PLEASE NOTE: The Chitchat received this media submission regarding recent events in the news. We were on the fence deciding whether it was too much or not enough to publish, so we thought why not let you decide for yourself.
After all, we believe in free speech.
Stackhat Sid
Hi everybody, I’m Sid.
My friends call me Stack Hat Sid because I keep everyone safe.
I scan mainstream news for heartwarming stories about public safety.
Each month, I hand out Stack Hat Awards to special individuals who keep us all safe. It’s hard to pick a winner with so many people out there in the community looking out for our safety.
We’ve had the E-Safety Commissioner protecting us from fake news and creating an internet licence. We had State Premiers protecting us from guns and hate crimes.
There were bans on freedom of assembly, so pesky protesters don’t meet up in public and disturb the peace.
Even locally, we had our Bundaberg Mayor protecting us from untaxed tobacco. I heard second hand smoke from untaxed tobacco is seven times more dangerous than taxed tobacco.
They all work so hard to keep me safe, and that’s why it’s hard to pick a winner for the Stack Hat Award this month.
That was… until I saw my hero.
A brave man from Newcastle.
He stepped up and dobbed in a hate crime. He was so brave. He made me want to go out into the community and look for hate crimes too.
Channel 7, ABC, SBS, 9 News – They all told the public how you can be a hate crime stopper too. If you see someone with a nasty tattoo or if someone says something that makes you feel bad, you can report them and become a hero as well.
Here’s the story of brave Newcastle Man.
Newcastle — a place dangerously unregulated.
There was a man at the beach with his child. He was swimming with no floaties, no EPIRB, nothing. I don’t think he was even wearing sunscreen. And worst of all, he was displaying HATE on his leg!
He had a particularly nasty symbol and the words “White Power”. It was so frightening. Who knows what that nasty man was thinking. It’s not enough to ban hate speech. The government needs to ban hate thoughts as well.
I’m glad the man put a stop to it.
Thankfully, order and safety finally prevailed.
The man who reported the crime -a vigilant NSW TAFE teacher and union member, noticed that this man’s tattoo appeared to contain symbols and slogans that could potentially, hypothetically, or spiritually radiate hatred. He did what any responsible modern Australian should do when confronted with an unauthorised opinion: he dobbed on him in and got him arrested.
Crime Stoppers were called. Armed police were dispatched. They hit the street like Startsky and Hutch and grabbed that man with the hateful tattoo and took him downtown.
I want to pause right here to say how reassuring this all makes me feel.
The message has gone out loud and clear: your body is a privilege. It belongs to the collective good of society, and it’s subject to political and state review. We are all part of a collective, and we need to do our bit for society.
This man didn’t ask permission to have this hateful tattoo. If he did, we all know that our government would have said no.
It’s about time we start installing public art and tattoo inspectors so we don’t have a repeat of this hate crime.
Some people, usually the selfish free thinkers, have asked whether this is the direction Australia should be heading. They say dangerous things in public, like “freedom of speech” and “personal liberty.” Don’t they know that those dangerous concepts are a relic of the past?
Freedom has expired. There’s no room for that in our democratic society.
To them I say: Why should I be forced to look at something that makes me uncomfortable?
What about my feelings? There might not be a safe space at the beach for me to run to if I see something makes me feel sad or upset.
We are a compassionate nation now. A sensitive one. Everyone’s feelings need to be protected. We can’t have people running around writing whatever they want on their bodies.
And let’s be honest: once you allow tattoos, where does it end?
Today it’s ink. Tomorrow it’s opinions. The next day, it’s voting incorrectly or using the wrong pronouns.
Here’s the serious point: Should someone have a right to their own body at the expense of the collective society?
Their skin. Their presence. Their thoughts…
It’s far too risky.
Our elected officials know what’s right and wrong, and they make the laws. If the state doesn’t protect me from tattoos today, who knows what I might have to face tomorrow.
That is just too scary for me.
I simply don’t feel strong enough for that.
So, it gives me great pleasure to announce the winner of the Stack Hat Award for February 2026 to the brave Tafe teacher from Newcastle. You are my hero.
By Stackhat Sid.
Chitchat Newspaper. February 2026.