Interesting things too

“ ..... but announcing idiot "solutions" is all the rage these days ....”

You mean like sending KRudd over to Beijing to kiss some Chinese arse to fix Scomo’s “mess”?

Yeah what sort of imbecile would suggest that?

Not sure what’s idiotic about DSDS suggestions above or what Zen backed it up with.
Oh and just for your general knowledge VL when mining under the water table the water is often used for irrigated cropping..........guess where? That’s right, the desert!

It would appear that the two noisiest lefties on here aren’t that left. They’d rather just virtue signal their way through arguments. True colours shown gents. Well done.

I wasn't talking about nationalising the mining industry but simply the government investing in its own backyard for the benefit of all Australians. Why should the mining industry be separate to public/private consortiums?

Should we just leave that to toll roads?

You’ve nailed it Soggy, the so-called lefties are happy to support a right-wing party, virtue signal to buggery and shout down any talk outside these parameters.

So basically confirming what I mused in my second to last post?

Seems like commonsense doesn't prevail and the rich get richer.

You get the picture.

There has been two books written and published about Australia titled Lucky Country.

Compulsory reading to learn why we are governed very poorly and how we are a wealthy country despite our best efforts to make a dog’s breakfast of it all.

I’ve told that story many times on SN facto, seems to go over the heads of a few. Hung out to dry by all sides was Brendan Gryls.

"Compulsory reading to learn why we are governed very poorly and how we are a wealthy country despite our best efforts to make a dog’s breakfast of it all."

nicely put

and nice post facto, set that tone of condescendation right from the third line (well, first one actually...) and followed all the way through your last line, one word display of hubris

...from the fascist cunt that discusses nothing

nicely played, or not....

I reckon you blokes have jumped to a few weird conclusions. Just because I mocked your "solutions" doesn't make me a right wing supporter of the mining industry. Far from it. I reckon tax loopholes needed to be closed 2 decades ago so these shonky bastards pay their fair share.
The idea that the government should be massively investing in the mining sector is pure nonsense. Unless of course you blokes know about a government cash fairy hanging around with a spare couple of hundred billion dollars.

Strange indeed Mr. Facto.

Cutting the nose off to spite the face?

Norway is an interesting case freeride. Basically they never abandoned the high tax welfare state and have done pretty well out of it, particularly since the oil came on stream. How that relates to Australia in 2020 is problematic. I suppose if there was sufficient political will and some sort of charismatic leader, Australians might be persuaded to go that way, but I wouldn't hold my breath. Until then we would benefit from better resource management as we would from better management and policy across the board. Shorten gave it a go by proposing mild reform but even that was too much for the billionaires and their mates in the media. And looking at the commentary on here it seems the perfect is still the enemy of the good. Unless the ALP can produce a recipe for the workers paradise, then they're just as bad as the COALition. It's the type of irresponsible thinking that leads to poor governance. If people refuse to recognise significant, demonstrable differences between the parties then there is no incentive for either party to develop decent policies. They can just do SFA and rely on their election strategy.

Hey blowfly,
It doesn't help when any reform to the mining sector can be stifled with a $20 million ad campaign.
Remember when Gina and co, told everyone a super profits tax would cause the sky to fall in, and the bedwetters in the street got the bedwetters in Canberra to ditch the plan.

It is a long term problem, and not just in Australia, that too few people actually pay attention to the policies of the various parties....and some of those that do are only looking at a single issue. A significant part of the electorate vote on either their hip pockets or in response to increasingly carefully targeted advertising. The two most essential reforms in our political system are a Federal ICAC and legislation to control the funding and truthfulness of political advertising.

I hear you blowfly. It's amazing that some people here complain about corruption and then go vote for political parties who actively undermine an ICAC and loosen the rules on political donations.
But hey, for the usual suspects on this site, voting for people who share their racist opinions means they are happy to gloss over their corrupt shitfuckery.

"too few people actually pay attention to the policies of the various parties"

But you must draw distinctions between stated "policies" and actions.

For example, the Libs have lovely literature about protecting our environment, reducing emissions, protecting threatened species etc etc.

But their actions spell out something entirely different.

Point being, why would we take Labor policies at face value (because surely that's what you're getting at) when it's been shown time and time again that these policies will change in an instant if it suits them.

"Point being, why would we take Labor policies at face value (because surely that's what you're getting at) when it's been shown time and time again that these policies will change in an instant if it suits them."

Got an example of that? One in which policy change was driven by purely political considerations rather than changing circumstances. Personally I think the historical record of the parties when in power is strong evidence that Labor governments have been more progressive and have introduced the most significant reforms across all areas of social policy.

How about the ALP policy taken to the last election which wanted uncapped visas for Chinese grandparents ? Concocted overnight and without any considerations to its imposition after the NSW labor candidate for premier inconveniently spoke his true feelings .

Doesn’t get much more purely political or cynical than that hot mess.

"How about the ALP policy taken to the last election which wanted uncapped visas for Chinese grandparents ?"

Well no the discussion was about sneaky changes of previously advertised policy while in government. The policy you refer to, though it was not quite as you describe it, was put up during the elction and, presumably, would have been implemented had they been elected. So you see your example is irrelevant and as we already know your feelings about China and (in an absolutely non-racist manner) Chinese immigrants, it was a waste of time. But I suppose you felt some satisfaction asserting the same (absolutely non-racist) position you have asserted with nauseating frequency over several years now.

What about talking about emissions reductions while supporting the Adani mine.

BB ....it was a vote buying stunt as poorly disguised as the sports rorts saga.

Actually....it was worse. At least the sports rorts had a set limit on what it would cost the country and there was genuine projects for communities. Instead it was LIMILTESS Medicare dependant, non productive elderly people which completely contravenes one of the ALP’s own stated reasons for their immigration Ponzi ie younger demographic immigrants to counter an aging population.

Blatant vote grab . Promise anything without costing to get them over the line. Hard core lack of integrity.

Not really Andy. The same applies as to The Dude's point. It was a policy that they announced and presumably (if sadly) would have stuck to in power. Your complaint was about the difference between policy and action.

So youre saying that the ALP should be forgiven their purely political and destructive policies because they were driven by political opportunism ?

Not really selling it too well , mate.

"....it was a vote buying stunt". I am shocked to the core. I struggle to imagine the Labor Party doing anything as crass as pandering to public opinion.....ha ha ha. What did you think? It was populated by political virgins determined to retain their chastity? Now from this, I expect you will jump (yet again) to the conclusion that since Labor, in this instance, behaved pretty much as the COALition would have, then there is no difference between them, which is a total, unreconstructed, gigantic, stinking pile of bovine faeces.....but one to which you seem particularly attached.

Blowfly, I see their support of the Adani mine as going essentially against their stated goals as a party.
That's my point.

Political opportunism and "flexibility", same as the LNP.

So again, why would I take their platform seriously?

Another example.

Labor's platform (which incidentally still mentions Bill Shorten as leader) talks about "opportunity and fairness" on p.13.
https://www.alp.org.au/media/1539/2018_alp_national_platform_constitutio...

Last time they were in power this opportunity and fairness extended to implementing the following:

"in January [2013] around 80,000 single parents (90% of whom are women) were moved onto Newstart, effectively reducing incomes already considered under the poverty line by between $60 and $110 dollars."

https://theconversation.com/current-super-concessions-favour-the-wealthy...

Fuck me mate, sign me up for Labor and their fight for the battlers, their representation of the working class.

Again - remember the Henry Tax Review which recommended a restructuring of the superannuation taxation system with a view to a fairer and more equitable system?

Ignored, gathering dust while Labor watched the "really rich ... suckling on the teat of government through disguised spending programs like superannuation tax concessions".

Seriously Laurie, please read the above article and see where Labor stands when it matters most, when they're in power.

Yes, Labor are preferable to the Libs but they are still Liberal-lite and do not represent a reasonable direction for this country to continue heading in.

Maybe check this one out as well.

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2019-12-23/henry-tax-review-ten-years-on/118...

"What about talking about emissions reductions while supporting the Adani mine."

Although the coal mined from Adani's operation in QLD isn't as good quality as much of Australias black coal (that is some of the best quality in the world) however its still better quality than most Indian & Indonesian coal India already uses.

Technically speaking Adani Aust supplying coal to India reduces emissions compared to if they just burnt Indian or Indonesian coal. (which like it or not already do and would do if Adani Aust didn't supply coal)

You're a fucking contortionist Indo!

"in January [2013] around 80,000 single parents (90% of whom are women) were moved onto Newstart, effectively reducing incomes already considered under the poverty line by between $60 and $110 dollars."

I agree it was an appalling move and pretty much indefensible. In terms of superannuation the problem is the strength of their lobby. You have a cohort of wealthy retirees with plenty of time to protest through all available media and enough money and influence to intimidate any political party. The franking credits scare they ran against Labor was as nothing to what would happen to any party supporting more thorough reform of the system. Single parents, of course, are at the opposite end of the spectrum. I was actually a single parent for two years with two children under 5. I was lucky in having enough family support to be able to keep working.

"Yes, Labor are preferable to the Libs but they are still Liberal-lite and do not represent a reasonable direction for this country to continue heading in."

Well they're all we have and as such need to be encouraged. In power there is the chance that Labor would move to more progressive policies as the opportunity arises.

"they're all we have"

You know my stance on that.

Yeh, but the key thing is to see the difference and act on it in your preferences. If you have some idea how to create a fairer more progressive government I would be pleased to hear them.

It's a charade alright....

from Imgflip Meme Generator

"I've always been really interested in ideas but as we've seen with this kind of free speech, culture wars, campus wars I was really surprised to see the kind of really limiting climate at university when it came to free speech."

"Perhaps in all the things that have happened in the last twenty years, the race relations situation I would argue is one of the few things that we've triumphed and achieved and at this very moment we are now being told that our society couldn't be more racist, more sexist, more cesspool.  I find it really dangerous that this narrative is being taught."

She covers the victim narrative and how it can become self fullfilling, she talks about that popular swellnet topic systemic racism, about the differences in outcomes between those with Jamaican heritage and those with Nigerian heritage (West Africans are high achievers), reducing everything to skin colour is unhelpful and more.

Covers a lot that's been talked about on SN in the last week.

What I wrote sounds simplified and doesn't do it justice but check it out, it's great.

100% agree with everything she says, covered pretty much everything and so many aspect's that to me seem obvious but are ignored time and time again.

Northern Support Services?

Non-Surgical Symposium?