The increasingly partisan nature of politics coupled with the social media echo chamber has led to increasingly tribalist behaviours across both sides of the aisle. The public reaction to almost anything Victorian Premier Dan Andrews does is testament to this.
I’ve been critical of Andrews in many respects, but you have to support a good call when you see one: the Victorian government’s decision to proceed with the Australian Open was brave and correct.
The risk of a serious outbreak in summer, with Victoria’s vastly improved testing and tracing regime, is relatively low. And, if Andrews had banned international players, the risk of losing Victoria’s most significant sporting event would have been extremely high.
Andrews’ critics, of course, point to the government’s double standard: why are Victorians in Sydney (and until a few days ago, also Brisbane) banned from entering their own state even if they quarantine, while wealthy tennis players coming from genuine COVID-19 hotspots are welcomed with open arms?
Get Crikey FREE to your inbox every weekday morning with the Crikey Worm.
NSW has had 62 COVID cases per 100,000 people since the start of the pandemic. Switzerland, Croatia and Belgium have had more than 5000 cases per 100,000 people. (Side note: the UK is sitting at around 4600.)
But that is conflating two issues which are mutually exclusive: Andrews can be utterly wrong on banning Victorians entering from Sydney, but also right on the Australian Open.
The #IStandWithDan gang were equally culpable earlier in the year when they blindly supported Victoria’s Peter Dutton-esque expansion of public surveillance and quasi-imprisonment of public housing residents.
All leaders get decisions right and wrong. But criticising the brave decisions leads to even worse government.
Adam Schwab is a commentator, business director, and the co-founder of LuxuryEscapes.com. He is also the author of Pigs at the Trough: Lessons from Australia’s Decade of Corporate Greed.
Leave a comment
With such a short time left before we (hopefully) have some normality returning with a vaccine rollout should we risk an outbreak now? I agree it is a ‘double standard’ with the money making business of Tennis being ruled more important that some peoples lives. Time will tell I guess but with the number of Tennis hero’s testing positive before it even starts I think the writing is on the wall. A potential disaster in the making.
It is a strange risk for Andrews’ to take. Shutting the border with NSW and cutting thousands of peoples’ holidays short was a big call that is bound to have created some (more) resentment. But given that things were quickly brought under control I suppose people can understand. However, if there is an outbreak around the tennis there are going to be some mightily pissed people.
“…the Victorian government’s decision to proceed with the Australian Open was brave and correct.” – if you are making money out of it, otherwise it is a gateway for another outbreak and extended lock-down.
The well known anti-authoritarianism and irresponsible behaviours of many in the world of sporting competition is well known; letting them in with the high possibility of some of them being infectious is madness – unless you’re making money from it, of course.
Which is why I take anything which this contribor writes with a very large pinch of salt.
I take everything that Swab says with a grain of salt.
Recently, his rejection of the virus becoming more virulent and going back many years to his published beliefs that renting your home was a better option than buying.
The tennis is totally separate form the issue of returning travellers. They aren’t taking up flights or quarantine places. the government should not be out of pocket for any of it. If tourist want to come home, maybe they need to form a “World Tourist Tour”, submit a covid-safe plan, charter some planes and contract for health services like other big businesses do.
Geez it must have hurt Adam to not need to call upon his years of medical training to write this one.
Actually all the commenters here seem to have degrees in either virology or epidemiology. Such experts!!! Maybe Adam picked up a few pointers from yuz all. But he has developed a skill for getting his point across while getting you to agree with him. He gotyuz this time.
Hardly mate. This one is straight out of the Tony Abbott playbook.
He used to thow out a token gesture like spending a week in the NT every year and parade his 3 daughters in front of the cameras to blunt any (completely valid) attacks on him for being a racist and misogynist.
This is simply Adam throwing a little scrap the other way in order to help him sleep a little better having created for himself a delusion of balance.
Also, if you don’t see the distinction between a paid professional writer of a news website spouting backyard epidemiology vs us plebs in the cheap seats doing so…. I just looked up webMD and I’m afraid I’m going to have to diagnose you with a terminal case of missedthepoint-itis.
All those months of quarantine with restrictions rigorously followed by most Victorians and now betrayed – ALL FOR NAUGHT. The narrow selfish monied class rule and supported faithfully by a Crikey writer. SNAFU.
Schwab isn’t so much a Crikey writer Robert, more a persistent writer of letters to the editor who somehow gets his letters published as articles. No doubt sincere but he may be unconsciously influenced by his role in the travel industry.