top of page
Writer's picturebrucrebackbeattbal

Global roaming doesn’t have to be a rort: What you need to know before you go



@Skyisblue: Not international roaming because you actively have to buy these packs, without them is for receiving over wifi only. It's called WiFi SMS/WiFi Calling from Overseas which have been enabled for a year and two years respectively.




Global roaming doesn’t have to be a rort



Travelled to the US a month or two ago on Boost, seemed that they quietly allowed receiving and sending (!) texts while roaming over the mobile network (not SMS over WiFi, no luck with calls or data). This might've been a concession while they didn't have paid roaming, so this might not be the case anymore.


Currently overseas. To let everyone know, you can actually receive SMS without roaming pack. Needed it to add credit cards, etc to apps. I got the SMS from boost 3 days after arriving saying they now have international roaming and best to activate as late as possible as the pack begins straight away.


FWIW I was overseas last month with a normal Telstra SIM. I could receive calls and sms over wifi just fine but I couldn't send smses over wifi even though I have roaming enabled. I assume it'd work if I was connected to a roaming mobile network instead of wifi.


Now, you can still use WiFi calls without purchasing the Roaming package (that is a +), HOWEVER you CAN'T call International numbers (even if you have balance), unless you purchased a roaming pack (eg. you can't call NZ numbers being in NZ but connected through WIFI).


Time apart: If you have older children who want to run their own ship, set down some ground rules before you board. If you want to keep tabs on roaming teens, some ships have walkie-talkies available for hire. If you have smaller children, understand the babysitter options to make it easy to plan some mum and dad time while the kids enjoy the youth facilities.


In sheer dollar terms it is the biggest rort in the world. Multinational tax avoidance. Billions of dollars a year siphoned out of Australia alone, parked in tax havens, hidden on the hushed advice of Big4 tax advisors and blue chip law firms.


Democracy in its purest form is about "everyone" having a say on an issue that concerns them. And it doesn't necessarily have to involve elections; that's a later innovation. As such it is a dead ringer for the Melanesian Way.


But all our burning of fossil fuels has destroyed this natural balance. The past 250 years have seen a huge build-up of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, which has trapped heat from the sun and caused a rise in global average temperatures, in the same way a greenhouse allows you to grow tropical plants in Europe.


Cropping farmers have done worst, but if global warming reaches 3 degrees, livestock in northern Australia are expected to suffer heat stress almost daily. As the climate continues to change, the value of some farming land may fall considerably and some properties may become increasingly expensive to insure.


But note this: our ability to co-operate as a tribe has evolved into a weapon to use in competing with other tribes. And, though our evolutionary instincts may not have changed a lot since we ceased being roaming hunters, our success has greatly changed the circumstances in which we live.


The legal liability being on the farmer for any damage from stock on the road has meant its rare to have random sheep roaming around at least in our area. I know we have better gates / good fences along the road in particular. 2ff7e9595c


1 view0 comments

Recent Posts

See All

Comments


bottom of page