The mouse plague has caused catastrophic damage in rural NSW and parts of southern Queensland and shows no sign of ending. Animal rights group PETA has never been one to sit on the fence and came out today firmly on the side of the mice. PETA argued the mice should not be denied their right to food because of the "dangerous notion of human supremacy", saying the government should provide a humane solution that allows the rodents to be trapped humanely before being released. Scott Morrison was quick to label the plan dopey, which was pretty restrained.

Residents in Central NSW have been less restrained dealing with the plague. With shops short on traps and poison, people are finding homemade solutions to deal with the issue. "My house stinks of mouse pee and death," said Keight Roar. "My family are experiencing breathing problems. No matter how much I clean it doesn't end. They are climbing on us in our sleep, chewing clothing. Will we ever catch a break?"

Will we ever catch a break in our fight to open borders has been the shout from some business leaders this week. The PM warned Australia's relative safety from coronavirus could be compromised if borders reopen too early and he doesn't want to rush to failure. In case you need a reminder of how the world is faring beyond our closed borders, India hit a new record of daily deaths with a toll of 4529.

Vaccination may not be the magic key we are all hoping for to unlock the borders. Yes the rollout is well behind schedule, but vaccine hesitancy may be a far bigger issue. Recent polling found up to a third of people are unlikely to receive a vaccine. Liz Chatwin, the president of AstraZeneca in Australia and New Zealand, said blood clots linked to the vaccine were extremely rare, with just 18 cases reported in Australia out of 1.8 million vaccinations. There have been 910 deaths from COVID in Australia from 30,000 cases. Even if you don't like numbers it is easy to do the maths on those statistics.

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