El Gibbs

Listen to George Megalogenis, @frankbongiorno.bsky.social @bspiesbutcher.bsky.social @emilyrosefoley.bsky.social and I discuss if Australia is entering a new political era. With record electoral shifts reshaping class, gender, race, and power dynamics, what does the future hold for our democracy?

Two podcasts that were released this week (involving me!) for those keen for some content for your ears 🎧

First up, a podcast from our "A New Australian Politics – Rupture or Realignment" event in September, funded by @auspsa.bsky.social and @uts-sps.bsky.social.

pod.link/1760672339/e...

I had planned to flick over when NDIS estimates is done, but will there be anything to watch!!

REALLY chuffed to be invited to @parismarx.com's incredible @techwontsave.us pod to talk about not just the climate harms we face from an uncontrolled data centre expansion but the way companies enacting it seem to think they're cape-wearing climate superheroes -->>>

techwontsave.us/episode/304_...

I know I am exhausted and sick atm, but reading the 'progress' report on the disability royal commission is utterly shattering. a new plan and the ndis fraud work. that's it. 10,000 stories and 4.5 years.

www.health.gov.au/resources/pu...

5 days til launch

Any questions? Drop them below 👇

#PoveratiXmas

there was a visit from one of the neighbourhood cats this morning, and Rowan wants you all to know that she was very brave and protected the house with her very puffy tail and hisses from behind the flywire backdoor

A Disabled Child’s Mom Reported Him Missing. He Was Locked Away by Federal Immigration Authorities for 48 Days. Emmanuel, a 15-year-old who has an intellectual disability, walked away from his mom’s fruit stand in October. Houston Police called ICE.

Emmanuel, a 15-year-old with intellectual disabilities, wandered away from his mom’s fruit stand in October.

She reported him missing to Houston police. But instead of reuniting them, the city turned him over to ICE.

“They’re failing all of us,” his mom said.

thebarbedwire.com/2025/11/24/d...

National Disability Insurance Scheme Amendment (Integrity and Safeguarding) Bill 2025 Helpful information Text of bill First reading: Text of the bill as introduced into the Parliament Third reading: Prepared if the bill is amended by the house in which it was introduced. This...

more info on the new NDIS legislation - includes most of the already flagged a year ago measures for the Commission, including consultation. focus on giving the Commission the powers to act that other regulators have (WILD 'oversight')

www.aph.gov.au/Parliamentar...

Government threatens to shut down 'illegal' street charity Queensland's transport department has threatened to penalise residents who set up street-side charity cupboards without filling in the requisite paperwork.

"Fixing the main road and infrastructure isn't on their priority list, but taking down a free shop is."

www.abc.net.au/news/2025-11...

A Tribute to an Oracle, Alice Wong Alice had the ability to look to the future and a world where laws and attitudes did not keep disabled people poor, pitied, and isolated.

"A Tribute to an Oracle, Alice Wong"

"Alice had the ability to look to the future and a world where laws and attitudes did not keep disabled people poor, pitied, and isolated."

essential reading on Alice from Rebecca Cokley

www.thenation.com/article/soci...

Labor boosts fines by 40 times, adds jail time for ‘shonky’ NDIS providers New powers will give the NDIS commissioner discretion to block ads that falsely claim participants can use their funding to pay for luxuries such as cruises.

new NDIS legislation due today, focused on increased powers for the regulator

www.smh.com.au/politics/fed...

ah yes, I meant to include that one too!!

I am talking (remotely) at the big provider conference this afternoon, and you can imagine that I may be a tad grumpy

I have been reading back our messages, and found some stuff from when the DVP was a facebook group! she did this work for a long time, and spread that crip love and connectivity so far

there are SO many disabled folks who are experts in the NDIS and can provide context for this kind of blatent, inaccurate spin from non-disabled companies that commodify the most disabled people

and yes, they can brand themselves nfp providers, but they are huge - life without barriers and scope have close to a billion dollars a year revenue EACH

now they are lobbying their arses off, which is what this report is about, for more funding for their model, and less for support in the community

there is already plans to increase regulation, focused on what disabled people need, not more funding for big providers

they have been lobbying for years for more money, after getting a range of 'one off/temp' funding increases, without offering any changes to what they deliver to the most marginalised disabled people

these big providers haven't evolved their models for some of the most disabled people, still insisting on institutional places, known to hurt and kill those disabled people

www.ndiscommission.gov.au/media-centre...

www.abc.net.au/news/2024-04...

Jadon wouldn't sit on a cushion, so staff in 'Severe Behaviour' shirts stepped in to force him Children with autism spent hours with staff in padded rooms, where they were sometimes sat on and held down by adults as part of a controversial NDIS-funded therapy.

laverty was on the board - if he was an architect, I have spent the last decade flying spaceships

he heads up one of the big providers, that mostly does old fashioned supports like group homes and day programs, but also now has ghastly abusive services like Irabina

www.abc.net.au/news/2023-09...

NDIS described as 'trainwreck' - ABC listen A market failure is happening now in the National Disability Insurance Scheme, with many not-for-profit providers heading to insolvency.

this interview, and the subsequent reporting around it, was absolutely infuriating. any other sector's big business lobby wouldn't get this kind of uncritical, uninformed, wildly inaccurate coverage, yet disabled peoples' essential services do [little 🧵]

www.abc.net.au/listen/progr...

wild hey. bar is in hell

NSW police use capsicum spray to subdue 87-year-old man in Sydney nursing home Police allege man ‘had reportedly threatened to harm other residents and himself while armed with a metal object’

wtaf

www.theguardian.com/australia-ne...

The Australians more likely to be fraud victims but less likely to be reimbursed The data has come from a series of national surveys and provides insights into the lives of those with a disability.

'people with disability over the age of 15 were also more likely to experience all types of assault included in the report'

www.sbs.com.au/news/article...

IMF calls on Australia to raise GST, bring back mining tax The IMF says Australia needs to raise the GST, bring back the mining tax and cut back on expensive costs like the NDIS.

IMF ghouls say care and support must go, while more money to big business

thenightly.com.au/politics/imf...

Cohealth clinics given federal government funding lifeline The Commonwealth will provide $1.5 million in temporary funding to keep the community health clinic's GP services running until July next year.

short term funding for cohealth, but no certainty

"In the eight months before I found cohealth I presented to emergency on 17 occasions," Rachel Crouch said.

www.abc.net.au/news/2025-11...

The Last Disabled Oracle – Assembly for the Future – BLEED 2020 In this Assembly for the Future, First Speaker Alice Wong offers a tale from 2029 in which the Last Disabled Oracle shares the wisdom of her ancestors.

here's more of this event - 2020.bleedonline.net/program/asse...

Message from the Future: Disabled Oracle Society On August 6, 2020 I gave a talk, “The Last Disabled Oracle,” as part of Assembly for the Future, a project of The Things We Did Next collaboration based in Melbourne, Australia. …

so many! loved the Eater and Archer pieces you posted, but also this from the Assembly from the Future event. Alice's amazing organising skills are also something I've been thinking about

disabilityvisibilityproject.com/2020/08/14/m...

Absolutely!!