Plague Update #29 - Building a Wall

A ragged tide of desperate humanity surges towards the river, on the other side grim faced border guards backed up by the army deploy drones and sophisticated military hardware to prevent their passage. Yep just another day on the NSW/Victoria border. 

Melbourne has gone back into lockdown and the premier of NSW who just days ago was bitching about the slowness of opening interstate borders has slammed shut the gates and deployed as many police and such soldiers as she can borrow from the federal government to make sure no Victorians sneak across the border in search of a better life.  Like rats from a sinking ship various sporting teams block booked the last flights out of Melbourne before they ploughed up the runways and cleansed the terminal with fire and acid.

Meanwhile In those states fortunate enough to not be Victoria police chiefs have issued dire warnings about Victorians swimming rivers and hiding in trucks.  I'm amazed they didn't mention the possibility of tunnels and hot air balloons.  For the first time in Victoria's history its inhabitants aren't even pretending that they wouldn't prefer to be in New South Wales instead.

Things have gone from bad to worse in Melbourne with new cases popping up like mushrooms and occupants of social housing locked up in grim, high rise prison towers.  I mean they always were but up until now we've usually let them out to look for work.  Now the towers are ringed by police and the only people being allowed in are medical teams and people dropping off food.  Cries of outrage are coming from the residents, or at least I assume they are.  It's a bit difficult to hear anything with the buildings locked off and surrounded by police.  Still despite the protests the government can be grateful that they're largely poor and without influence.  Can you imagine what might happen if you tried treating rich people like that?

It was only a week or so ago that I was thinking of shutting down these plague updates.  It seemed there would be nothing left to report on except the gradual opening up of society.  Suddenly we have lockdowns, border patrols, semi incarcerated citizens and the premier of Victoria telling the NSW police chief piss off, not in so many words but that was definitely the subtext.  Said police chief suggested that Victoria might like to help pay for all of the border protection measures that New South Wales is currently putting in place.  The Victorian premier responded in much the same way as the president of Mexico did when Donald Trump made the same suggestion.

This blog is uniquely positioned to give you, dear readers, an insight into the tribulations of Victorians in this their darkest hour as we have not one but two plague reporters embedded within the death zone.  OK they're not so much embedded as incapable of leaving but the point remains. I spoke with the first of them earlier today.  I noted that Melbourne was about forty eight hours away from descending into Mad Max levels of anarchy and he might like to stockpile leather clothing and firearms.  He told me he'd been doing that for years anyway.  I nodded politely and mentally put off my visit for another decade.

My second reporter was in despair.  She had finished off all the wine during the previous period of home schooling and foolishly had not restocked supplies.  She was gloomily swigging beer and contemplating risking the dogs and police patrols to make a supply run to the bottle shop.  I asked if her family was well and she replied that the kids were in serious danger if she didn't get more wine.  She was about to say something else but she choked on a mouthful of beer and while she was coughing a medical hit team kicked in the door and dragged her off to an undisclosed location.

So with one reporter digging a survivalist shelter in his back yard and the other currently being hosed down with disinfectant in a sterilised room there is little more for me to do except wait on events.  Fortunately I'm a fair way from the border so my sleep won't be disturbed by the sounds of sirens and helicopters as they chase down yet another desperate refugee from the Deadlands (as I believe Victoria has officially been renamed).