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Dramatic results after school's mobile phone ban
Australia Created: 12 Aug 2022
There has been a dramatic decrease in behavioural issues, and a boost in physical activity among students at a Sydney high school after mobile phones were banned.

Each day students in years 7 to 10 at Davidson High School put their phone in a pouch that, once closed, cannot be opened without breaking the lock.

"Classrooms have effectively become phone free and this has allowed staff to focus on educating students," principal David Rule said in a school newsletter. "In eight weeks of the policy there has been a 90 per cent reduction in behavioural issues related to phones in the school."

The ban has also led to students communicating with each other more often and more physically activity during recess and lunch.

"Students are being more active in their breaks, with plenty of handball and basketball taking place," he said.

"In the library I am witnessing card games, board games and also groups of students sitting in circles talking to each other."

Students have been banned from using their mobile phone at Scotch Oakburn College for the past three years.

Principal of this independent school in Tasmania, Andy Muller, said prior to the ban students were distracted during class, and not interacting or communicating with their peers during recess and lunch.

The anti-social aspect of the addictive nature of phones and social media, was damaging the social fabric of the College and isolating our students.
- Scotch Oakburn College principal Andy Muller

"The anti-social aspect of the addictive nature of phones and social media, was damaging the social fabric of the College and isolating our students," he said.

"I did a lot of research to support the observations of our teachers, into how phones affected students' ability to embed their learning, and how they isolated people, rather than brought them together."

Mr Muller also has concerns about the "addictive nature of social media and mobile phone use" and its impact on the mental health of young people.

"It is my, the College's, responsibility to ensure that we are doing everything we can to provide a safe environment for our students," he said.

In Queensland, executive director of the Toowoomba Catholic Schools Office, Dr Pat Coughlan, said schools promote responsible use of all technologies, including mobile phones, for staff and students.

We see technology as a part of our world and believe that we play a part in teaching students how to use it responsibly.
- Toowoomba Catholic Schools Office executive director Dr Pat Coughlan

"We see technology as a part of our world and believe that we play a part in teaching students how to use it responsibly," he said.

"Each of our schools and colleges have determined through consultation with their communities, how 'bring your own devices' such as mobile phones are to be used during a school day. This partnership with parents is key."

Billabong High School, located at Culcairn near the NSW/Victorian border, implemented a mobile phone ban earlier this year.

Principal Julie Brown told The Daily Advertiser she had concerns about TikTok clips that "harass, embarrass or intimidate others".

Policies for student use of mobile phones at government schools differ across Australia. In NSW they're banned from primary school children, while the decision is left up to individual high school principals.

In Victoria, phones brought to any government school must be switched off and stored securely during the school day.

In Western Australia, phones are banned for primary school students, but they are allowed in high schools although it must be turned off and kept "out of sight until the end of school", the state's education department says.
Click here to view the source article.
Source: Canberra Times, Nadine Morton, 11 Aug 2022

More on US legal victory against FCC
Australia Created: 28 Aug 2021
Last week, we reported on the community’s legal victory over the USA’s standard-setting agency. The court said that the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) failed to provide a satisfactory explanation for deciding that its 1996 radiation guidelines adequately protect against the harmful effects of radiofrequency radiation and that it failed to review the extensive evidence that the agency had received.

This week we’d like to tell you about the important role in achieving this impressive legal victory played by the Children’s Health Defense (CHD), a not-for-profit organisation that aims to eliminate harmful exposures to children.

‘The Children’s Health Defense believes that emissions from wireless-based technology, including cell phones, Wi-Fi, cell towers and now 5G, are a major contributing factor in the epidemic of sickness we see now among adults and children. Many thousands of studies and, unfortunately, ample human evidence leave no doubt regarding the harms,’ said attorney Dafna Tachover, who led the case for the CHD.

The CHD’s case was joined by nine individual petitioners, including Professor David Carpenter MD, a public health expert and co-editor of the BioInitiative Report; physicians concerned about the effects of wireless radiation on their patients; parents of children who developed electrosensitivity and a mother whose son died of a mobile phone-related brain tumour.

They filed over 11,000 pages of evidence that wireless radiation causes harm.

One of the petitioners, Dr Paul Dart, was concerned about the damaging effects of wireless radiation he saw in his practice. He said, ‘by 2010 I was seeing more and more patients coming in who were having problems with microwave sickness. Some of them were completely disabled. Some of them couldn’t handle being in the classroom anymore as Wi-Fi came in. I had one patient who committed suicide, because she could not escape from these exposures.’

Dr Toril Jelter, also a petitioner in the case, has seen dramatic improvements in children whose exposure to wireless radiation was reduced. She said, ‘I have seen children in my practice that can’t walk because of exposure to wireless radiation, and when you decrease the exposure then they’re able to walk again. I had a boy with non-verbal autism that was 10 years old. He had never said a word in his life. And we decreased wireless radiation as a first-line attempt at helping him. He also had extremely aggressive behaviour, and his aggressive behaviour subsided, and within three days he said a full sentence. I have children that have learning difficulties, and by changing the wireless radiation in their home they have improved two grade levels in two months. There are children with ADHD who dramatically improve by modifying their exposure to wireless radiation.’

Robert Kennedy Jr, Chairman of the Children’s Health Defense and an attorney on this case, said that the telecommunications industry has ‘succeeded in turning two federal agencies, the The FDA [Food and Drug Administration] and the FCC into models for agency capture. Those agencies no longer have any interest in protecting public health. They have become sock puppets for the industry that they are supposed to be regulating.’

The court’s historic decision is a result of two separate cases that were consolidated into the same court - the Children's Health Defense's case and the Environmental Health Trust case. To comply with court rules, the organisations shared their work on the case and filed joint briefs. EHT's name appears first due to an arbitrary decision by the court but in no way lessens the contribution by the CHD.

The court ruled that the FCC's 2019 decision that its 1996 standard protect the public's health from 5G and wireless is capricious, arbitrary and not evidence based. The court ordered the FCC to review the evidence in regard to non-thermal harms of non-cancer effects including (1) radiation sickness / electrosensitivity (2) the effects of other elements of harm like pulsation and modulation and long term effects (3) the potential harm of new technologies such as wi-fi and 5G (4) pre-natal effects and effects of children (5) and to address the evidence on mechanisms of harm including oxidative stress and leakage of the blood-brain barrier (6) to respond to evidence of non-thermal harm when addressing cell phone testing and (7) evidence of environmental harms.

‘The court’s decision has changed the current status quo and has major legal implications’, said Ms Tachover. ‘Essentially, what this decision means is that until the FCC provides a review of the evidence regarding non-cancer wireless harms in a way that complies with the requirements of the law, the FCC guidelines can no longer be presented as an assurance of safety for harms, except for cancer harms.’

You can see more information about:

the CHD v. FCC case page here
https://childrenshealthdefense.org/seeking-justice/legal/chd-v-federal-communication-commission-fcc/

the CHD's Press Conference here
https://childrenshealthdefense.org/transcripts/watch-press-conference-chd-historic-win-against-fcc-on-5g-wireless-health-guidelines/

The court judgement here
https://www.cadc.uscourts.gov/internet/opinions.nsf/FB976465BF00F8BD85258730004EFDF7/$file/20-1025-1910111.pdf
Source: EMR Australia, via email, 28 Aug 2021

Redefining electrosensitivity: A new literature-supported model
Australia Created: 17 Apr 2021
ABSTRACT: In critically examining literature on electrohypersensitivity and the reported somatic responses to anthropogenic modulated radiofrequency radiation (RFR) exposure, it becomes apparent that electrohypersensitivity is one part of a range of consequences. Current evidence on the necessity of considering patients’ overall health status leads us to propose a new model in which electrohypersensitivity is but part of the electrosensitive status inherent in being human. We propose the likelihood and type of response to environmental RFR include i) a linear somatic awareness continuum, ii) a non-linear somatic response continuum, and iii) the extent of each individual’s capacity to repair damage (linked to homeostatic response). We anticipate this last, dynamic, aspect is inextricably linked to the others through the autonomic nervous system. The whole is dependent upon the status of the interconnected immune and inflammatory systems. This holistic approach leads us to propose various outcomes. For most, their body maintains homeostasis by routine repair. However, some develop electrohypersensitivity either due to RFR exposure or as an ANS-mediated, unconscious response (aka nocebo effect), or both. We suggest RFR exposure may be one factor in the others developing an auto-immune disease or allergy. A few develop delayed catastrophic disease such as glioma. This model gives the blanket term ElectroMagnetic Illness (EMI) to all RFR-related conditions. Thus, EHS appears to be one part of a range of responses to a novel and rapidly changing evolutionary situation.

KEYWORDS:
Electrohypersensitivity
electrosensitivity
inflammation
non-ionising radiation
NIR
homeostasis
nocebo
Autonomic Nervous System
immune dysregulation
Click here to view the source article.
Source: Electromagnetic Biology and Medicine, Redmayne et al., 25 Jan 2021

Mobile tower welcomed with open arms
Australia Created: 14 Apr 2021
Prime Minister Michael McCormack joined residents from Goobarragandra at an unveiling of the valley’s new mobile phone tower Sunday morning.

Telstra Regional General Manager Chris Taylor, Mobile Black Spot Program Director Peter Lee, Snowy Valleys Mayor James Hayes and Deputy Mayor John Larter joined residents, including tower campaigner Tony Keremelevski, at the the Sandy Waterfall Creek Travelling Stock Reserve.

Construction of the tower began early December last year, and was finished on December 18.

Spirits were high, even if temperatures were low on Sunday, and Mr Keremelevski, whose campaigning was crucial in getting the tower built, said it had a “perfectly working signal.”

“It is better than what we thought,” he said. “People are getting a signal who never thought they would.”

To him, the tower brings more than convenience to the area.

“It’s not about bringing a signal to your bedroom or your lounge room for downloading a movie; this is about knowing if you are 100 metre away with a cut leg – call and an ambulance will come,” he said.

“My life and the lives of everybody here are worth saving. Whether it is a three-year- old kid having an epileptic fit you can call an ambulance. The landline here was out 30 per cent of the time. This is about me, you and every other decent person whose lives here being able to make a phone call when they need to.”

He was full of praise for Mr McCormack.

“He’s the real deal,” he said. “He started to help me six years ago, and he was instrumental in this.”

He is also grateful to Mr Lee.

“It is wasn’t for Peter Lee and Michael McCormack this would never have happened.”

He believes last summer’s bushfires underlined the need for such a tower.

“Last year, if we would have had that signal over there, it would have been so much easier, but now we do,” he said.

Mr McCormack said that he appreciated that the coverage there didn’t touch every corner of the region, but indicated that more coverage could be coming.

“We’ve got rolling rounds of this infrastructure, of this program, and as Tony knows and the Mayor knows, we will certainly roll more towers out,” he said.

“We’ve got another round happening at the moment; councils are welcome to apply, communities are welcome to put their expressions of interest in. We want that, we need that, we need to know where we need to fix these black spots.”

To test the effectiveness of the tower, Mr McCormack rang Regional Communications Minister Mark Coulton, who duly answered.

Mr Taylor said “technology like the satellite small cell technology allows us to get into areas where it’s going to be difficult to get fibre and other backhaul in, so using a low orbital satellite to actually provide the backhaul allows us to get into areas like this and bring this stuff to reality.”

He thanked the Goobarragandra community for keeping Telstra and the government informed of what was needed.

“At the end of the day, it is about meeting the needs of the community,” he said.
Click here to view the source article.
Source: Tamat & Adelong Times, Josh Gidney, 13 Apr 2021

The No5G Party is now registered as a Federal political party!
Australia Created: 16 Feb 2021
We are the first sole No5G political party in the world, right here in Australia.

We would like to thank all our members for their support in achieving this milestone.

While we already have over 1,000 members, our goal is to make the No5G Party the largest membership based political party in Australia. With your help this can be achieved by sharing this message and recruiting as many people as possible. This will give us a strong and unified voice that cannot be ignored.

It is clear that more people are becoming educated and concerned about the dangers of electromagnetic radiation locally and globally.

If we could recruit just 56,000 members, we would become the largest political party in Australia and with these numbers OUR VOICE WILL BE HEARD.

If this happens, we predict that the major political parties will see us as a threat and therefore they will adopt our policies to reduce the threat. Our goal is to ensure that the precautionary principle will prevail, in that only safe technology that has certainty as being safe to health (human, flora and fauna) and privacy is promoted in this country.

We are really about promoting safe technology and restricting unsafe technology.

Please join our wonderful team, become a member of the No5G Party. Your membership will assist in making our homes, our community, and our planet a much safer place to live.

Why join the No5G Party?

The world is changing and moving at an incredible pace, technology is changing constantly and like most people, we want to make sure it’s safe.

What people may not know is that the current roll out of the 5G telecommunications network, is a massive undertaking being coordinated around the world and pushed by the corporate elite. Engulfing the entire planet via 100 thousand satellites, millions of telecommunication towers, small cells and billions of 5G connected devices flooding the world with invisible electro smog pollution in the form of electromagnetic radiation.

The 5G rollout will increase man-made electromagnetic radiation at unprecedented levels with little to no concern for the safety and wellbeing of the humans who will be exposed to it.

That’s why we have formed the No5G Party to promote legislative schemes, laws and policies to regulate 5G and associated technologies and to ensure independent and thorough studies are conducted. To ensure that the wireless 5G rollout is halted until there is an overall medical consensus proving that electromagnetic radiation is safe for human health, flora, fauna and property.

Join the No5G fight to reform and to ensure that any safety standards adopted by the Australian Government reflect true medical consensus and to ensure that such standards are not biased heavily to industry over our health.

If we don’t do something now it will be too late. Let’s act now to protect life and safeguard our children’s future.

Become a member of the No5G Party!

Let’s work on protecting life and freedom!
Click here to view the source article.
Source: No 5G Party Australia, 05 Jan 2021

Beware of “False Flag” anti-5G demonstrations
Australia Created: 5 Jun 2020
The term “False Flag” is defined as a covert operation designed to deceive; the deception creates the appearance of a particular party, group, or nation being responsible for some activity, disguising the actual source of responsibility.

After looking at a recent (May 10) demonstration against vaccinations/ COVID -19 restrictions/ and 5G conspiracies, etc., which took place in Melbourne, Sydney, Brisbane and Hobart (see media reporting below), I’m wondering just who these supposed demonstrators were and who organised the coordinated events.

Rag tag hastily written signs with the usual mixture of radical looking protesters. A real win for the telco industry as it effectively gives the general public the impression that concerns over 5G are in the looney bin, not to be taken seriously.

Now, if I were working for whatever professional PR firm has been tasked by the federal government to spend that $ 9 million budget to convince the Australian public that 5G is safe, this is exactly what I would do:

Set up a “rent a crowd” ( https://www.abc.net.au/radionational/programs/drive/now-you-can-officially-rent-a-crowd/7534346) pay and dress them suitably with crappy signs and a script and then let them loose in front of a prominent parliament building and make sure the media is there in force, for a professional PR firm, working the media is a no brainer!

It is also absolutely vital to contact genuine protest groups and encourage them to join in the “protest” in order to pack out the crowd so that it looks like the real thing. The more radical the better….

Then sit back and enjoy the circus!

It is an unfortunate fact that some genuine protest groups are blind to tactics that can be used to discredit their cause. So, for people concerned about 5G BEWARE.

Essential reading here is my favourite: Toxic Sludge is Good For You: Lies, Damn Lies and The Public Relations Industry by John Stauber and Sheldon Rampton

Don

Here’s a spattering of some of the extensive media reporting on the May 10 demonstration:

1) From the Guardian: “Australian anti-vaxxers label Covid-19 a ‘scam’ and break distancing rules at anti-5G protests” https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2020/may/30/australian-anti-vaxxers-label-covid-19-a-scam-and-break-distancing-rules-at-anti-5g-protests

2) From Perth Now: “Hundreds of anti-vaccination protesters have defied social-distancing measures at rallies across Australia.Protesters claiming the COVID-19 pandemic was a “scam” gathered at the Royal Botanic Gardens in Melbourne on Saturday, and carried signs declaring they were against vaccines and 5G technology.Their placards stated “5G — communism“, “COVID 1984” and “our ignorance is their strength”.
https://www.perthnow.com.au/news/australia/anti-vax-protesters-defy-coronavirus-restrictions-across-australia-ng-b881563309z

3) The ABC News: “coronavirus ‘changes the game’ for the anti-vaccination movement”
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-05-31/anti-vaxxers-are-exploiting-the-coronavirus-crisis/12302710?nw=0

4) The Conversation: “Coronavirus anti-vaxxers aren’t a huge threat yet. How do we keep it that way?“
https://theconversation.com/coronavirus-anti-vaxxers-arent-a-huge-threat-yet-how-do-we-keep-it-that-way-138531

5) The Daily Mail: “COVID-19 is a scam, no mandatory vaccines and 5G equals communism: Inside Australia’s WEIRDEST protest ever where demonstrators flouted social distancing and even the horses had anti-virus protective gear”https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-8371699/Bizarre-protests-against-vaccinations-5G-place-Australia.html

6) Again from the Daily Mail: “Protesters clash with cops during wild rally against tough lockdown laws – as frustrated residents are joined by anti-vaxxers and conspiracy theorists who blame 5G for COVID-19” https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-8304393/Hundreds-anti-vaxxers-clash-police-protest-Melbournes-CBD.html

7) The Sydney Morning Herald: “AMA urges health education to combat ‘growing’ anti-vaxxer movement” https://www.smh.com.au/national/act-now-ama-urges-health-education-to-combat-growing-anti-vaxxer-movement-20200525-p54w7b.html

8) The Australian: “Coronavirus: Our loony protesters are among the looniest”
https://www.theaustralian.com.au/commentary/coronavirus-our-loony-protesters-are-among-the-looniest/news-story/313cb4ac0ceabeb55d819dc25d35b895

9) The Daily Mercury: “We don’t consent’: Dramatic scenes at anti-lockdown protest: Anti-lockdown and anti-vax protesters have caused chaos in Melbourne today.” https://www.dailymercury.com.au/news/we-dont-consent-dramatic-scenes-anti-lockdown-prot/4012592/
Click here to view the source article.
Source: EMFacts, Don Maisch PhD, 04 Jun 2020

5G radiation no worse than microwaves or baby monitors: Australian telcos
Australia Created: 3 Dec 2019
The electromagnetic energy (EME) produced as a result of using 5G is much the same as many household items, Australia's two largest telcos have said.

The pair have added that the use of small cells is also not a cause for concern.

"EME in the home from mobile networks is typically below those emitted by standard household devices such as a microwave oven or baby monitor," Optus wrote in a submission to the House of Representatives Standing Committee on Communications Inquiry into 5G.

"Some of these concerns are being fuelled by false and alarmist claims from unreliable sources. Both industry and government need to work harder to counter any misinformation and ensure that the community is armed with the facts to enable it to embrace the technology that will bring so many benefits to people's lives."

Testifying to the committee last week, Telstra said small cells provide faster connections and better response times at lower EME levels.

"Leading up to the public launch of 5G with the 3.5GHz network.... What we found again was that they were getting a much faster response time, because the network was quicker and you could deliver the signal quicker," Telstra principal of 5G EME strategy Mike Wood said.

"That meant that the signal was lower and the EME levels were lower -- in fact, they were very similar to 3G, 4G and WiFi."

Echoing the thoughts on EME levels being similar to household items, Wood said 5G EME was similar to walkie-talkies, WiFi hotspots, key tags, and remote controls.

"What we find is that because 5G's very efficient, it typically runs at a lower level than an everyday device in your house like a baby monitor or a microwave oven," he said.

"When we've done our tests on our 5G network, they're typically 1,000 to 10,000 times less than what we get from other devices. So when you add all of that up together, it's all very low in terms of total emission. But you're finding that 5G is in fact a lot lower than many other devices we use in our everyday lives."

Wood added there is no evidence for cancer or non-thermal effects from radio frequency EME.

"There's some evidence for biological effects, but none of these are non-adverse," Wood told the committee.

"So they've really looked at all of the research they need to set a safety standard, and in summary what they said is that, if you follow the guidelines, they're protective of all people, including children."

On the issue of governmental revenue raising from its upcoming spectrum sale, Optus said it would be wrong of government to view it as a cash cow, as every dollar spent on spectrum is not used on creating networks.

"Critically, in order to achieve the coverage and deployment required, 5G networks will require significant amounts of spectrum," the Singaporean-owned telco wrote.

"Government risks stifling the deployment of 5G networks ... if it focuses too heavily on the money obtained through allocations rather than on the economic (not to mention social) value created by the use of the spectrum."

Last year, the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) told Senate Estimates that spectrum sales should be less concerned about making money from spectrum and more concerned about providing the best value for consumers.

"Our view at the ACCC has always been we're not so much concerned with the money raised from spectrum; we just want to make sure the spectrum can go to players so that they can operate in the market and be competitive in the market," ACCC chair Rod Sims said at the time after Labor questioned the dollar figure the spectrum was sold for.

Also speaking last week, the Queensland Water Directorate as well as Seqwater noted a number of issues they have with telco equipment located on their water towers, including not being able to switch off equipment in emergencies without violating the Federal Criminal Code.

"It's very hard when we've got a lot of overcrowding on some of these towers and we have a number of unknowns and we cannot locate the owners," Seqwater legal counsel Carmel Serratore said.

"In particular, in circumstances where carriers have actually plugged into our main switchboard and we can't do isolations, it can become problematic in emergencies and things like that. I understand it comes from the old Criminal Code, and the legislation is probably a bit out of date."

In its submission, Seqwater called for a process whereby it should be able to remove unknown equipment after "genuine efforts" have been made to locate the owner, as well as notifying ACMA.

Queensland Water Directorate CEO David Cameron pointed out the issue the mobile equipment can have on maintenance of water assets.

"It's ironic. At the end of the day, both are essential services when you're dealing with cyclones or major events or whatever it might be," he said.

"But at those times, when things get hectic, they can almost be competing services, if you can't manage the power issues for the telecommunications and you can't fix a hole in a reservoir roof."

In an earlier submission to the committee, the Australian Radiation Protection and Nuclear Safety Agency (ARPANSA) said the use of higher frequencies in 5G does not mean higher exposure levels.

"Current research indicates that there is no established evidence for health effects from radio waves used in mobile telecommunications. This includes the upcoming roll-out of the 5G network. ARPANSA's assessment is that 5G is safe," the agency said.

If exposed to energy levels 50 times higher than the Australian standard, heating of tissue can occur, such as when welding or exposed to AM radio towers, but that is why safety precautions are taken, ARPANSA said.

The submission also reiterated the scientific fact that radio waves are non-ionising, and cannot break chemical bonds that could lead to DNA damage.

ARPANSA struck out at bogus science circulated online as not having balance, cherry-picking data, and not taking a weight of evidence approach.

"No single scientific study, considered in isolation, will provide a meaningful answer to the question of whether or not radio waves can cause (or contribute to) adverse health effects in people, animals or the environment," the submission said.
Click here to view the source article.
Source: ZDNet, Chris Duckett, 29 Nov 2019

Mobile phones to be banned in all public schools
Australia Created: 30 Oct 2019
A STATE-wide policy to ban students in all public schools from using mobile phones during school hours was announced this morning.

Premier Mark McGowan and Education Minister Sue Ellery were at Ocean Reef Senior High School to introduce the ‘off and away all day’ policy that will ban the use of phones and other devices such as smart watches, earbuds, tablets and headphones for students from next year.

Ocean Reef has had its own mobile phone and digital device policy in place since the start of 2018.

Following consultation with schools that already have successful guidelines in place, the ban will start from the time students arrive at school until the end of the school day and include all break times.

Students from kindergarten to Year 6 will not be permitted to have mobile phones in their possession during the school day, while students from Years 7 to 12 must have their phones turned off and kept out of sight.

Smart watches must be set to airplane mode.

Exemptions to the policy will be made for students with special circumstances such as medical conditions or when directed by a teacher.

Parents will be contacted with information on the policy, including how to contact their school’s administration if they need to get in touch with their child during school hours.

Mr McGowan said the policy would allow students to focus on their school work, without the distraction of a mobile phone.

“The policy will improve the health and wellbeing of students by encouraging children to connect socially in class and in the school yard,” he said.

“Some schools have already adopted this policy and the results have been very positive.”

Mr McGowan said the policy also responded to concerns from parents and teachers about the “pressures and demands that carrying a mobile phone brings to young people”.

“Additionally, while it is recognised that cyberbullying mainly occurs outside school time, banning the use of mobile phones will reduce external issues being brought into a school via technology,” he said.

Ms Ellery said she had consulted with school leaders, students and parents about the decision.

“Schools I have visited where phones are banned have reported that a tough stance has been a game-changer for students and staff,” she said.

“Students are talking to each other face-to-face rather than texting and they’re not distracted from their work during class. Overall those schools are much happier and connected places.

“I am absolutely supportive of using technology as a tool for learning and this policy doesn’t limit those opportunities.”
Click here to view the source article.
Source: Joondalup Times, Tyler Brown, 30 Oct 2019

First Telco to pull out of 5G rollout due to health concerns
Australia Created: 18 Sep 2019
TPG chief operating executive Craig Levy has told the Federal Court that the telco pulled its plans to roll out a 5G network in Australia due to community fears regarding the health impact of the technology.

Those fears have spiked despite bodies such as the World Health Organisation (WHO) stating there should be no risks to public health. In fact, 5G radiation should actually be safer than previous networks, according to research by Cornell University.

Despite the science however, a small segment of the community appears concerned over the technology, as the number of social media groups spreading disinformation grow, galvanising opposition to the network.

Australia has an unfortunate and chequered history of politics scuppering its national technology infrastructure.

The National Broadband Network (NBN) was kneecapped by a change of federal government and policy and has been a veritable trainwreck ever since.

In 2018, fears of Chinese espionage dashed Huawei's bid to help roll out the 5G network here. Now TPG is having to explain why it scrapped its own 5G aspirations and it appears its hand was forced – at least in part – by fears from the community about health impacts of the technology.

"If people have concerns about the impact on their health... they are not just looking at our model in a positive manner," chief operating executive Craig Levy told the Federal Court on Tuesday, as reported by the Sydney Morning Herald.

TPG is in court fighting its blocked attempt by the ACCC to merge with Vodafone, and inadvertently, the case rests on whether or not TPG would build the important infrastructure without a merger going forward. The telco has flatly claimed it wouldn't, so far citing a lack of commercial viability, and now community opposition.

"You don't think there is any scientific rationale for this do you?" ACCC counsel Michael Hodge QC then asked Levy.

Levy responded that while it was "not his area of expertise...the equipment that we were using was well within the standard and it is very much acceptable in terms of the standards".

Hodge then asked if "there was some segment of the community that held an irrational concern about the effects" of the small cells used in a 5G network.

"I wouldn’t call it irrational. I think people have rational concerns," Levy responded.

Rational – but perhaps a little unscientific.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) has stated "there should be no consequences for public health", while research from Cornell University shows the higher radio frequencies used by 5G networks are actually safer because they are less able to penetrate human skin.

That science appears to have done little to allay fears in some sections of the community, however.

Levy claimed that even the then-telecommunications minister Mitch Fifield wrote to TPG warning that community members had come to him with concerns, while A Current Affair segment had also helped galvanise opposition to 5G.

It's not the only one.

Russian state media outlet RT (formerly known as Russia Today) ran a segment titled '5G Wireless: A Dangerous Experiment on Humanity', has been viewed more than 1.8 million times on YouTube and claims that the technology's wireless radiation "can cause DNA damage, neuropsychiatric effects and other health problems".

America's Fox News ran a similar segment with host Tucker Carlson asking 'are 5G networks medically safe?'

Vision from both segments and other disinformation have helped spawn an online campaign against the 5G network. Worldwide, there are hundreds of these groups, according to online monitor the Global Disinformation Index (GDI) which identified that in the last few months alone, the activity and membership of these groups have swelled.

"As the blast radius of the payload expanded with every additional media mention, a loosely-organised social media network supporting the ‘Stop 5G’ narrative used it as daily algorithmic cannon fodder across Facebook, Twitter and Instagram," a recent GDI report said.

"Pages were created by groups and users in Australia, Denmark, UK, New Zealand, Scotland, Malta, Italy, Canada, Poland, Ireland, and the United States, among others."

Activity exploded on the 124 Facebook pages monitored by GDI in May after strong media coverage. In a single week, the number of new weekly posts climbed from around 200 to over 1000.

Certainly, in Australia there are now dozens of Facebook groups boasting thousands of active members protesting 5G's rollout in Australia. 'Stop5G Australia' has almost 6,000 members for example, while more specific areas like Adelaide and New South Wales' Mid North Coast and Northern Rivers each have their own following.

The growth of such groups has helped spread fears about 5G technology, with much smaller turnouts gathering offline for 'information' nights.

While TPG has listed several reasons for pulling the plug on its new network, it has now testified that those health fears were a major factor.

If that online momentum continues, it may not be the last to be stopped in its tracks by such groups.
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Source: Yahoo Finance AU, Jack Derwin, 18 Sep 2019

Telecomms tower rejected over radiation concerns
Australia Created: 9 Aug 2019
A PROPOSED 4G tower in Lathlain has been denied approval after residents voiced their concerns on radiation exposure and visual impact on the surroundings.

The 15-metre telecommunications tower at 156 Orrong Road was planned to enhance Telstra’s 4G wireless network and as a platform for future 5G services.

Residents surrounding the proposed location were against the potential radiation exposure and 5G technology near their living space, although some residents welcomed the faster internet connection at the Town of Victoria Park council meeting last night.

Lathlain GP Chris Chang compared the dangers with smoking, which was not considered dangerous 40 years ago.

“Even though they say it’s safe now, doesn’t mean it’s safe in the future,” he said.

Cr Ronhhda Potter said she didn’t want the residents to end up with something on their doorstep what she wouldn’t want on hers.

“This area within itself is an area that needs some beautifying and I don’t think it needs the addition of an unsightly structure,” she said.

“Many people are busy with their own life … but it doesn’t mean they are not interested.”

Mayor Trevor Vaughan said he supported the application and reminded the public gallery the applicant could appeal to the State Administrative Tribunal for refusal.

“I accept the concerns of residents and safety issues but a lot of those concerns have been addressed by other people who said it is safe,” he said.

The item was lost 6-2, citing reasons of environmental and health impacts arising from the insufficient information on the technology of the tower and the adverse visual impact on the surrounding locality.

A 2008 application for a 15-metre pole in the same location was refused by the council in 2009.
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Source: Southern Gazette, Nadia Budihardjo, 17 Jul 2019

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