSDAY & FRIDAY MORNING

IF BATMAN WAS A NATION,

WHAT NATION WOULD BATMAN BE ?

STREET ART | ST PETERS | NSW | ARTIST UNKNOWN

Fuel supplies linger but for how long?

FUEL SUPPLIES LINGER BUT FOR HOW LONG ? SERIOUS PLANNING IS NEEDED TO CURTAIL SHORTAGES Consider this, petrol is needed to power the family car that is used to drop off the kids at school. Petrol is also needed for the drive to work and the trip to the shopping centre. The supermarket where the weekly shopping is purchased relies on trucks that operate on diesel fuel. The fresh produce that originates from Australian farms and pastures also require diesel to make their vehicles work. Kerosene, otherwise known as jet fuel, powers the fleet of aircraft that transports us through…

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Melbourne: shops shut as economy weakens

MELBOURNE: SHOPS SHUT AS ECONOMY WEAKENS THE AESTHETICS OF ECONOMIC DECLINE The most noticeable thing about MELBOURNE high streets is the sheer abundance of shops that are empty and remain disused. Many stand out because they are tightly boarded up, the yellow-brown plywood sheets having been carefully fitted together to erase any sign of glass but somehow maintaining a reflective quality, a dull golden glow that recalls the winter sun. Whether or not a plywood barrier is erected is of no concern for those seeking visual space on the high street. Soon after a shop discontinues business and its tenants…

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How will I ever find a home?

HOW WILL I EVER FIND A HOME? PROPERTY SPECULATORS • Intentionally leave some properties vacant and underutilised • Sit on empty properties for years at a time to realise profit through land banking • Often prefer Airbnb short term rentals to long term renters HOMELESS PEOPLE • Wander the streets during the day to avoid being “moved on” by police • Sleep rough at railway stations and bus stops after dark • Often cannot receive government assistance if they have no fixed address UNDER 21s • Are stuck with youth wages until the age of 21 • But must pay…

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Squatters turn empty houses into homes

SQUATTERS TURN EMPTY HOUSES INTO HOMES SQUATTERS RECYCLE EMPTY PROPERTIES By the mid-1980s poverty had become rampant throughout Australia. As jobs moved overseas and mortgage rates skyrocketed above 15%, many people suffered under this unbearable weight. Some lost their homes and had to start again as renters in a new suburb. Others, overwhelmingly young people under 30, working with a handful of experienced squatters, took control of their destiny and moved themselves into vacant properties in large numbers. The residential properties had sat empty for years prior to these actions. They stood in forlorn clusters and were therefore highly visible,…

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Cold war turns hot

COLD WAR TURNS HOT VIDEOS | The unipolar moment | before & after VIDEOS These videos help explain the rise and fall of the unipolar moment, and include a sneak peek into the emerging multipolar world. A range of perspectives are included. / 01 THE FALL OF THE BERLIN WALL / 02 PRESIDENT GEORGE H.W. BUSH ANNOUNCES PERSIAN GULF WAR 1-16-91 / 03 NEWS AUGUST 24, 1991 – ABC NEWS SPECIAL REPORT ON SOVIET COUP AFTERMATH / 04 FROM 2003: COLIN POWELL ADDRESSES UNITED NATIONS SECURITY COUNCIL ON IRAQ / 05 PRESIDENT BUSH ANNOUNCES START OF IRAQ WAR / 06…

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From unipolar to multipolar

FROM UNIPOLAR TO MULTIPOLAR US HEGEMONY DWINDLES AS NEW POLES EMERGE THE COLD WAR American cultural and political leadership, on an international scale, began its ascendency in the aftermath of World War One. United States global power was further solidified after World War Two as much of Europe lay in ruins and was largely bankrupt. A cold war between East and West emerged soon after the defeat of the Nazis in 1945. The victorious Allies, which included Britain, France, Australia, the United States, and the Soviet Union, and which had successfully collaborated to defeat nazi Germany and imperial Japan, split…

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Towards a new philosophy of housing

TOWARDS A NEW PHILOSOPHY OF HOUSING HOUSING FOR ALL A philosophy of housing that seeks to satisfy the accommodation needs of the entire population, that rejects class privilege and racial prejudice where they may act as barriers to housing, that accepts that all people require suitable shelter, comfort, and privacy on an ongoing basis, and that delivers housing solutions at all links within the housing market chain, is precisely the new philosophy of housing that is now desperately needed. Such an approach draws upon the longstanding principle that appropriate housing is a fundamental human right. Which means that everyone receives…

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Thirteen years of something else

THIRTEEN YEARS OF SOMETHING ELSE There are times in life when things change at a record pace. During the thirteen years that transpired between 1962 and 1975, something fundamentally decent about Australia and Australians emerged. A genuine cultural unity materialised, one that rallied around a shared vision for a just Australian society. It was a time when the Australian nation had sought to overcome its horrid past of white slavery and black exclusion. It was also a time when Australia finally understood its place within and connection to world history. Indeed, it was a flowering, a coming of age, a…

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Building an empty properties register

BUILDING AN EMPTY PROPERTIES REGISTER What is an empty properties register? • An organised list of all the properties that currently remain empty • A survey of housing assets within an identified area • Such as a local council electorate, local catchment area, or a local conurbation • An empty properties register can be a national database Why produce an empty properties register? • To capture evidence of empty properties • To manifest a data pool which can serve further research • To help generate an honest public discussion about housing and homelessness • To provide coherent information related to…

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Without petrol, things will get much harder

WITHOUT PETROL, THINGS WILL GET MUCH HARDER If petrol becomes so expensive that most people cannot afford to operate a vehicle, certain specific changes will occur within our society. For example, tradespeople and mobile professionals, who pay for their own means of transportation, including petrol, will be forced to restrict their driving. Over time, these workers will seek to consolidate work appointments into time blocks to save on petrol expense, which in practice means they will opt to work part-time. Within three to six months, many will wind up their business enterprises, unable to strategise around price inflation and the…

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The Department of Squatting

The Department of Squatting and the news media reaction CHAPTER EXCERPT FROM THE NOVEL THE SCENT OF FRESH CUT GRASS / BY KEITH SALTER 0 DAY ZERO … | The scenario • After learning some frightening details regarding a local business entity• Squatters take over a building located at 242 Tessington Rd, Mooreville• A modern day civil disobedience and direct action campaign gets underway• What follows is an account of the media transmissions published daily by the Department of Squatting. A similar account is provided for the mainstream media. 1 DAY ONE … Morning | The Department of Squatting WHERE…

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Punk is a state of mind

PUNK IS A STATE OF MIND, AN ATTITUDE, A WORLD VIEW Punk is a state of mind. Mental conformity is out and originality and freedom of expression are in. Punk is an attitude. Which is a shrewd social awareness that critically analyses our own society on the one hand, and that values integrity, fairness, and decency, and despises injustice on the other. Punk is a world view. It is a way of understanding the world amidst the ongoing chaos of economic collapse and forever wars. Punk isn’t shy about speaking out. Punk calls out colonialism, militarism, police violence, and class…

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500+ Sydney properties remain empty

500+ SYDNEY PROPERTIES REMAIN EMPTY by Keith Salter The Empty Properties Register is the result of active research field work that has sought to document the widespread practice of leaving properties empty at a time when over 120,000 people nationally within Australia continue to experience homelessness. The research found 500+ empty and abandoned properties – overwhelmingly domestic dwellings – situated within the greater Sydney region. The survey encapsulated one or more visits to more than 160 suburbs across a period of 21 months. Many of these 500+ properties are locked up for the longer term. Anti-human enhancements have been added…

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Any war with China will arrive with costs

ANY WAR WITH CHINA WILL ARRIVE WITH COSTS by Keith Salter This article examines what might occur within the Australian tertiary education sector should Australia pursue a war with China. In the scenario that Australia embarks upon a war with China, whether that be a shooting war or a series of sea piracy acts, we should expect a considered response from China. Any war with China will arrive with costs for Australians. One such cost may be long term damage to profitability due to a withdrawal of Chinese investment. Once war breaks out the Chinese government will ban future students…

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Dark city: class war in 1930s Sydney

DARK CITY : CLASS WAR IN 1930s SYDNEY by Keith Salter This is a true story from Sydney’s dark past. It is the tale of a vicious and brutal class war. A war that was unjustly waged against ordinary Sydneysiders by a decadent and wealthy elite. As the Great Depression unfolded throughout much of the 1930s, unemployment became widespread. Paying jobs became scarce and many personal incomes dwindled to zero. The ability to pay full rent or even part rent was seriously hampered by the years-long economic failure of capitalism. The elite of Sydney protected themselves from the unfolding economic…

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The Vice-Chancellor’s affair

THE VICE-CHANCELLOR’S AFFAIR A satire by Keith Salter Once a year, every year, the heads of the nation’s top universities gather together for the annual Vice-Chancellors’ Conference. The conference, or VCC to those in the know, is hosted by a single university on an annually rotating basis. Historically, a full week is allocated to the VCC, although in years gone by the conference is usually wrapped up after only four days, leaving the various vice-chancellors each with a spare Friday to do with what they will. Although virtual engagements have become widespread within the modern workplace, the cultural norm for…

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