Rick Morton destroys the myth that Australia is the Country of the Fair Go

The abject cruelty and total lack of compassion for the most vulnerable people in our society was sickening. Politicians and public servants were equally at fault . They demonstrated a total lack of integrity and moral courage . Rick Morton has done a magnificent job.

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Worth reading

Well researched, although a little colourful at times. Passionate author who obviously cares about this topic.

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essential reading for all citizens, everywhere

this is the only comprehensive & coherent dissection of the the most egregious public service corruption that has ever happened in australia
any lingering confusion I had about the mechanics of robodebt has been put to bed. the author's intricate yet demystifying explanations demonstrate exactly how the public service & government pulled it off; every detail from the outset laid bare.
this book should be mandatory reading for all public servants & prescribed text for any tertiary study even remotely linked to public policy. the author's narration is magnificent: clear, easy on the ears, perfect inflection throughout. this is book of the year, the decade. it's right up top with some of my lifetime favourites.

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A Tale of Lies & Deceit Written & Read So WELL

Rick Morton, in this book, his latest, brings his honed skills as a researcher extraordinaire, truth seeker by nature, and yarn teller by character to completely OPEN up more than I ever knew as an Australian citizen.

Mean Streak, the story of a DREADFUL time in the lives of Australians who rightly or wrongly trusted their government of the day and those who worked for them, unfolds with a richness of facts and emotions that Rick can barely disguise his disgust at times. Thankfully he also shares some aspects of his wider knowledge of 'life' and with humour. Love that!

I am ashamed to know that an Australian government with the likes of Abbott and Morrison, in charge and their public servants, led the public in range of activities of deceit, wrongful decision making and dreadful times known as RoboDebt.

I felt compelled to write even before I have concluded listening as MORE people need to be made aware of the HIGH quality of research in this masterpiece of uncovering what was/is shameful.
Thanks again Rick.

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Worthy of its own Underbelly series.

Prodigously & meticulously researched, Mean Streak details the unforgiveable abrogation, via incompetence & malice, of the foundations of sound government administration in Australia, above all, the rule of law. It exposes a litany of disgraceful, concerted efforts from a menagerie of bad actors in a system we should be able to rely on as legal, fair and ethical, and that failed on every front.

Robodebt was always unlawful. It also reversed the onus of proof to its victims and continued to target some of the most vulnerable people in our society,savaging their credibility, victim shaming, and pursuing and hounding them via aggressivve debt collectors for debts they did not and could not, on the basis of simple mathematics, possibly owe. People died and no-one has ever apologised. Noone has been held accountable. Noone has been charged with anything.

Rick has faithfully told the story of its genesis, its development and its impacts, and has drawn from the magnificent work of the Royal Commission and Commissioner Holmes and the powerful advocacy of Senior Counsel Assisting, Justin Greggery. The parade of Armani clad witnesses from the former government and its senior APS staff, including alleged lawyers, damned themselves and others with every appearance and every admission that they did not make contemporaneous notes of any meeting, ever.

The Royal Commission found that “Robodebt was a crude and cruel mechanism, neither fair nor legal, and it made many people feel like criminals. In essence, people were traumatised on the off-chance they might owe money. It was a costly failure of public administration, in both human and economic terms." The human terms are thoughtfully and sensitively described in Mean Streak.

It beggars belief that any Australian government, let alone an APS that has always been ethical and cautious, could possibly have conceived, implemented and endorsed this travesty of a scheme, and yet, as Rick skillfully describes in detail, this is exactly what happened. And when they found out it was unlawful, they tried firstly to perpetuate it and then to hide and/or minimise their culpability. If a criminal gang had done anything like this, had perpetrated this major con on Australians, there would have been a whole lot of people in gaol right about now. Rick's book would be rich pickings for a movie or mini series, perhaps another Underbelly style depiction. It would be rivetting. Recommended.

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A story that needed to be told

Really enjoyed listening to this account read by the author. The complex story was well put together even for those who didn’t follow the royal commission. Have already recommended to others

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