how do you spell beat up?

Congratulations, Herald Sun, you've done it again! The entire front page dedicated to an isolated bureaucratic fuck up. I have no particular knowledge of VLA's procedures in these matters, but I think its fair to call it isolated. If it wasn't, no doubt the Hun would have referred to "ongoing ineptitude", dragged out a whole swag of other victims and called for the ministers head.

The short version is a kid was sent a letter advising him he'd been named as the father of a child born when he was three years old. Hardly likely, of course, but when questioned the spokesman for the VLA was open and forthright;

Victorian Legal Aid managing director Tony Parsons said the bungle was an isolated incident. "We made a mistake," Mr Parsons said. "This went out under the hand of a junior lawyer here. He got the name from a telephone directory, contrary to his training. He has been counselled and has written a letter to the recipient apologising.

We are very careful about the basis of sending those letters out because we are aware how sensitive they are, and this is the only problem we have had in five years. "In this case it is a one-off, inexperienced practitioner who did something he shouldn't have and is being counselled in that regard."

Sounds fair enough. He was accountable and wore the hit without even trying to offer an excuse. The paper have no evidence of it being a systemic problem. (And lets face it, there'd be plenty of folks like young Mr Holden who wouldn't miss the chance to stick one to the government and see if its worth a quid if they got the chance!)

It's a simple, isolated mistake. So, of course, its a front page story! You can't expect the journo to go out and find a real story when this little gem lands in their lap, can you?

And that was going to be it. I was going to make my point and move on until I saw today's edition on line. They are the still going on about it. Seems a few other folk received the same letter. Which, of course, means it must be more than isolated;

Legal Aid's managing director, Tony Parsons, said on Monday that Tyler Holden's case was a "one-off". But four more men, also named T. Holden, were accused of fathering the same child.

But its still nothing more than an isolated incident, though. Its still just the one screw up which unfortunately involved more than one recipient. For God sake, Mr Guthrie, I know you're new to the job, but c'mon!

To add a personal touch to the matter, one of the other T. Holden's in the story is a relative. I'm not saying which one and he's not immediate family. My paternal grandmother's maiden name was Holden and he's somewhere in that line. Small world, eh!