Turnbull rolls over "again" to the ultra right
Old - Dog, if you were a real lefty you'd be keen to give up your pension when they start including the value of your home in the means test.
Zen, Sydney is insane... Median house price is 1 million..... Hobart is the cheapest at $326000. But Hobart is really just a big town..... Cities over 1 million people , well you wont find an "average house" for under 600 - 650k....
http://www.abc.net.au/news/2015-07-23/sydney-house-prices-crack-a-millio...
Petrol is about $1.30L..... Up to $1.50L...... A carton of beer is $50.00.... Good old flathead fillets are $55.00kg.... Tiger prawns are $37.00kg
http://www.harrisfarm.com.au/collections/seafood
Our local woolies currently has porterhouse steak on special at $24.00kg.... Pretty crappy quality.... If you want a decent T bone, you are looking at 45.00kg..... Up to $60.00kg for an a grade rib eye...
http://www.harrisfarm.com.au/collections/beef
A 50g pack of champion ruby tobacco will set you back $50.00, 2L of milk is around $3.50.... Whole factory chickens are around $11.00kg....
If you want to rent a house, let's say in Brisabane (using Sydney would freak you out), a std 4br family home will set you back about $550.00 a week..... Power will set you back for 2 adults and 2 kids around $1000.00+ for 3 months..... Just make sure you take short showers lol...... You can get a home phone adsl deal with 200gb for about $80.00 average....
I hope that gives you some idea.....
Cheers, Zen..
good info there zen, I've had a bit to do with japan so I'm well aware of what you are talking about. japan has been pretty much in recession since the asian financial crisis. their real estate prices have plummeted but somehow they have maintained a reasonable standard of living. I couldn't believe how cheap food and day to day things are as we are constantly told how expensive japan is.
their health system seems amazing and as you say includes dental. yeh they have a co payment which is pretty minimal, and being aware of that I wasn't against abbotts suggestion. medicare and the Australian health system is broken, it covers very little and you wait forever to even get assessed, yet we cannot even suggest improvements because anything is seen as an attack. we could learn a lot from Japan's system, where physio and other so called 'extras' are all part of the system.
australia is incredibly clean but this is about culture, education and population as much as anything. the appearance of everything being new is a problem in my book. Australia is obsessed with constant urban renewal. it seems government buildings, roads and footpaths are made with very little forsight so are constantly ripped up and re done. for a country that (once) talked/talks a lot about climate change and the environment this is not very responsible, the embedded energy and consumption in such processes is just over the top.
Australia has encouraged cashed up migrants, exploited it's resources as fast as possible, and sold the farm to the chinese. all for what? so we can maintain some stupid nineteenth century economic theory of 3 per cent growth. a theory constantly criticised in climate change and other environmental reports. japan is a classic case of a 'steady state economy', that seems to be working fine. if you take all the trimmings away in australia we have gone backwards. how the fuck can you pay such ridiculous taxes as we do in Australia and the essential services are worse than 20 years ago? and the worst thing is, our recession has just begun. governments from both sides have failed. all they are winning is the short term battle of ideology.
Sheepy - is that a realistic electricity price ?
Just to clarify grocer's recent post was a cut and paste of Peter Costello's words and I agree it clearly laid out the realities of the tax levels paid by higher income Australians while omitting all the ways these income earners can offset their tax liabilities.
I've read a few posts on here recently saying neither party has a vision for Australia's future?
Well Shadow Communications Minister Jason Clare wrote this essay a few days ago about Labor's NBN project that has been hijacked by the Abbott government and comparing it to Whitlam's nation wide plan to provide sewage infrastructure to the outer suburbs of Australian cities in the 1970's. It's worth a read.......
On the day former Prime Minister Gough Whitlam died – nearly a year ago – I did an interview on the Today Show. Karl Stefanovic asked me what I thought was the most important thing Gough did. I told him what my mum and dad told me. It wasn’t universal health care or free university education. It was sewerage.
Whitlam sewered the western suburbs of Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane and other parts of the country that until then had to rely on a septic tank or an outdoor thunder box.
Why was this so important to my parents? Well if you have ever had to go outside in winter in the middle of the night to go to the loo you would know why.
When Gough first started talking about the federal government sewering the suburbs he was sneered at by his political opponents and the media. The then Prime Minister John Gorton said Whitlam sounded more like a shire president than an aspiring PM.
The Sydney Morning Herald in its 1969 election editorial derided what it called: “Mr Whitlam’s dizzy vision of a paternal, centralist Government in Canberra deciding the education of children in New England and the correct line of a sewer in Bankstown.”
The same newspaper said very different things last year. In its editorial the day after Gough died, the Herald praised the man who it said: “brought schooling to the masses and sewerage to their outer suburban homes.”
How things change. Whitlam’s sewerage program isn’t sneered at anymore. It is considered essential infrastructure. A utility. It is hard to imagine life without it. But it would not have happened, not as fast, without Whitlam.
Infrastructure changes the way we live and work.
Twenty years after Gough another Labor Prime Minister talked about another utility. In 1995, Prime Minister Paul Keating released a report called Networking Australia's Future. In launching the report he made a very prescient statement: “We have to decide, as from now, that access to the national information infrastructure will be no less a general right than access to water, or public transport or electricity.”
National information infrastructure is as important as water or electricity. In other words a utility. That’s what the National Broadband Network (NBN) is.
It will change the way we live and the way we work – just like electricity did.
When electricity was rolled out to homes across Australia, almost 100 years ago, no one imagined it would be used for things like television, air conditioning or computers. Its purpose was to light the house. Very quickly it prompted the invention of things like electric kettles, electric heaters, vacuum cleaners, washing machines, stoves, fridges and lots more.
Why did this happen? The infrastructure led to innovation and that led to demand for more electricity.
The same thing will happen with the NBN. It will spur innovation. It will create jobs. It will transform the way education and health services are delivered and it will change the way we live in ways it is impossible to even imagine now.
It is a great Labor nation building project.
Prime Minister Tony Abbott has never understood this. He still doesn’t. He once said: “Do we really want to invest $50 billion of hard earned taxpayers money in what is essentially a video entertainment system?”
In 2010, Abbott gave Communications Minister Malcolm Turnbull the job of “demolishing the NBN”. And he has done a pretty good job of that. Most Australians will no longer get fibre-to-the-premises. Instead they will get a slower second rate version of the NBN, using the old Telstra copper network.
Not only are Australians getting a slower NBN, it is also rolling out slower than they were promised and it is going to cost them a lot more than they thought it would.
This week it was revealed that the cost of their second rate NBN has almost doubled. Before the last election, Turnbull promised he could build the NBN for $29.5b. This has now blown out to $56b. This is the third time the cost of the NBN has blown out in less than two years.
Promises and reality.
Remember all those promises about cutting the debt and cutting the deficit? Well debt’s up, they have doubled the deficit, and now they have almost doubled the cost of the NBN.
The other big promise Tony Abbott and Malcolm Turnbull made was that everyone in Australia would get access to the NBN by the end of next year. On election night Tony Abbott even said, “I want our NBN rolled out within three years and Malcolm Turnbull is the right person to make this happen.”
That promise has also hit the fence. It was revealed this week that by June 2017 more than half the country still won’t have access to the NBN.
Why is this happening? How did they get it so wrong? They answer is because they had no idea how difficult it would be to switch from building a fibre NBN to a copper NBN.
The negotiations to buy back the old copper network took much longer than expected. As a result the fibre-to-the-node network is at least a year behind schedule. We were told it would be rolling out at scale a year ago. It still isn’t.
The Hybrid Fibre Coaxial (HFC) network is also way behind schedule. We were promised 2.61 million homes would be connected to the NBN via HFC by the end of next year.
That’s not going to happen either. It was revealed this week that only 875,000 homes will have access to the NBN via HFC by June 2017.
The cost of the IT systems to run this second rate network was also severely underestimated. Eighteen months ago, we were told it would cost an additional $180 -– $290 million. That’s now blown out to about $1 billion.
So this is where we are – Tony Abbott and Malcolm Turnbull’s second rate NBN is rolling out slower than they promised and it is more expensive than they promised. And remember this doesn’t include the cost of upgrading this second rate network in the future.
Getting back to Whitlam.
Neville Wran, the former Premier of NSW once remarked “it was said of Caesar Augustus that he found Rome brick, and left it marble. It will be said of Gough Whitlam that he found the outer suburbs of Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane unsewered, and left them fully flushed.”
That’s not exactly true. Whitlam’s sewerage program didn’t achieve its ultimate objective to connect every Australian home to modern sewerage services.
Why? Because it was terminated by Malcolm Fraser in 1977.
Sound familiar?
By then most of the sewerage program had been rolled. But Liberal Prime Minister Malcom Fraser’s government didn’t finish the job. That was left to others.
Thirty-eight years on, another Malcolm is doing exactly the same thing. All we are getting is a half completed, second rate network. It will do the basics, but not everything you want or will need in the future.
Australia deserves better. And it will eventually get it – but not by this government.
And when that day comes I am sure we will look back on this project like we now look back on the Whitlam sewerage program, and think of fibre to a box in the street as archaic as a toilet in the backyard.
http://www.laborherald.com.au/people-families/the-national-broadband-net...
and for all the selling and shit we've gone through we are a miserable lot with some of the highest depression rates in the western world
clive hamilton sums it up nicely in his books 'gowth fetish' and 'affluenza'
Yorkessurfer - to equate all higher income earners as rorters utilising tax avoidance schemes is no different to equating everyone on welfare as a work dodging bludger.
From personal experience, most moderately high income earners aren't abusing the system with family trusts, negative gearing or superannuation top ups.
I've met a couple of people that used these techniques but they were in the definite minority.
Where did I say that blowin? I said they offset their tax liabilities. Perfectly legal. I just think the rules might need tweaking to reduce the burden on the taxpayer of those who may not need assistance due to their wealth.
I've nailed my colours to the mast with my political views blowin but what do you stand for? You once got offended when I called you right wing but you don't espouse any left wing views either? Do you stand for anything?
Blowin wrote:Sheepy - is that a realistic electricity price ?
I think so blowin..... Do you think I have under or overestimated?
I'm not left wing either mate. I just believe in equality.
I stand for what I personally believe in , disregard party politics and I judge each situation on its merits.
I've got a mate that's aboriginal and he's on a good income that he works bloody hard to earn.
He tells me about payday and how all kinds of relatives and friends come to hit him up for coin . A few of these crew are experiencing hardship and he's more than happy to help them out.
Unfortunately , more than a few crew turn up humbugging him for cash and braying that such a big earner should be sharing the wealth and subsidising their lifestyles, deserved or not. These same people have or did have the same opportunity to earn the same money though they chose not to as the commitment to work wasn't appealing.
And there they are with their hands out and their accusations of being shunned and all kinds of guilt and resentment being levered.
Envy and jealousy paraded as loyalties scorned.
My mate ain't so fond of these people. But he usually pays up regardless...
Fuck that.
A lot of parallels with Australian society as a whole I find.
That's where I stand.
George Orwell wrote in 1944 that the more a person deems absolute equality among all people to be a desirable condition, the further left he or she will be on the ideological spectrum. The more a person considers inequality to be unavoidable or even desirable, the further to the right he or she will be.
That's why I sit dead in the middle.
Sheepdog wrote:Blowin wrote:Sheepy - is that a realistic electricity price ?
I think so blowin..... Do you think I have under or overestimated?
I've got no idea about electricity prices Sheepy.
I'm hoping it's a massive exaggeration .
$4000 a year for power ?
That's not right ? Surely ?
Anyone got any conflicting or supporting tales ?
You think you sit in the middle.... You sit further to the right, blowin....
Maybe to the right of you Sheepdog .
But very much in the middle.
You think you know me . But you don't.
2 adults 2 kids.... yeah, a grand a quarter....
Nah, man... Just going on your many posts, you are right wing...... You can say you are middle of the road.... You can believe it even..... But coming down hard on "illegals", whinging about paying too much tax, whinging about aboriginals on their land, stirring old dog up about pensions and means testing.....
If it smell like right wing, It's more than likely right wing.... But that's ok.... Don't start freakn' out about it.... Some of my good friends are conservatives.... ;)
Excellent post Yorkes and a fascinating read. You blokes are really starting to sway me- ha ha. I'm not of the far right, kind of just right of centre I suppose if that means anything. I see the good in both parties but unfortunately I see the bad too. I try not to pay too much attention to personalities because I see most politicians of any persuasion as thinly disguised snake-oil salesmen.
I'm sorry about rabbiting on about Japan, this place is not the be all and end all that's for sure and the Japs could learn a lot from Asutralians especially when it comes to caring for their own backyard. The Japanese are facing some pretty serious problems in the future with their ageing population and staunch anti-immigration policies. You think Aussies are racist? We don't hold a candle to the Japanese.
But on the same token Australians can learn a lot from the Japanese. They truly take a long term view in anything they do, they invest heavily in infrastructure and really get behind their manufacturing sector. They kind of view themselves as the 'little engine that could' and it shows. But it also shows at the expense of the environment. Japan aint all cherry blossoms and Mt Fuji postcards. Also, they are going gang busters in renewable energy, two unprofitable golf courses have closed in my area, they are now completely covered in solar panels. Of course Japan has an abundance of geothermal energy and they are really delving head first into that. Likewise wind and supposedly clean coal (if there's such a thing?). Japan was heavily reliant on nuclear prior to Fukushima and all nuclear power was shut down but now a couple of plants have been re-started. There is very little union activity in Japan, workers are loyal to the company and they in term them, for the most part. The Japanese don't chop and change jobs like Aussies do and Jobs for life is still the norm here. That is slowly changing though.
Sorry, don't know where I'm going with this, just wanted to give you a snapshot of life here.
And sheepy, I've only got one thing to say- OMFG! You'd need to make $80k just to get by by the sounds of things.
If someone is illegal then they're not a refugee. I've got no problem with genuine refugees.
I pay too much tax. Full stop. I don't despair of contributing to society at all....but not half of my fucking income.
Whinged about Aboriginals on their land ? I wouldn't dream of it. Whinging about a nurses station , airstrip, police service and school for a community of 8 people - any type of people - and payed for by taxpayers ie me , then fuck that. Either live your remote life unsubsidised, or move to services. Simple.
Just pointing out a bit of potential hypocracy to Old Dog. Not having a dig.
Right wing ?
I'm a realist.
PS that was a great post Yorkes.
Fancy a politician with a vision of a better future and an idea of what's required to get there....Am I dreaming ? Will those days ever return ?
Would a right winger agree Sheepdog ?
I dig hearing your perspectives on Japan zenagain thanks for sharing them.
Blowin I remember a chat we had on one of these forums a while back about my adopted Sri Lankan sister experiencing rascism and you were pretty dismissive of that. Dunno if that's a left or right thing but it says something about your character.
I've got mates who are conservative too sheepy and we have good conversations. I respect their views even if I don't often agree with them. It's like being a footy supporter and barracking for different teams. You still have that common interest in the game. But someone comes along with all these opinions about how they hate footy and you think "why do you bother talking about footy if you despise the game?"
zenagain wrote:Excellent post Yorkes and a fascinating read. You blokes are really starting to sway me- ha ha. I'm not of the far right, kind of just right of centre I suppose if that means anything. I see the good in both parties but unfortunately I see the bad too. I try not to pay too much attention to personalities because I see most politicians of any persuasion as thinly disguised snake-oil salesmen.
I'm sorry about rabbiting on about Japan, this place is not the be all and end all that's for sure and the Japs could learn a lot from Asutralians especially when it comes to caring for their own backyard. The Japanese are facing some pretty serious problems in the future with their ageing population and staunch anti-immigration policies. You think Aussies are racist? We don't hold a candle to the Japanese.
But on the same token Australians can learn a lot from the Japanese. They truly take a long term view in anything they do, they invest heavily in infrastructure and really get behind their manufacturing sector. They kind of view themselves as the 'little engine that could' and it shows. But it also shows at the expense of the environment. Japan aint all cherry blossoms and Mt Fuji postcards. Also, they are going gang busters in renewable energy, two unprofitable golf courses have closed in my area, they are now completely covered in solar panels. Of course Japan has an abundance of geothermal energy and they are really delving head first into that. Likewise wind and supposedly clean coal (if there's such a thing?). Japan was heavily reliant on nuclear prior to Fukushima and all nuclear power was shut down but now a couple of plants have been re-started. There is very little union activity in Japan, workers are loyal to the company and they in term them, for the most part. The Japanese don't chop and change jobs like Aussies do and Jobs for life is still the norm here. That is slowly changing though.
Sorry, don't know where I'm going with this, just wanted to give you a snapshot of life here.
And sheepy, I've only got one thing to say- OMFG! You'd need to make $80k just to get by by the sounds of things.
Don't apologise Zen
Loving the insight.
Do you think that the unifying aspect of Japan's monoculture is contributing to their commitment to long term planning and the real considerations of their future as a society ?
A single people marching towards a common goal?
Definitely Blowy, that and a deeply ingrained sense of insecurity after going from a fuedal society to Imperial super power to having their arses kicked in the war and having their constitution re-written by a bunch of pale skinned wide-eyes- ha ha:)
If you ask a Japanese person if they are 100% Japanese they look at you as if you're an idiot.
If I really want to piss someone off I usually tell them they have a Korean looking face. They'll carry that shit for life:)
Yorkes - I wasn't dismissive of your sisters experience. I just said that I believed that they weren't representative of Australia's supposed seething racial hatred .
I recall making the point that if anyone I knew turned up with a Sri Lankan partner then it wouldn't rate a mention.
Unless lewd comments about dusky skinned beauties rates a mention.
Maybe I'm not articulating myself well in my posts.
I'm at least as empathetic as anyone here.
I do seem to attribute a bit more resilience and intelligence to my fellow humans than some others though.
So I don't go for the whole unavoidable victimisation deal.
zenagain wrote:Definitely Blowy, that and a deeply ingrained sense of insecurity after going from a fuedal society to Imperial super power to having their arses kicked in the war and having their constitution re-written by a bunch of pale skinned wide-eyes- ha ha:)
If you ask a Japanese person if they are 100% Japanese they look at you as if you're an idiot.
If I really want to piss someone off I usually tell them they have a Korean looking face. They'll carry that shit for life:)
That's where celebrating Australia's diversity is actually a negative. We should be seeking as much commonality as possible to unify our efforts. Australia is lacking in cohesion. Pretty broad stroke observation , but people need to identify where they ALL want to go before a direction can be established.
I'm all for an egalitarian nation with a premium placed on a genuinely healthy populace and environment.
A nation where corruption is despised and rejected outright and where even the lowest strata of society has adequate resources and opportunity to realise their potential for individual and societal gain.
No Sheepy, I am not talking about Team Australia.
YS, the NBN was already behind schedule at the last election... under Labor. I would expect any major infrastructure project carried out in this country to run substantially behind given the unproductive nature of our workforce as a whole.
I agree the NBN will be very beneficial to many, but in a country of this size, I can't see that connecting it to every house is warranted for the cost. The final connection to residences should be subsidised by the end user - if they want it. Unfortunately the whole thing was over-politicised (like everything else) and it was never dealt with logically, so we will be left with a version that is different for the sake of being different. This coming from a bloke who lives on the Goldie and doesn't even have adsl access. That's right, I can only have wireless and I live in the 6th biggest city in Australia. Of course the cable rollout was postponed cos the NBN was coming, then it was changed, so fuck knows when I will have a physical connection. But I still get by ok...
Regarding the car industry, the market deserted the manufacturers looong before the govt did. The Joneses bought a beamer and everyone had to keep up, or be pilloried for buying aussie made. Throw in competitors utilising huge scale and cheap labour, it was doomed all along.
Sheepy - I'm a 2 adult 2 kid house (with very little conscious energy saving) and last leccy bill was less than 700. Still a lot, though...
I'm happy to try to lean left, but a Socialist democracy can't work unless the participants appreciate their roles in such a system, and not abuse the good will of others.
PS Thanks Zen for taking the time to give a little window into a far-away land. Set some things straight for me. I heard stories about 3 generation mortgages due to huge prices for property. Do they still exist? In big cities? Or was it all myth?
@Blowin .... I worked with forensic accountants for awhile. My job was to find those "moderately income earners" and we found many abusing the system. Hiding behind company and family trust structures working full-time while claiming insurance, superannuation and / or welfare benefits. While my experience was in a specialised area (insurance fraud) it did give me a crystal clear insight into how effective trusts are at tax minimisation.
@yorksurfer .... loved your posts today about your early days and on Whitlam.
its the limitations of capitalism- economic rationalism- economic growth- did u see the concern over glen stevens and co about meeting economic growths numbers- the bloody 2% set by the IMF- fuck the sky will fall down if 2% isnt reached.
all posts here mention good points but it is that lack of community that capitalism denies- profitand technology have replaced people as the main focus- here on goldy, new trams had accident other day, all controlled by technology- everyone stuck in tram- wouldnt u have a back up system-- a manual over ride.
plus focus is on cities.
i watch tv lately, boat people- migrants in europe-people everywhere trying to get a better life.
we are blessed to live in aust- but for gods sake- wake up- the potential to ensure aussie a prosperous future is right under our noses.
catch our wet season water- pump it south inland, build dams, channels- use the frigging hot sun that shines there to power it all- jobs already created- get unemployed jobs catching carp and catfish, mulch up for fertiliser, help waterways, create aquaculture in process-barra, yellowbelly, cod, grow hemp, legume in newly created paddocks, plow it all in, greenhouses initially used to grow food/herbs.
new towns, old towns prosper, build wi fi towers, cleaner electricity, sustainable food supply, plant trees as fencelines.
wont happen, everyone too busy on their mobile phones and rorting themselves and their fellow citizens- last bit not true, just an attempt to say that until we realize and commit to our common unity or community, our darwin driven madness will not only be the origin of the species, but the demise of the species- the author cannot be held responsible for anything written here as he has a very loose grip on reality and a degree in bullshit.
Kaiser, I just asked my wife and she's not really aware of three generation mortgages but I'm sure they exist. Definitely two generation mortgages for sure she reckons.
But that would be confined to the big cities I'm sure, Tokyo, Osaka, Nagoya. Here in the country because of the exodus to the big cities, houses can go for as little a $60k and that means essentially free house with the money going to pay for the city taxes owed on them. Real estate in the big cities is still very expensive. Almost approaching Sydney prices:)
This may sound cruel but we're kind of waiting for my wifes elderly aunt to pass on. I've already offered to pay the outstanding tax when she does and we'll be able to walk in to a nice two story. two bath, three and half bedder in a decent part of town for about $80k and I'll always have a base here.
Dave, I think your ideas are very sound.
Thanks Zen. this is amazing...
Australia = 2.66 people per square kilometre
Japan = 337 people per square kilometre
And yet you can buy a house for nix. Something definitely not right about all of that. Maybe we need a monumental crash followed by decades of deflation. That would sort out property prices...
York…like your post and so true on many fronts. Are the current Labor team up to the same level of Whitlam, Hawke or even Keating - me thinks not. But bear in mind sewerage development is regarded as modern mans greatest invention - true if you look at it closely. The other key point is that it had taken about 70 years for the current copper network to be rolled out. Now we have technologies which are changing faster than you change your underwear. You only have to look the development of wireless. We are currently bereft of suitable leaders causing the current dichotomy of opinions. But it still aint all that bad.
TB...may i suggest you use your same analogy of wireless above now apply it to solar with battery storage verses old king coal for india.
I saw a short doco last night about film censorship in Australia. It featured a brief snippet of the (now) ridiculous B. A Santamaria.
If you haven't heard of this man, you should (you'd know him Yorkey/D-man). It's hard (?) to believe the power this man once wielded in Australian public life.
It's been said that our illustrious leader is the political love-child of Bronwyn Bishop & John Winston Howard (said by himself, no less!).
I'd contend that it's more the case he's the immaculately conceived offspring of Father Emmet Costello and one B.A. Santamaria.
Read this article from Feb 2010 by Louis Nowra (in my opinion one of Australia's finest writers in any form) about Tones and the influence of B.A. Santamaria in particular. It's prescient to the max, and absolutely worth the time and effort. Too bad more didn't read it before the election.
"In all likelihood his term as leader will end in either tears or farce."
https://www.themonthly.com.au/monthly-essays-louis-nowra-whirling-dish-t...
Next time you hear Abbott or anyone from the government mention jobs you know its BULLSHIT.
Abbott relaxed 457 visa requirements and is doing nothing to ensure the rules are followed.
Here 120 Victorians were payed off last month by Transfield at the very same time they were advertising overseas for people to fill the same jobs!
http://www.theage.com.au/victoria/transfield-recruits-migrant-labour-des...
Gday kaiser.... Re $700 power bill.... Yeah it was a guesstimation.. Our last bill for just the 2 of us was around the same... Mid 700s..... But that was in Tassie - heating/ hot long showers.... I do know that some friends of mine are definitely paying a grand plus in qld - you know air con', kids on devices, yadda yadda... So I suppose age of kids/lifestyle comes into play... If both parents are working 8 to 5, and kids are at high school all day, I'd assume bills are lower...
Anyways..... Here's a great interview with the minister for the environment in regards to those pesky green vigilantes.... lol
Australia, you've been framed
@blowie, I Haven't had a cent from the Govt. since my Bob Hawke surf team days in the eighties, and Ill admit I take each issue on its merits, sometimes far left others slightly to the right.
Did I hear correctly on the news last night that two thirds of South Aussies can't afford the basics essentials in life, that's hard to believe unless they are including a carton of Winnie reds a slab of Draught and a tattoo as essentials, shit, now I'm sounding like one of you right wing college hombres.
Look, people who rort welfare should be treated exactly the same as tax dodgers... They should be prosecuted.... Claiming 2 doles and 3 fake kids......
However, I'd assume Blowin works for a wage, or for an employer... Try running a business, Blowin..... You see, people on wages are usually the ones that scream "bludger"... Small business owners are too fuckn busy to even worry about it........The thing is, alot of these long term unemployed are unemployable..... YOU give them a job.... Go on.... YOU employ one of these useless imbeciles in YOUR business..... Go on..... Ohh wait.... You don't have a business.... That's right.... I forgot.....
I wont employ them.... I'm not a minder... I'm not a charity.... We employed people who actually wanted to work..... I dare any sensible aspiring business person to employ people who don't want to be there.... Recipe for disaster.... With lame race horses, you can take them down the back paddock and chk chk boom... But that's not how we roll with people, right.... So there's 2 ways about it.... The no welfare way, which we see in Zimbabwe, South America, South Africa, to an extent the USA - massive crime - real criminal gangs (not like these softcock gangs here), privately owned prisons springing up like mushrooms and subsidized by the taxpayer........ Or - we accept that about 5% of the population is lame, we give them enough to buy their 2 minute noodles and an xbox, and we write that stock off... At least that way, the 200 bucks a week these lame ducks get goes straight back into the cogs of the economy, whether it be rent, winnie blues, or grand theft auto..
Sad but true.....
.thank fuck none of you dim wits are in politics or run our country..we'd be fucked!
Hawke supports China FTA. So do many in Labor.
There's movement amongst the rock dwellers this morning ........
hey floggy you know that big blue thing called the ocean? you might want to jump in it some time..good for ya soul!
barley barley, you really do not want to know how often I surf, it would make you weep. now you should get back under your rock in flat-earth land.
Thats why i feel sorry for you floggy...just had a flick through politico on here and no less than 5 topics youve started or posted about abbott...i think you have a mental disfunction or you secretly love him..you know ;)
barley wrote:hey floggy you know that big blue thing called the ocean? you might want to jump in it some time..good for ya soul!
Yep, Barley, get in the sea, comrade
http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=Get+in+the+Sea
Nice shatinher baboobs..whats twitter?that some kind of hippy beard shit?
it's the space between the twat and the shitter
e wrote:Don Smith, ABF Regional Commander for Victoria and Tasmania, said officers will be positioned "at various locations around the CBD speaking with any individual we cross paths with".
"You need to be aware of the conditions of your visa … if you commit visa fraud you should know it's only a matter of time before you're caught out," he said.
http://www.smh.com.au/federal-politics/political-news/australian-border-...
The newly formed ABF, out and about to be ... well ... all border forcy and stuff, but not at all racist!
Call me cynical but you don't have to be too bright to see what Abbott is up to now, he wants to cut taxes for him and his mates at the top end (perhaps a token little cut for the plebs) and then slug the masses with a rise to the GST to make up for the lost revenue. So if Abbott was on a ship and saw two people in the water, one was lying on an air bed having a sly wank over a crate of Grange and bucket of caviar, the other was obviously drowning and about to go under for the last time, which one would he throw the life buoy at? The Liberal voter of course, the idiot drowning should have had swimming lessons.
Raising the GST just means more money for the Govt. to waste and less disposable income for the masses to spend at Grocers supermarket or on barleys grain and keep the economy ticking over.
Politicians really are a waste of our money , even the tax they pay is actually our taxes to start with, no new money here, just snouts in troughs. Cheers comrades.
old-dog…it may be worthwhile to find out what most other countries charge in GST. You may find that most are well more than 10%. The real contention is including food and other areas, such as health or services that were previously exempt. The tax cuts is more for the low - middle earners. Agree that pollies to tend to rort their expenses and it aint just helicopter Bronwyn, done on all sides.
No-one got anything to say about the loss of the car industry under a government and high viz Tony that promised to create 1,000,000 jobs?
Slumber away ........