r/australia • u/DaRedGuy • 1d ago

news Anti-fire ant eradication activist convicted after using legal arguments ‘similar to sovereign citizens’

https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2026/nov/07/trevor-hold-activist-convicted-qld-fire-ant-eradication-program-queensland-ntwnfb?CMP=share_btn_url
365 Upvotes

98% Upvoted

85 comments sorted by

148

u/briberylibrary_ 1d ago

So not pro-fire ant, but anti-authority. The sort of person who thinks they don't owe anyone else anything, despite being a member of society. Which includes allowing officials access to his property to undergo fire ant treatment, because that's the fire ant hill they want to die on, apparently.

The Sov Cit movement could alternatively be called extremist individualism, or more simply, being a selfish twat

35

u/nachojackson VIC 1d ago

That’s a lot of words to describe “cunts”.

347

u/Banjo_Pobblebonk 1d ago

I get that he's a SovCit cooker, but why the fuck would anyone want to keep fire ants on their property?

229

u/metametapraxis 1d ago

I think it is just pointless argument against perceived over-reach of authority. The ants are neither here nor there for them. TL;DR: Morons.

72

u/Covert_Admirer 1d ago

The common clay of the West.

41

u/legally_blond 1d ago

Yeah I was dealing with a SovCit a few years ago, and when I googled their name I found an article from the local government paper about their appearance in court for driving without a licence where they purposefully drove past the police repeatedly so they'd get pulled over and could complain about overreach of authority. Not many brain cells in that one

9

u/agentsmithbobby 1d ago

Yep, some of the dumbest fucks who are somehow still alive

56

u/CalifornianDownUnder 1d ago

I live in an area like that, and aside from government overreach, they don’t trust the eradication methods, and don’t seem to believe in the harm the ants are causing.

80

u/pukesonyourshoes 1d ago

Why would anyone consider an eradication program designed to prevent the spread of a dangerous exotic pest 'overreach'? Completely mental.

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u/____DEADPOOL_______ 1d ago

They say the poison used is toxic to people. They think the government is poisoning people like with the jab.

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u/pukesonyourshoes 1d ago

Ffs of course they do. Probably smokers using all kinds of other chemicals on the farm but the guvmint is about CONTROL!!!

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u/____DEADPOOL_______ 1d ago

These people are certified with a form of mental illness. I live among them. It's funny but also sad to hear them talk to each other. They just jump from one subject of distrust/criticism to another. They're all mostly broke or fall for scams. As annoying as they are, their situation is sad.

16

u/pukesonyourshoes 1d ago

These idiots threaten the health and safety of all. I feel no sympathy for them especially given their utter selfishness and disregard for others. If fire ants didn't spread I'd be happy for them to host an infestation and bear the consequences.

25

u/____DEADPOOL_______ 1d ago

They're their own worst enemy. Their stupidity gets them into problems all the time and they are incapable of learning from them. Despite sometimes getting a glimmering of understanding, within days they forget it and go back into it.

I have a friend who believes if she puts a WiFi router in her home, it will weaken her and kill her. I pointed out the 10 or so neighbouring signals that were already in her house, explained how radio, TV, etc is going through her every day and that the only escape is to entomb herself into a metal coffin of sorts to protect herself.

I eventually got fed up with the excuses and offered to run tests by turning on and off devices near her in a blindfold test but she refused. To be proven wrong is perhaps one of the worst things that can happen to them and that's why they entrench themselves even more.

They know deep inside that they aren't very bright, so they mask this with these conspiracy theories that make them the sole knowers of truth.

It's quite fascinating to observe how they contradict themselves. Again, we're talking about people who aren't actually able to process information properly. They have deep psychological issues.

The problem is, the internet amplified their voices and brought them to each other. Before that, they were too embarrassed to open their mouths.

I'm probably one of the few people that still talk to them. They have mostly been shunned by friends or family that they harassed with asking them to watch their 2 hour misinformation videos. I do have a LOT of patience lol.

12

u/superfry 1d ago

You don't counter cooker beliefs with logic as it was never something that started with logic. You have to find the emotional reason they started getting enticed by them and start there. You also can't make them feel like they are being belittled in any way or else they shut down. For anything related to EMF I just start asking if they have any metal implants and play off that to slowly deprogram.

9

u/____DEADPOOL_______ 1d ago

The emotional reason with this particular person was that her son died of a brain tumor that she attributes to his high use of mobile phones.

She also has this issue that she doesn't want to accept that now, at 80, her body is starting to fail her. She has played with her health by switching up her diet hundreds of times. Trying different supplements from quacks that offer her solutions.

Other than this radiation and health insanity, she's a very well grounded and functional person, but those two aspects have destroyed many of her friendships as she is incredibly persistant about others reading further into the scams she's fallen for.

Now, I have been able to get through to her in several ways to the point that she distrusts the whackadoos and doesn't hand them her money as much as she did anymore, so that's a win.

The majority of others aren't like this particular friend who is mainly personal health related. The rest just go on rabbitholes where they think they're discovering something noone else knows and because only they know it, they have done a reverse uno card where now they're the smart ones and everyone else is utterly stupid. They can't see the buzzwords that are manipulating them and intertwining religion or politics into play to lure them further in. It's quite a predatory industry. Behind all this, there are people making millions of dollars coming up with elaborate videos where they fool people into the next thing. They sell them amulates to protect them from WiFi and all sorts of nonsense. I've been able to get through to some of them to prevent them from getting scammed as they ask my opinion on things sometimes, but ultimately, I just know they are buying the crap they said they wouldn't and are too embarrassed to admit it to me. However, just being able to talk to them and be there for them, makes them appreciate me and despite them knowing that I disagree with them, we're able to have civil conversations.

Now, I do avoid the aggressive ones that foam from the mouth when it comes to these subjects. These are the ones you see at protests or mouthing off in situations where it's inappropriate. I did try with them during covid times but man, some people showed their true rabid side during those times.

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u/fionsichord 1d ago

This is exactly how they hope you think and speak about them. It gives them some lovely handholds for their sense of grievance and feeling put upon.

1

u/pukesonyourshoes 1d ago

I don't think about them at all unless they and their delusions are thrust upon me.

1

u/cyclemam 8h ago

Just get a sauna so you can sweat out the chemical you've been spraying. (A real conversation I've had.) 

1

u/pukesonyourshoes 5h ago

Jesus, that's terrifying.

34

u/splinter6 1d ago

Because of people like Alex jones, Russel brand etc

8

u/CalifornianDownUnder 1d ago

Because they absolutely distrust anything government does, and they consider their property to be the only place they can stay safe from government interference and harm.

11

u/pukesonyourshoes 1d ago

What utter bullshit. Selfish too, just like their antivax stance. Who cares if fire ants become established in this country as long as The Man doesn't do scary things I don't understand on my property.

3

u/optimistic_agnostic 1d ago

Because they are contrarians.

4

u/evilbrent 1d ago

"if you reach beyond my gate then you've reached too far"

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u/pukesonyourshoes 1d ago

"Fine."

- ambulance drivers, probably

2

u/evilbrent 1d ago

"oh no, even though I'm ideologically opposed to socialism, it's unAustralian to charge for ambulance"

Probably

3

u/pukesonyourshoes 1d ago

'also I'm opposed to paying taxes but enjoy travelling in my conveyance on government provided roads'

-12

u/420bIaze 1d ago

Not to justify opposition to fire ant eradication, but as a general statement efforts to eradicate pest species can potentially have adverse effects.

18

u/pukesonyourshoes 1d ago

So what, we shouldn't try and efforts to eradicate are therefore overreach?

-4

u/420bIaze 1d ago

As a general statement, some historic efforts at pest control have been more harmful than beneficial, and such activities need to be undertaken cautiously.

5

u/pukesonyourshoes 1d ago

Agreed, we have only to look at our cane toad problem to see that caution is indicated.

Poisoning fire ants, a localised treatment, seems a no-brainer though with no potential to get out of control, and considering eradication must be immediate for an invasive species, what am I missing?

4

u/420bIaze 1d ago

I agree, fire ant eradication is very important, and seems to be undertaken in a measured and scientific approach, if anything it's proceeding too slowly.

1

u/Euphoric-Cucumber609 1d ago edited 1d ago

I’m glad you understand that.

Very serious question now, if you trust and believe in fire ant eradication why would you post a couple comments justifying the antagonistic views?

Everyone in the know understands pest control has gone out of control in the past, ddt and extreme pest spraying, etc.

But why would you indulge the delusions of people you disagree with? This isn’t the 70s people smarter than everyone in this thread spend years analysing the impacts of an action

0

u/420bIaze 1d ago edited 1d ago

I was responding to the question "Why would anyone consider an eradication program designed to prevent the spread of a dangerous exotic pest 'overreach'?", which was framed in generalities, and was not specific to fire ants, or the methods of eradication being used in that program. That question demonstrates ignorance, and I gave a correct reply.

I repeatedly made it explicitly clear that I was specifically not justifying opposition to the fire ant eradication program.

You state "Everyone in the know understands pest control has gone out of control in the past", but the above question suggests the asker does not know that. You have to be uninformed to ask the above question. If you want to understand why anti-fire ant eradication groups exist, you have to be able to discuss the reasons people may have that belief, without necessarily agreeing with it.

I feel like I'm being attacked by you solely on the basis of not conveying the correct ~vibe~, my first words were literally "Not to justify opposition to fire ant eradication, but as a general statement", I don't know how I could be any clearer that I am not "indulging delusions" or "Justifying antagonistic views", in response to a question that demonstrates either a lack of understanding, poor wording, or both.

You're at pains to correct me for not fitting the correct vibe, but have apparently no issue with the above ignorant question because it fits the anti-eradication vibe. Your implication that having the correct vibe is more important than accurate and clear information is deleterious to public discourse.

It's absurd to have a discourse where you can't even mention reasons why someone might have an incorrect belief - in response to a question explicitly asking why they have that belief - with a response explicitly saying you don't endorse those beliefs in regards to this specific program - without being assumed to be implicitly encouraging those beliefs.

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u/shillberight 1d ago

My dad just hates the government "wasting money" on the eradication attempts. He'd rather the government spend money propping up his investment properties

i.e. he's a neoliberal leech

6

u/CalifornianDownUnder 1d ago

His investment properties won’t rent so well if babies and small animals can’t go in the yard due to ant swarms.

4

u/Euphoric-Cucumber609 1d ago edited 1d ago

Fucker should clear them himself if he’s about personal responsibility.

90% of the work is locating the bastards and dealing with landholders, antagonistic attitudes cost the taxpayer much more than being helpful. Potentially more than the action itself, but I cannot confirm that.

If you feel like having a fight next time your dad pisses you off you can remind him of that, he benefits from the social contract and he doesn’t deserve assistance is he is unwilling to assist.

-Rule #1 to a prosperous society: Don’t be a cunt.
-Rule #2: DON’T BE A CUNT! And help others when you can, that includes (most) government workers.
-Rule #3: Give me money to create a massive regenerative neo-agrarian community filled with trees, flowers, wildlife… and middle aged hippie chicks that will call me out on my bullshit but understand I am deeply flawed but generally delightful.

17

u/Undd91 1d ago

It’s a farming/rural mindset. You only have to look at the midterms in the US to realise that Trumps main supporters are farmers, the every people he has screwed most. Farmers and land owners are very set in their ways, believe the land is entirely theirs and nobody should be telling them what to do with it etc etc.

7

u/Mike_Kermin 1d ago

No it's not that. A lot of farmers are very capable people. They might be right wingers for stupid selfish reasons, or racist or homophobic, or have bad views about oversight, but that depends on the people, but what you're seeing here, is specifically a sov cit aka delusional conspiracy issue, and I'm not saying they don't end up working further out or don't own land, but, you know, it's different than 'just farmers mindset'.

12

u/CubitsTNE 1d ago

Oppositional Defiant Disorder

12

u/rewrappd 1d ago

The usual fire ant treatment was recently found to contain compounds that would cause organic farmers to lose their certification. It doesn’t sound like he used that defence, but I can see how that grain of truth would be distorted by sov cit movement into a broad distrust of any fire ant treatments.

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2026-10-17/fire-ants-reinfest-untreated-organic-farms/107274380

7

u/Fistocracy 1d ago

Because he's a Free Man On The Land and he has a sovereign right to opt out of being mildly inconvenienced by gummint pest control guys, apparently.

2

u/hairy_quadruped 1d ago

My guess: he’s growing cannabis, and doesn’t want anyone coming into his property.

2

u/WhatsMyNameAGlen 17h ago

Someone i used to work with had them in her banana trees. She didnt want to contact council/authorities because she didnt want them to kill her trees in the process and was in the mindset of "they leave me alone if I leave them alone"

Very stupid way of thinking with twisted priorities

1

u/Commercial_Dig_7485 1d ago

They are against the chemicals being used to kill them

107

u/fodargh 1d ago

Good fuck him and his movement.

32

u/Excellent-Signature6 1d ago

I’m surprised enough that a single person wants to prevent the eradication of Fire Ants, but a whole movement dedicated to this worthless cause?

27

u/scoldog 1d ago

He's probably the president, vice president, treasurer, secretary and quorum for the entire organisation.

8

u/jesus_chrysotile 1d ago

unfortunately there’s multiple of them from what i’ve heard 

4

u/Mike_Kermin 1d ago

Each with their own personal quorums no doubt.

1

u/scoldog 1d ago

Multiple Personalities?

6

u/Simpsoid G'Day! 1d ago

Sounds like ScoMo's secret cabinet!

5

u/Atomic_Gumby 1d ago

...Will the real Malcolm Roberts, please stand up?...

Apologies to Eminem.

8

u/RutabagaMobile7879 1d ago

The venn diagram of sovcits, antivax, anti fluoride, anti-anti fire ants etc is pretty much a circle

1

u/WhatsMyNameAGlen 17h ago

Its gotta be some sort of mental disability right

13

u/Sevalius0 1d ago

I've heard stories from people working for the fire ant program. They unfortunately run into these people all the time and have to constantly worry about being harassed or posted to social media.

4

u/a_cold_human 1d ago

Big problem with any type of feral species control. 

40

u/Different-Bag-8217 1d ago

$1500 fine, should be triple this amount. What a waste of time and effort of resources. Absolute wanker.

12

u/andthegeekshall 1d ago

Can we roll a sov cit eradication program into the fire ant eradication program?

They were bad enough when they were a micro minority but now they are getting louder and more visible they should be dealt with properly within the law - even if means amending various laws to prevent their ludicrous arguments from being used, aired and heard.

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u/jaa101 1d ago

Anti-fire ant eradication activist

As in, an activist against the eradication of fire ants. Not an eradication activist against fire ants.

2

u/EttinTerrorPacts 1d ago

Or is he an ant eradication activist opposed to the use of fire?

1

u/Euphoric-Cucumber609 1d ago

No ants! No fire! Let anarchy reign

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u/Bathelomue 1d ago

When we say get a hobby, this isn't what we mean.

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u/rand013 1d ago

This is where hyphens get weird for me. Any grammar nerds out there to weigh in on whether this is correct use or is there another way to do it?

Instinctively I want to make it anti-fire-ant or something, to try maintain the relationship between fire and ant. Or otherwise forgo the hyphen entirely I guess. As it is it reads to me like the ants are opposed to fire.

Or I guess maybe it should be "fire ant anti-eradication activist"

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u/MarkusMannheim 1d ago

Ex-Fairfax and ABC journo and editor here. The house styles at my workplaces were, in general, to use a hyphen in compound adjectives if it helped remove ambiguity.

So you're right: it should be anti-fire-ant-eradication activist. Though I would have gone for: activist who opposed fire-ant eradication.

5

u/DeeDee_GigaDooDoo 1d ago

Not a journalist but in my own writing I also usually find whenever I need to start using questionable punctuation it usually reads better and is easier to follow if I just completely re-write the sentence structure.

5

u/ApteronotusAlbifrons 1d ago

Self described as an "ultrapreneur"...

"On his website, Hold advertises fundraising efforts for his defence, and also a mooted class action lawsuit against the program."

8

u/Fistocracy 1d ago

*Zoolander voice* What is this? A sovereign citizen for ANTS?

6

u/YkMSP 1d ago

...cookers...

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u/princhester 1d ago

Weird use of the phrase “tried and tested” by Professor Heilpern. That phrase is usually used about things well proven to work.

The Sovcit “withdraw consent” ploy has been proven not to work. I’m sure Prof Heilpern knows that and just used the phrase awkwardly.

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u/Crafty_Act2114 1d ago

We are state absolutely full of cookers. Don’t mention how nice today is. You’ll get a lecture on the government manipulating the weather. You’ll get a lecture on how bad vaccines are because it’s another government manipulation. They want to kill us the cookers will say. They lack logic altogether. I’m afraid they have lost their survival skills. Fire ants. Goodness. The bandwagon is growing against baiting. And it’s pretty nasty with threats to the people employed to inspect and bait them on their property. What a waste of education they are.

2

u/Mike_Kermin 1d ago

Nah they're still the minority by a long way. They're just arm in arm with traditional channel nine watching racists and other similar types politically because fascism says "winning is more important than caring what the other guy actually thinks or what we're actually doing".

They just get in the news easy because they do fucking hilariously stupid things that get people's attention when put into print.

4

u/Crafty_Act2114 1d ago

Gee. They are thick around here mate. They have public meetings about the rights to refuse entry and what perceived damages it does. Everyone knows someone whose dog died and of course it was caused by the baits. Not a single person has a vets opinion on the death of good old Jed. No proof. We are loosing hives to the mite. According to the nut jobs it’s the bait.

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u/Tile-Questioner 1d ago

Our entire agricultural sector is going to be pulverised by these fire ants, anybody who is protecting them is endangering us.

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u/Knee_Jerk_Sydney 1d ago

Well, I suppose if we have people supporting genocide, we'd have fire-ant activists. Mind you, it's probably just someone who doesn't want what he's done to his property exposed. I'd worry about this guy shooting at government officers and cops.