Meanwhile the number of cases in NSW continues to climb the exponential curve, 466 today, by next week should hit 500-600 or more. We're on the way to thousands per day.

So it's a race between cases vs vaccinated.

I don't blame the Government for the numbers. It's down to the entitled idiots who won't follow the rules. Two women jumped on a plane last week and went from Sydney to Melbourne. Each was fined over five grand for breaching the VIC border blockade, put back on the plane and sent back to Sydney. When they arrived back here they were fined another grand for breaching NSW stay home orders.

Then some goose drove to Newcastle and spread the virus there before heading for Tamworth and Armidale. He was cuffed and stuffed but I heard no more about it. Thankfully the virus didn't spread there.

Then someone else drove to Dubbo and there are now active cases there.

Then some toff from Rose Bay in Sydney decided he'd take his son up to Byron Bay to "inspect real estate". It's a bit hard to do that when one is driving their son around on a jet ski. I think both have been cuffed and stuffed and awaiting their day in court. The dad has form for breaking the law stretching back to when he first arrived in Australia. Dad has the coronavirus and has reportedly spread it. I don't know the details but I hope they throw the book at him.

Tonight at midnight the fines are being jacked up. Not wearing a mask was raised last week from $200 to $500. This week the penalty for exercising with more than one other person goes up from $1,000 to $3,300 and the penalty for other breaches goes from $1,000 to $5,000. Will this bring the entitled into line? Let's hope so.

A repeat offence should see the perpetrator taken straight to Silverwater Gaol. Grown adults shouldn't need telling something more than once and the rules aren't that difficult to understand.

There were also four that arrived in Albury from Sydney, & then tried to get vaccinated there. Pretty rich when one considered that a large proportion of rural stocks were scarpered of with & taken to the pox ridden capital.

Actually, I do blame the government for the numbers. There was more than adequate information from overseas about how dangerous the delta variant is, and when one turned up here they did nothing for a week. After that, is was too late. So, yes, they are to blame - just like the cruise ship screwup of a year ago.

Now, finally the police state is moving into gear. There's talk about permits being required to travel about from next week. Where does one get a permit? In my case I neither have a printer or a smartphone, so how am I to carry it with me? There's no law that requires the carrying of a phone, and I don't take my ancient Nokia with me for shopping.

If they decide everyone must have a suitable phone then they'll need to buy one for me and pay all the costs of having it - I'm not paying a cent.

If they decide everyone must have a suitable phone then they'll need to buy one for me and pay all the costs of having it - I'm not paying a cent.

When I dragged the chain getting off my good old 2G Nokia, Telstra courier-dropped a free smart phone at my door. I tried it for a few days then tossed into the garbage. Went out and bought a regular 3G mobile. It runs for a week or more on one charge and fits easily into my shirt pocket.

I don't want or need a so-called smart phone, 'free' or otherwise.

It's a bit hard to lay the blame on the government and then have a go at the police for being tough. There's a choice of what we had or what we are about to have when it comes to the severity of a lockdown. It can't be both ways.

That said, there were rules on travel in place and those rules have been broken. A statewide lockdown a week earlier would not have changed things in that respect. If people want to break the rules they probably will.

We have the recently discovered lambda variant to look forward to. Let's hope the current generation of vaccines can handle it.

We have the recently discovered lambda variant to look forward to

It'll probably go all the way to omega. After that I guess they'll need to start using Roman numerals.

GTC,

Re your mobile..as the 5G rollout continues most mobile providers are slowly turning off the 3G network so you might be up the creek yet again as 3G fades away.
I have a very reliable Samsung Flip Phone and its battery last and lasts but it is 3G only and I recently acquired a hand me down Apple iPhone 5S and in the bush I would put the SIM from the iPhone into the Samsung and use the 3G as it had far better weak signal performance than the iPhone.
Also where I live its rather hilly and the 3G was far more reliable via the Samsung and recently been caught out a few times where there WAS a good 3G signal only to find it has vanished. Put the SIM back into the iPhone and 4G ONLY...bloody iPhone battery runs out VERY quickly and the key pad for old fingers aint helpful at all...my spelling becomes atrocious when on the iPhone simply due to fat fingers.

From what I understand the 3G shutdown is mainly in the city areas and 3G will remain for quite a while in the country areas until they get the 5G into those places as I believe that 5G uses a number of bands one of which is much the same as what the 3G used to use. Just the data rate using that band is nowhere near as fast as the high frequency 5G in the city.

I installed some EFTPOS machines at work the other day and found that the GSM links in those are all 3G. These are all brand new machines. What gives? One would think that being data terminals they would employ a minimum of 4G at this stage of the game.

my spelling becomes atrocious when on the iPhone simply due to fat fingers.

Same here. I don't like touch screens, and they definitely don't like me.

I have to say that I've never had a problem with 3G coverage.

Re the exit of 3G, I guess I'll wait for Telstra to panic again.

I mean they only killed off GSM five years ago so to already have started on 3G might be a bit fast in my opinion.
GSM was twenty four years old when it was shut off by telstra. Having said that 3G was introduced at the turn of the century so it's already twenty years old so I guess that adds up. After a quick search they're just killing of the 3G on 2100MHz and keeping it alive on 850MHz (formerly used for AMPS). Evidently the cut off date for all forms of 3G is by 2024 which would make 3G and GSM the same age when they retire the equipment. Maybe twenty four years is the unofficial life cycle for Telstra.

Also begs the question as to whats the oldest 3G phone in Australia.

And the exponential curve keeps exponating.... 825 today. 1000 tomorrow?

With the numbers steadily rising in VIC, it proves that harder lockdowns don't work if people aren't obeying the law. The protest organiser that came down to Sydney from QLD recently has just been banged up for eight months and it is high time these idiots started to be cuffed and stuffed. It is the only language they understand. The fool even stayed at a hotel well outside the area where the people he was visiting lived, which shows that he had no intention of complying with any rules. He's now cooling off in Silverwater Gaol. My advice to him - don't drop the soap!

Four blokes out exercising (yeah, right) at 02:00 a couple of days ago each received a $5,000 fine for being out of their suburb. The fines totalled around $17,000 so one of them must have been a local who was penalised for less severe breaches. A hint for these blokes - night time is for sleeping.

It was said at the end of last week that the daily count could hit a high of 2,000. I am not sure who said it now but it was an eminent figure. I don't want to be a doomsayer but they are probably right. I'll be glad if it doesn't get that high in NSW but I won't be too surprised if it does.

I was out shopping this morning and couldn't help notice dozens of police outside St Leonards Station. I was pleased that they were there - most likely to help with the round up of those planning on attending a protest in town today, planned by the now gaoled Anthony KhalloμF. The bitter irony here is that we will all have our freedom back before this bloke applies for parole in around 5 months.

Let the testing and vaccinations continue. We are now ahead of schedule with this - slightly.

From The Australian

NSW Police have arrested at least two people at Victoria Park in Sydney who have gathered to protest lockdowns.

Stay at home you idiots. You cannot beat the system.

UPDATE: Protests are now underway in Sydney and Melbourne.

https://www.theaustralian.com.au/nation/politics/coronavirus-australia-live-news-delta-spreads-further-in-regional-victoria...

For those not subscribed to The Australian, here is a link to the unfolding events on News.com.au.

https://www.news.com.au/lifestyle/health/health-problems/thousands-of-police-deployed-in-sydney-to-block-antilockdown-protests...