Save Australia? Nah, we're right thanks Earlier this week news broke that a small group of protestors in New York City had taken to the streets to express their opposition toward mandatory COVID-19 vaccine jabs for teachers, and given the rise of conspiracy theories and misinformation about vaccines being propagated through social media channels in recent times, that’s not entirely a surprise.

Anti-vaxxers gonna anti-vax! What was a surprise, however, was the fact that this group of disgruntled American citizens were waving Australian flags, and chanting “Save Australia!” as they marched toward the Australian consulate in Midtown, leaving many of us here in Oz wondering, “Wait… what?”

It seems there’s been a rise in discussions on right-wing media platforms about Australia’s ongoing lockdowns and the recent protests in Melbourne that saw a crowd of what can only be described as an intoxicating (and in some cases, intoxicated) combination of riled up genuine tradies and hi-vis wearing anti-lockdown campaigners teaming up to wreak havoc in the CBD, ultimately culminating – much like most Australian wedding receptions – in a rousing rendition of Daryl Braithwaite’s Horses.

Many in the States saw footage of these rioters violently clashing with Victoria Police as further proof that Australia has become an authoritarian state, with only a few brave souls prepared to rise up against mandatory vaccinations and a seemingly endless lockdown.

... The fact that Australia’s COVID-19 death rate is 25.36 deaths per million as opposed to America’s 2107.29 deaths per million is an indication that as grinding as the lockdown measures feel, they’re working. If you disagree, I urge you to nominate a member of your immediate family you’d like to put forward for a preventable death since, if you’re advocating for a virus free-for-all so you can taste sweet freedom ASAP, that’s essentially what you’re asking of a fellow citizen. (read on)

tradies? = construction workers, who were angry about restrictions to their work day. Not all of the demonstrators were tradies, the ones with dusty scuffed work boots were, but high-vis vests were worn by a lot of other people.