2009 - The year that was

January: Convicted mass murderer, Ivan Milat, severed one of his fingers in his cell at the SuperMax gaol in Goulbourn, NSW and attempted to post it to the High Court in Canberra.

Australia Day celebrations were marred by a group of 80 hooligans who converged on The Corso in the northern Sydney suburb of Manly and engaged in racial attacks on those of Arabic descent.

Holden announced that they would be resurrecting the manufacture of small cars in Australia with a promise that the new Holden Cruze would be built alongside the market-leading large car, the Commodore though a thought about bringing back an old name plate, Torana, did not leave planning stages.

February: Chatswood - Epping rail line opens with much fanfare and expectations but is delivered late and over budget, like most infrastructure projects since 1995.

A pastor from a fringe religious order, the Catchfire Ministries, claimed that the 2009 Black Friday bushfires and firestorms that raged across a third of Victoria are retaliation for the Victorian Government relaxing aborion laws - a claim that received widespread community condemnation.

The Commonwealth Government begins its rollout of a second economic stimulus package, plunging Australia into a public debt of $70bn, fast heading for the $300bn debt forecast over the forward estimates.

March: Pacific Brands closes its factories down and most employees are made redundant. Manufacturing of everything from footware and clothing to machinery and homewares is affected - all has been sent to China despite threats from the Martime Union to blockade the movement of manufacturing plant and equipment.

iServ's administrator and staff prepare to celebrate the 11th anniversary of the website. iServ's all-conquering presence for the past 11 years has kept a number of people accountable and honest but in doing-so has never succumbed to pressure from opposing forces or been permanently subject to sanctions - by webhost or government. More on that below.

Unemployment goes up across the nation. When Labor came to office in 2007 the unemployment rate was 3.8% and falling. Sixteen months later it is 5.3% and climbing. NSW and SA lead the way with unemployment rates of 5.8% in those states.

April: Sydney and the Blue Mountains are affected by a massive storm cell which produces gale-force winds and thousands of direct lightning strikes.

The guided missile frigate, HMAS Adelaide (FFG 01) is moored at Glebe Island, awaiting her fate. She will be towed to the Central Coast in 2010 after oil and asbestos are removed. She will then be scuttled off Terrigal to be used as a diving wreck and supporter of local marine life. The next RAN ship to carry the name Adelaide will be a Canberra-class helicopter carrier.

Prime Minister, Kevin Rudd, jets off on yet another overseas trip, this time to Thailand. Mr Rudd's extensive travel itinerary has already seen him branded as Kevin 747, a play on his self-titled Kevin 07 during the last electrion campaign.

May: Senator Bob brown tries to re-ignite the republic debate. His efforts are in vain however, the republic is a dead issue that no-one has any passion about anymore, apart from a few left-wing hacks that remain out of touch with reality.

Sydney Lord Mayor, Clover Moore, makes a statement about the danger caused by allowing cyclists to ride on main roads - a view shared by motorists, who pay taxes and registration fees to use the roads which are continually obstructed by the slower bikes.

Commonwealth politicians are granted a $90 per week increase in salary whilst Australia's pensioners remain below the poverty line.

June: The Prime Minister makes a promise to beef up the Royal Australian Navy by building new submarines in response to a military arms buildup in the region. This ends up just being a policy reannouncement however.

Opinion polls show that the NSW Government is no longer the flavour of the month and it finally looks like Labor no longer has enough popularity to hold onto government but the election is still more than two years away.

Confectionary companies, Mars and Cadbury, use national obesity statistics as an excuse to downsize portions whilst not lowering prices accordingly. Many products from these companies now have smaller servings but are more expensive to buy.

July: A retired Royal Engineers soldier bashed a man who broke into his house and whilst this was brought up in court as part of the burglar's defence, the burglar was sentenced to four months in gaol and the soldier was let off without charge - a story of where sometimes the justice system gets it right.

Google announces the development of a computer operating system which will go by the same name as its recently released web browser, Chrome.

NSW shatters QLD's quest for a whitewash in the State of Origin series with a win over QLD at Lang Park, 28 - 16. Luck in the NSW camp came from the Canterbury Connection, Brett Kimmorley, Michael Ennis and Josh Morris - three men likely to be selected for next year's tournament.

August: Microsoft's Internet Explorer web browser trumps Firefox and Chrome in security tests.

Reverend Peter Adam, an Anglican Archbishop, calls for white Australians to dig deep for Aborigines as compensation for the alleged Stolen Generation and alleged theft of Aboriginal lands.

The Commonwealth Government's plans to return university students to an iron grip of compulsory student unionism was defeated in the Senate.

September: Former NSW Premier, Nathan Ress calls for Australia's national flag to be replaced during a speech made on National Flag Day, the 3rd September. This call receives widespread condemnation.

The NSW Government is rocked by a report showing Labor's failings in rail safety. More derailments and much less capital investment have taken place under Labor governments despite Labor being in power for 26 of the last 34 years. More than 100 people have been killed in rail disasters under Labor during this time than at any time in the modern history of the NSW Railways.

Watchdog Script, an enhanced chat programme users can connect to IRC chat servers with, was discontinued after more than ten years of fault-free use by thousands of loyal people in the chat community. Will there be another version of the all-conquering chat script? Time will tell.

October: Labor continues to peddle the metro rail line which is projected to cost $5.3bn in today's dollars and the Government is flagrantly ignoring much cheaper and more efficient options like resurrecting light rail.

St George and Canterbury jointly finish the football season on top with 38 points each. St George takes the Minor Premiership on points for and against. Melbourne takes the Major Premiership with a 23 - 16 win over Parramatta.

Telstra decides to call it a day with a decision to close down their IRC chat service after a run of about eleven years. The writing was on the wall for the last four years as Telstra abandoned day to day administration, choosing to let incompetent people allow the once-great service run down and gain a bad reputation. Sammee (AKA Fatso) lead the downfall with a divide-and-conquer agenda that eventually hastened Telstra's decision to close the service down. Apart from a few people loyal to Sammee, Bigpond's users chose between migrating to the Induced IRC Network or adopting other communications mediums such as Facebook.

November: A man in Melbourne gets fined by over-zealous ticket inspectors, who Victorians cooloquially identify as The Gestapo, because a ticket machine on a tram wasn't working.

Telstra's corporate Twitter account is hijacked and defaced by hackers.

On the day that former Prime Minister, Gough Whitlam was sacked by Governor General, Sir John Kerr; bushranger, Ned Kelly, is hanged at Melbourne Gaol; and an armistice is signed by the United Republic of Germany to end World War I, Prime Minister, Kevin Rudd, again presides over the failings of his border protection policies, drawing undesired attention to the Nation and the embarassment that comes with it.

December: Coco and Levi become only the second and third people to be banned from iServ in its eleven years of operation. This is coupled with permanent bans on the Induced IRC Network. Coco and Levi are thence identified as serial Internet menaces and a warning issued about their annoying pastimes.

Tony Abbott claims the leadership of the Federal Parliamentary Liberal Party in a coup that ousts incumbent, Malcolm Turnbull. Peace returns to the front bench in a ministerial shakeup and a renewed united front against the Labor Party. At the same time, Kristina Keneally becomes the first female Premier of NSW in a NSW Parliamentary Labor Party leadership spill and their incumbent, Nathan Rees retires quietly to the back bench.

Finally, a few words to correct the record. Since the closure of Bigpond Chat there have been a number of occasions where the owner of this website has continued to be the subject of unprovoked innuendo on the part of a former Bigpond Chat operator, Sammee. Below is an extract of some of her comments and in italics, my reply to those comments:-

[31/10/2009 - 20:19:26] <sammee> yep induced and freeheart having a free4all.. with kylies watchy and a few others like MiB

For Sammee's information, I did not take part in any of the arguing that took place in the final days of Bigpond Chat. I was logged in under the cover of another nickname however it was for the purpose of observing and also speaking to a number of people who I have not spoken to for a long time. Sammee will never accept this though because her cop-out for just about every disaster affecting her 'watch' on Bigpond Chat was to blame me or those I associate with - always the easy option, especially when we aren't there to defend our reputations against the lies and deceit.

[31/10/2009 - 20:19:41] <fleurinda> sammee a group of fools with tools

Yes, we all remember Fleurinda, the chief dummy spitter. She's chatted on more networks than I care to remember and been made persona-non-grata from just about as many. She is a pain in the clacker and I am glad she doesn't chat on Induced anymore because she sounds like a whining gearbox when she doesn't get her own way.

[31/10/2009 - 20:19:46] <fleurinda> yeah freehearts server was taken out
[31/10/2009 - 20:19:49] <sammee> eh???
[31/10/2009 - 20:19:56] <sammee> that's mattybulls?
[31/10/2009 - 20:20:03] <fleurinda> yups was dead in the water today

I am surpised that Induced wasn't accused of involvement in that issue, every time something like that happened on Bigpond's unreliable and unmaintained chat servers Sammee and her cohorts put the boot in to Induced staff - always without foundation. The fact is though, Bigpond's loss of a server and all room management and security robots was due to there being no staff to maintain them. You get what you pay for. If you have no administrators and just a bunch of neurotic idiots pretending to watch over what transpires on the chat service then it is a recipe for disaster. For Telstra it was a case of rehire the administrators or close down the service. Like any other decision Telstra makes they took the easy option, granted that it was their decision to make.

[31/10/2009 - 20:20:15] <sammee> but mattybull loves induced

I doubt that very much. If he did he wouldn't be running his own network.

[31/10/2009 - 20:20:22] <sammee> he writes on watchy's website

Fair enough, so do a lot of other people.

[31/10/2009 - 20:20:36] <sammee> not that watchy would be honest and say he can't stand matty

Again, a case of Sammee putting words in my mouth - her deceitful specialty. That said, what I think of people is irrelevant. Everyone is entitled to be a member of iServ if they so wish.

[31/10/2009 - 20:20:55] <fleurinda> how frigging ironic wasnt it the we love pond chatters and all they have done is slander the place n people for years

Slander is not quite an accurate term, just an expression uttered by a bitter and twisted fool who cannot debate rationally. The only people to ever cop any stick from me are those that deserve it. The methodology is simple - don't speak about me behind my back and I won't hold you to account for it. If you utter unkind words about me or entities I support and/or endorse then you have to expect the same treatment in reply.

[31/10/2009 - 20:20:58] <sammee> ummahhhhhhhhhhh
[31/10/2009 - 20:21:14] <sammee> and they have a #bigpond channel... they twist everything

What's wrong with opening a room called #Bigpond? It was put there to assist users with migrating. I can only assume that the success Induced enjoyed from that exercise is the motivation for Sammee's fit of envy.

[31/10/2009 - 20:21:50] <sammee> i gave up caring a few yrs ago after i had his host of his website get him to remove a pile of slandeer [sic]

Yes, we all remember Sammee bitching about four pages out of more than 13,000 (hardly a "pile") which contained a few home truths about Sammee and her mates. When I was contacted by my webhost to explain the need for the content there was a lengthy but cordial discussion and at the conclusion of that discussion I agreed to remove four pages however these pages were reinstated about five weeks after because I received legal advice that displaying the content in dispute was not an offence due to it not being in connection with a natural person, ie: not identifying the real name or contact details of anyone.

I'll add that if as Sammee claims she has, "[given] up caring a few years ago", then why was she bitching about a complaint she made against this website four years ago? She hasn't got over anything, quite the opposite, she continues to rehash the same bullshit day in and day out.

[31/10/2009 - 20:24:04] <sammee> After the announcement of this event two weeks ago, I logged back onto Bigpond after a hiatus of more than four years and simply watched for most of the time. I was also pleased to catch up with Bigpond's Chatmaster on a number of occasions and talk about a number of things.

The above is Sammee quoting from a passage shown elsewhere on this website.

[31/10/2009 - 20:24:08] <sammee> what absolute garbage

I'm afraid everything there is quite true however what I fail to see is what problem Sammee, or anyone, should have with it. Of course if Sammee has evidence to show otherwise I am happy for her to become a member of this website and supply such evidence in reply to this article. It's a case of put up or shut up.

[31/10/2009 - 20:25:01] <sammee> big woop about catching up with Ancient too.... he went and saw them i know that cos he told me lol

Ancient and I spoke at length a number of times. Sorry to inform Sammee of this but whilst I never give out the detail of any discussion I have with anyone I will say that our talks were as cordial as they ever were and pertained more to tech-talk than IRC itself. It's a shame that Sammee will never be able to have a discussion like that because she is completely inept at computer programming and will always concentrate more on politics than fun stuff like networking and programming.

[31/10/2009 - 20:25:30] <fleurinda> well ted handled the closer [sic] wrong I think
[31/10/2009 - 20:27:28] <fleurinda> he should have had a look at some servers and did a page that said here is what is available make ya choice on your own
[31/10/2009 - 20:27:40] <fleurinda> it was have saved shit loads of fighting
[31/10/2009 - 20:27:50] <sammee> and a load of spamming lol

Yes, on the subject of spamming, let's remind ourselves of who was doing it. Please refer to this article to refresh your memories. Bigpond's only two remaining active opers, Sammee and Storm-Man, were sprung spamming but not only that, they were also sprung for banning other users who were advertising a chat service that competed with the service they were spamming.

When I put the thread I just linked to reporting this dishonest conduct I found that all operators on Bigpond were demoted to normal user status only minutes after Telstra representatives read the report. It is a shame this didn't happen four years ago because if it did then there is a good chance that Bigpond Chat would still be a going concern and a successful one. However this is not the case and the closure of Bigpond Chat will always be remembered for the fact that in the dying years the service was overseen by a pack of morons.

Ladies and Gentlemen, that was 2009, the year that was. In finishing I will state that the truth, no matter how many people have to swallow bitter pills, will never fail to be disclosed and accurately reported whilst iServ stands.

Written at 15:53 on 31 December 2009 by Site Administrator.

Comments

Dan Mr Altruistic Member #: 9 29 January 2006. Posts: 402.

Posted at 17:00 on 31 December 2009.

Brilliant read as always and a good wrap up of the year that was. Hopefully 2010 will be as colourful On the score of Bigpond closing, let's just say that it went with a whimper and not so much of a bang, because internally the network died years ago when the 3 opers that actually ran the place (Watchdog, revolver, zerobyte) were removed, and started their own network - which left Sammee in place and unchecked to systematically destroy everything with her nazi-like regime. Rooms were taken over, ircops involved themselves in other people's business, and Sammee kicked and banned her way through entire rooms full of people. Under Sammee's nazi influence, the numbers on the server went from 800-night at peak to 400, then 200, then about 60 real people by the end. Telstra really had no choice but to close the place as they had more robots than people in the end. Ridiculous. The fault of this lies squarely at Sammee's feet. She always claimed to be an "admin" of the place, and as such she must accept the fault for the server dying as predicted by the rest of us, if she was ever allowed to continue at the helm. I also enjoyed the mention of Sammee saying she had enjoyable chats with Ted - which is funny considering he sacked her around the same time. I came onto Bigpond in the last few days before closure and also had a chat to Ted. We discussed websites and photography briefly, and during that discussion Sammee got the shits and left. It was a joy to watch. Poor Sammee still jealous of my immense reputation. I'm really just a normal guy Sammee, you should never have put me on that evil computer hacker pedestal. Just because I have a far higher intellect than you, and a better lifestyle doesn't mean I'm an angry, jealous, dysfunctional person like yourself. I would never maliciously *hack* anyone - you should pass that on to your friend Merle too. I know she went to administrators and told them I hacked her, but really the daft idiot obviously downloaded a virus or deleted files that she shouldn't have. Poor form blaming your own stupidity on genuinely nice people The spamming at the end which was undertaken wilfully by Sammee, was the culmination of all her lying, cheating and deceiving. She still raves on about how she was "all for" Bigpond, and yet here she was using her o:line to spam another IRC network and using the Bigpond server's to do so. tsk tsk didn't you read your oper agreement Sammee? The real Sammee emerged for everyone to see. I'd say I told you so, but I told everyone so a long time ago, and now they have seen Sammee for who she really is. A self-serving, lying, deceitful old bag jealous of other people's success. No wonder she is a stay at home lay-a-bout collecting teddy-bears while her hard-working husband earns a crust to feed them both. Alan, I feel for you - you poor bastard. In 10 years of IRC-ing I have a clean conscience in that regard. I've never used another network to spam the ones I talk on, Sammee sadly cannot say the same, and I bet the former Chatmaster was absolutely dismayed when he realised that everything Sammee had ever said to him during her tenure was a complete and utter lie. Sacking her must have been a breeze when he found out just who the real Sammee is courtesy of iServ, which still stands as a shining beacon to the community after more than a decade of flawless service. Sammee even backstabbed her own mates to keep her position on the server. I feel for people like Duncan AKA Digga, who really knew no better, and who showed a lot more spine than Sammee ever will. Sammee is a dirty little grub living in a backwater in Queensland, and my final word is this: Sammee I could buy and sell you, ten times over and still have enough change for the latest Aston Martin, and a waterfront property. You are an utter joke, everyone knows you are a lying deceitful old bag and no one gives a stuff that you were sacked, but you will forever be blamed for destroying Bigpond and it's closure because it is all your fault.

2009dev40 Member #: 218 6 November 2009. Posts: 56.

Posted at 10:23 on 5 January 2010.

QUOTE: Sammee I could buy and sell you, ten times over and still have enough change for the latest Aston Martin, and a waterfront property. You are an utter joke, everyone knows you are a lying deceitful old bag and no one gives a stuff that you were sacked, but you will forever be blamed for destroying Bigpond and it's closure because it is all your fault. In reference to Dan's comment quoted above, I agree. having said that - it's time for her to get out on her own and earn a living and pay tax like everyone else instead of sitting at home on her arse collecting welfare, accumulating a room full of teddy bears and/or sponging off her hubby. She is pathetic; she enjoys barking at strangers so to speak. She should NEVER have been given an O:line - EVER! She has no clue how to manage a chat server. I may be half her age (that would make her 80+ years old right now) but even I have a better understanding of Oper codes and conduct than she ever will. Sammee, like Storm-Man and Tanty/Tanthalas, cannot be considered a genuine member of the human race; at least not in my opinion - she and they are a waste of space. I wish I had never come across any of them. There will always be dregs like these in the world. Sad isn't it? I have never known Sammee to admit when she is wrong at any time. Especially when she is PROVEN wrong.

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