‘Twas the Night Before Christmas in Australia

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“This came from the ‘shit Aussies say’ page on Facebook” – Ben

'Twas the night before Christmas; there wasn't a sound.
Not a possum was stirring; no-one was around.
We'd left on the table some tucker and beer,
Hoping that Santa Claus soon would be here;

We children were snuggled up safe in our beds,
While dreams of pavlova danced 'round in our heads;
And Mum in her nightie, and Dad in his shorts,
Had just settled down to watch TV sports.

When outside the house a mad ruckus arose;
Loud squeaking and banging woke us from our doze.
We ran to the screen door, peeked cautiously out,
Snuck onto the deck, then let out a shout.

Guess what had woken us up from our snooze,
But a rusty old Ute pulled by eight mighty 'roos.
The cheerful man driving was giggling with glee,
And we both knew at once who this plump bloke must be.

Now, I'm telling the truth it's all dinki-di,
Those eight kangaroos fairly soared through the sky.
Santa leaned out the window to pull at the reins,
And encouraged the 'roos, by calling their names.

'Now, Kylie! Now, Kirsty! Now, Shazza and Shane!
On Kipper! On, Skipper! On, Bazza and Wayne!
Park up on that water tank. Grab a quick drink,
I'll scoot down the gum tree. Be back in a wink!'

So up to the tank those eight kangaroos flew,
With the Ute full of toys, and Santa Claus too.
He slid down the gum tree and jumped to the ground,
Then in through the window he sprang with a bound.

He had bright sunburned cheeks and a milky white beard.
A jolly old joker was how he appeared.
He wore red stubby shorts and old thongs on his feet,
And a hat of deep crimson as shade from the heat.

His eyes – bright as opals – Oh! How they twinkled!
And, like a goanna, his skin was quite wrinkled!
His shirt was stretched over a round bulging belly
Which shook when he moved, like a plate full of jelly.

A fat stack of prezzies he flung from his back,
And he looked like a swaggie unfastening his pack.
He spoke not a word, but bent down on one knee,
To position our goodies beneath the yule tree.

Surfboard and footy-ball shapes for us two.
And for Dad, tongs to use on the new barbeque.
A mysterious package he left for our Mum,
Then he turned and he winked and he held up his thumb;

He strolled out on deck and his 'roos came on cue;
Flung his sack in the back and prepared to shoot through.
He bellowed out loud as they swooped past the gates-
MERRY CHRISTMAS to all, and goodonya, MATES!'

How To: Tell if you have the right to take photographs in Australia

“I find the concept of what you CAN and CANNOT photograph in Australia interesting. A lot of people have a misconception that you are not allowed to take a photograph of someone without their permission. This is not true (in general terms). Read my summary below, and visit the website I sourced this from for heaps of detail” – Ben

Photographer

[please note, I cannot vouch for this legal information to be 100% accurate, if in doubt I would contact a lawyer etc to work out any legal matters you might be having]

Summary of Photography Law in NSW;

  • You are allowed to take photos of anyone* you want in public places (*see Illegal Photography summary).
    • In Australia, you do not need to have someone’s consent to take a photo of them.
  • There is no “Bill of Rights” in Australia, so you have no official “Right to privacy” (like in USA)
  • There is no official “Freedom of Speech”, but there is an amplied freedom of speech due to certain court rulings on similar matters.
  • There are certain areas that are illegal; Anti-Voyeurism, Defamation and Obscenity laws.
  • People do not have the right to ever assault you, harass you or take away your photos (unless there are military/police/security concerns etc)
  • Train stations – you are allowed to take photos on trains, but remember as long as you aren’t being a nuisance you should be ok.

Summary of Illegal Photography;

  • Anti-Voyeurism Laws;
    • Basically it is illegal to photograph anyone with the intent of; “provide sexual arousal or gratification” (so that includes all you creeps).
    • Typically photos of people’s “private parts”
    • Any photos taken where there is “reasonable expect to be afforded privacy” (bathrooms, toilets, changing rooms etc)
    • Zoomed images of a persons private parts (think upskirting/down-blousing).
  • Private Land;
    • When you walk onto someone’s private land you enter into a common law agreement with them.
      • You are allowed to take photographs from ‘outside’ their property however.
    • They are allowed to prohibit photography if they ask you to (then it becomes illegal for you to take photographs)
      • But, any photos you take up until that point are allowed (within reason)
      • This is where photography in grocery stores, malls etc becomes an issue.
  • Assaulting Photographers;
    • Private land owners have the right to to use “reasonable force” to evict you from their property.
    • At no point can you; threaten violence against (assault), detain you at length (false imprisonment) or force you to delete your digital files (coercion);
      • Note: if you are in a restricted area, or taking photos of anything with security/military protection; those authorities have the right to delete your content.
  • Assault by Police;
    • Whilst you don’t have a right to be assaulted by the police, remember to always be mindful of them.
    • Most police officers don’t mind having their photo taken (if asked nicely).
    • Police officers have broad powers to arrest people and you could find yourself at the business end of a “resist/hinder a police officers duties” or “suspect on reasonable grounds of committing an offence“. Just remember to use common sense when snapping photos.

Source: 4020.net “NSW Photo Rights”