Federal Election

[Marty_d]

When we were camping at Easter we dragged the caravan from Port Arthur up the east coast and through to Launceston before coming home down the Midlands highway.

 

Most of that area falls in the electorate of Lyons and everywhere we went we saw this face on "vote 1" signs:

 

There must have been at least a couple of hundred of them. Not cheap!

 

Anyway had a laugh this morning when it turns out she's posted some bad anti-muslim stuff and the Libs have booted her from the ticket. For anyone who's donated to the LNP, your dollars just got wasted.

 

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[facthunter]

Votes will still count. The tickets are still out there unaltered. Judge the tree by the fruit it bears. By their own words they condemn themselves. The AFP say NOTHING has been referred to them. What about some TRUTH being enforced? That would shut most of them up. Nev

 

 

[willedoo]

Raising government revenue is relatively easy. Just apply force, by increasing taxes. Theoretically, it should be easy for national receipts to outpace spending, thereby “earning” a country a surplus. So, when the Conservatives crow about "bringing the Budget back into surplus" it simply means that either they have either jacked up the taxes, or have stopped spending tax income.

Also, being in the right place at the right time can help the budget. In times of good economic growth and particularly with high commodity prices, government revenue from company tax increases. A budget surplus can become no more than an election war chest for some governments, to splash around and buy votes. I seem to recall one little character who was good at that.

 

At a place where I work, there's a fairly even mix of Liberal/Labor sentiments. There's a proportion of the Liberal fan club fearing a Labor government as they think last month's budget means the government has finally sorted out Labor's terrible mess and finally gotten out of debt (well, the ads on telly told them so). The old confuse debt and deficit trick again. Back in the black. Well maybe, possibly, in 15 months time if the tooth fairy makes good.

 

The fact is that the 'back in the black' budget will likely never happen as it based on some very wishful thinking about future revenue and lack of spending. The facts as they stand are that as of this financial year going into the election, we still have a 14 billion budget deficit and gross government debt of 530 billion. That doesn't sound very black to me, not even a shade of grey. Explaining this to the Liberal fan club makes you realize how naive and ripe for the plucking some voters are.

 

 

[spacesailor]

"It's been amusing watching some of the attack ads on tv and youtube."

 

None as bad as deliberate entrapment of "1 nation party member's"

 

spacesailor

 

 

[Marty_d]

"It's been amusing watching some of the attack ads on tv and youtube."None as bad as deliberate entrapment of "1 nation party member's"

 

spacesailor

Deliberate entrapment?

 

So either Ashby, Dickson and Hanson were already gung-ho to go to the US and boast about how they could change the course of this country with millions given by a foreign extreme murderous right-wing organisation (the NRA), in which case it's hardly entrapment...

 

or they're so bloody stupid and able to be led by the nose by a journalist posing as the president of a non-existent gun organisation that they can be prompted to say things that no sensible person would dream of.

 

Which is it?

 

 

[spacesailor]

"or they're so bloody stupid"

 

That,s the truth.

 

The thought of something for nothing is a huge incentive to get involved.

 

Ask any of the thousands of Aussies stung by all those get rich quick schemes.

 

And the women on the "lonely hearts club" stings.

 

Not only pollies but anyone gullible enough to lose their senses, and their money.

 

spacesailor

 

 

[nomadpete]

Anyway, back to topic 'Federal election'.

 

Having read all the valued, cynical, depressing observations (all based on observations and history), I've concluded that the thread is misnamed.

 

Since it has been so many years since there has been a politician worth selecting, We are really faced with a repeating cycle of Federal Deselections.

 

Being a responsible citizen, I value having the opportunity to vote, and I will use my vote to deselect the candidates that I like least.

 

 

[Marty_d]

It never fails to amaze me how people get selected with skeletons in their closets, or extreme views that the party would have to know are out of step with the majority of society.

 

It's understandable that it happens to One Nation, no one but a complete nutter would want to be one of their candidates. But you'd think that the major parties would have a bloody close look at anyone they were considering preselecting and get some of their many unpaid volunteers to trawl through every social media post they've ever written.

 

Instead they seem to spend their energy digging into the opposite side's past. If they both concentrated on their own candidates maybe they'd all just avoid the problem.

 

 

[old man emu]

It seems that Social Media is a double-edged sword for anyone in the public eye. Because things cannot be erased from it, past indiscretions will not die. In fact, they don't even become skeletons. Postings are embalmed, never to turn to dust.

 

However we must remember that "When I was a child, I spake as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child: but when I became a man, I put away childish things. (1 Corinthians 13:11). Are we wrong to regurgitate something a person said or did in their teens or twenties, half a lifetime ago?

 

 

[facthunter]

Wise words. The time and circumstances when these words were said HAS to be significant.. So much out of context can alter the "crime"..Obama warned all the youth that what is on the net can ruin them years later. IF you were trying to infiltrate some organization for whatever reason you would go along with such statements to show your allegiance. In all the PHON incidents they all call foul as (a) they were conned and didn't know they were being videod and (b) they were drunk neither of which mitigates the facts of what they were caught doing and shows they can't handle alcohol as well. as being gullible and traitors to this country, seeking money from the NRA.. Nev

 

 

[Marty_d]

I have to walk past this abortion of a sign every day... glad someone's tagged it with a relevant comment on the weekend...

 

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[willedoo]

Clive grates Australia.

 

 

[old man emu]

This is a bit of off-track drift, but I came across it while looking for something for my school reunion, although what I am posting has nothing to do with that, either.

 

This is a prayer created by people of the West Indies seeking their God's influence to get government to listen to the people.

 

It has its basis in the Gospel of Luke 10:38-42 .

 

"Jesus came to a village, and a woman named Martha welcomed him into her house. She had a sister called Mary, who sat down at the Lord’s feet and listened to him speaking.

 

Now Martha who was distracted with all the serving said, “Lord, do you not care that my sister is leaving me to do the serving all by myself? Please tell her to help me.”

 

But the Lord answered, “Martha, Martha,” he said “you worry and fret about so many things, and yet few are needed, indeed only one. It is Mary who has chosen the better part; it is not to be taken from her.”

 

The moral of the story is that it is better to listen and learn than do be overly concerned with the trivia of daily life.

 

Lord, we pray for our leaders.

 

They worry and fret about many things, and even complain

 

that the people leave them to do the serving all by themselves,

 

when in fact they are neglecting the one thing that is needed most of all,

 

which is to sit at the feet of their people and listen to them.

 

We could all do well to heed the wisdom of the story, Believer, Athiest, or Agnostic alike.

 

 

[facthunter]

It looks to me like the willing workers get asked do more while the fiddle players fiddle and contemplate their navel or the meaning of life and get away with being bludgers. If they had BOTH sat at the Lord's feet they wouldn't have eaten anything. (Unless he had some loaves and fishes up his sleeve.) Nev

 

 

[Yenn]

What a quandary for the doctors. Bill Shorten is promising vast amounts of money, that they really want to get their hands on, but a vote for LNP will give them more money from tax relief.

 

Don't take this as an attack on doctors, that was just a for instance.

 

Whenever Labor proposes to put a lot of money into one direction, there pop up a load of people looking for ways to benefit themselves. Not only labor. John Howard got the medical insured numbers up from 40% to 60% promising that greater numbers would reduce premiums, Look what that did. Premiums up 30% or so and the exclusions from payment mean that if you are sick, it will most probably be excepted from payment.

 

 

[facthunter]

Yes . The LNP privatized medibank. Sold off to the public what they already owned. The same with Combank the electricity networks and anything else they can capitalize. The result.... a cost PLUS equation where we pay more for what we ALREADY HAD.. Nev

 

 

[pmccarthy]

I just read that according to the Tax Office, the average taxable income is $58,700 a year, but that is skewed by high-income earners. The median or typical income is $43,900.

 

So I wonder what the average really is. What if we ignore those earning over $200,000 because they are not relevant to ordinary people, and ignore those with no income at all, what would the average or median income be then? How would Labor's proposed tax changes affect those people, who might be more typical of employed income earners?

 

 

[Bruce]

Yep, we tend to think of the average income as what the average joe gets.

 

But mathematically, if you have 10 people and 9 get nothing and the tenth gets a million, then the average income is $100,000.

 

 

[old man emu]

I think that Labor has shot itself in the foot with its Family Reunion policy.Under current laws, overseas citizens wanting to visit their children in Australia long-term are admitted under the parent category visa, introduced on May 5, 2017. According to the Department of Home Affairs, the applicant's Australian child must agree to be their sponsor and they must meet identity, health and character requirements. They must also have health insurance from an Australian provider for the length of their intended stay. There are currently more than 97,000 people seeking various kinds of permanent parent visas to Australia.

 

The coalition's visa program is capped at 15,000 people per year. It is limited to one set of parents per household and the visa cannot be renewed in Australia. The cost is $5000 for three years and $10,000 for five years. Labor proposes to remove the 15,000 cap on parent visas and allow families to bring two sets of parents to Australia. The cost will be $1250 for a three-year visa and $2500 for a five-year visa.Under Labor's policy "people can spend up to 10 years" and they can request to renew their visa from within Australia.

 

No cap on foreign parent entry under Labor

 

I have no argument with the philosophy of reuniting families, but the problem, as I see it, is that this will lead to the Health and Aged Care systems being swamped with elderly, infirm people who provide no growth potential to the Australian economy. Australia might be called a First World economy, but in reality, we are still a developing Nation. We need youthful people to fuel that development. What we don't need are middle-aged business people settling in Australia on Business Innovation and Investment Programme visas, then using the Family Reunion visa to bring in their aged relatives.

 

Those of you who live more than 100 kilometers from the CBD of an Australian Sate Capital do not experience the crowding and congestion that this influx of people causes. These people don't want to be Australian. They just want to enjoy the benefits Australians have struggled to obtain and maintain since the first "selected immigrants" gathered on the shores of Sydney Cove in 1788. Education opportunities, a favourable climate, the safety of women and political security were among the top reasons cited by those who apply for visas.

 

LRG lawyers migration manager Mark Ryan said the visa was attractive to astute investors. "If you had $5 million why would you not just do that? All you have to do is show up for 40 days," he said. "It's a great visa, they don't have to come and work, it gives them the flexibility to invest $5 million, and then their kids can go to school here."

 

 

[Methusala]

I am not a fan of migration levels at, currently, around 300,000pa. I think that many cultures like to have their parents close. Could be a better idea to have successful migrant families bring their oldies in and look after them in their homes. Takes some pressure off the overcrowded and largely for profit aged care residences familiar to Australians now. See the current horror show of a Royal Commission.

 

 

[spacesailor]

"So I wonder what the average really is. What if we ignore those earning over $200,000 because they are not relevant to ordinary people "

 

One female has an income of ,, wait for it

 

$17,million.

 

The highest was $53,million, with a golden (undisclosed) handshake.

 

Probably the same company, (M) the first letter of the company I will not use.

 

Why only children !, "Under current laws, overseas citizens wanting to visit their children ", I've lots of nephews & nieces, & other relo's that would like to come over for a while, (free board & lodging) LoL

 

spacesailor

 

 

[facthunter]

Civilised people look after and respect their aged . As long as the system isn't spivved, why can't their parents see them more easily. Invest in funeral services. It will be a growing industry.

 

With respect to the disparity of incomes. some get more in a year than others will in a lifetime and the GAP gets wider all the time. The TREND continues as the richer exert influence in the system to make it more to their advantage. Astronomic incomes make money only a game for those who CAN play it.. Death is the final leveler, but in the meantime a good time is had by some while more and more have no place to sleep safely at night . Companies deskill their workers and pay them even less if they can. Slaves had to be fed and clothed. Could the constant struggle to make ends meet and our unrestricted gambling industry be a factor in increased suicide and physical abuse and marriage breakdown? I have NO doubt it does, but there's a lot of money in it. for some. Look how influential the Gambling lobby was in the last Tasmanian elections. Nev

 

 

[Bruce]

I agree Labor has damaged itself with its immigration policy. As with the greens, how can you possibly claim to care for the planet if you don't even begin to try to limit population? I thought Bob Brown was ok until he said that "people don't cause pollution".

 

The only respectable lot to want to limit population is the Sustainable Australia party.

 

Mind you, the need to limit population is only beginning to occur to some voters... most still think that "Advance Australia Fair" means taking in lots of immigrants and assuming that scientists will find some was of feeding them in the future.

 

Actually, they don't get as far as assuming anything about anything.. it is all done with no thought at all.

 

 

[old man emu]

The Australian continent can support a much larger human population than it does at present. The problem to be overcome is crowding along the coastline. The development close to the coast, especially on the eastern coast was historically limited by development procedures that were inefficient in terms of return on energy input. Today, we could complete the Snowy Mountains Scheme in less time and with a smaller workforce than those heroes of the 1950's. Today we could build roads into the Interior in less time than it took a century and a half ago.

 

In my opinion, the wise move would be to suspend all immigration and temporary residence visas for 5 to 10 years while those already here get to work setting up the place for occupation. We should get water into the Interior by diverting much of what flows along short coastal rivers to the sea. Then we should build the infrastructure for towns and cities along natural waterways that have been filled with the diverted water. Once the infrastructure is in place and water supply ensured, we can open the doors to immigration, but with the first proviso that these people spend the first 5 or so years here living in the Interior.

 

 

[pmccarthy]

All of my first arrival ancestors came to Australia in the 19th century knowing that they would never see their families back home again. It was a choice. I don’t rate family reunion as a high priority.