wayneL
'Abba Shboq Lhon'
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The Abbott Government
- Thread starter Calliope
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Conservative governmnts are now an aberration in Australia, and in the next round of federal and state elections I expect they will all disappear. It really doesn't matter whether Abbott calls a double disollution or goes full term. He is a goner. We realise we have been sold a pig in a poke by Governments like Abbott's and Newman's telling us they will balance the budgets and sort out the mess left by Labor
That would be fair enough but we thought that by balancing the budget they meant socking the rich, the achievers. A recent poll showed that 59% of the electors favour raising the taxes on the rich. We are now rightly upset that instead of doing this, they are intent on taking away the entitlements we hold dear.
The Palmer PUPS have entered the stage at the right time and give heart to those of us who want to see the return of a government which has no aptitude for money management but favours big spending and big borrowing. And gave us six glorious years of extravagent spending.
That is the attitude which best suits our psyche.
That would be fair enough but we thought that by balancing the budget they meant socking the rich, the achievers. A recent poll showed that 59% of the electors favour raising the taxes on the rich. We are now rightly upset that instead of doing this, they are intent on taking away the entitlements we hold dear.
The Palmer PUPS have entered the stage at the right time and give heart to those of us who want to see the return of a government which has no aptitude for money management but favours big spending and big borrowing. And gave us six glorious years of extravagent spending.
That is the attitude which best suits our psyche.
Julia
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Is that actually your view, Calliope? Or if it is, is it tongue in cheek? The comments of someone else?
wayneL
'Abba Shboq Lhon'
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Tongue in cheek or not, I agree with Cal, Conservatism is all but dead in everywhere 'cept the US. This does not mean I think that social democracy has carte blanche. It is popular with losers, bludgers and guilt ridden inner city trendies, but I think the majority are crying out for true liberalism, the shape of which is somewhere between classical liberalism and social liberalism.
But we don't have a viable party that represents that view in Australia.
But we don't have a viable party that represents that view in Australia.
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It's supposed to be satire. I do believe however, that the electorate in future will have no truck with a government which advocates responsible money management. The credit card mentality is now too ingrained.
IFocus
You are arguing with a Galah
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wayneL
'Abba Shboq Lhon'
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I know lots of guys (and ladies) in my trade in the US. The Internet has enabled us to form broad cross boundary communities (via faceache etc). 99.9999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999% are conservative and most are < 40 years old.
Conservatism is about moral values, rugged individualism, self regulation and responsibilty. While I'm not really a conservative at all, I respect those values as beneficial for a nation. Incidentally, the vast majority of my Ozzie colleagues think the same way.... head down, bum up, service your customer, treat people with proper values right, look after those less fortunate and &%$# the bludgers.
It is nothing to do with good ol' boys and southern belles.
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Yes and no. People can equate government finances to their own household budget. When times are good, you save or invest in productive capital, shares, property or whatever. When times get bad, you tighten the belt and use some of those savings to prop up your investments that may be losing money. In the national sense, those investments may be retailers who are facing a slump, building contractors etc. You know that in the long run those businesses are viable and the slump is temporary so you give them a cash injection. When times get better and they are doing well you rebuild the public purse from their profits.
Among the unrealistic expectations from some are that you can always have a budget surplus in good times and bad. We have to get over this idea as much as we have to get over the idea that government is there to provide for all our needs in all circumstances. Neither of these ideas is possible or appropriate.
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+1 as Glen Stevens says, we were fortunate the budget was in surplus when the GFC hit and it is prudent to get it back to surplus, in the event another fiscal shock hits.
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That was really interesting reading doc, I think the silent majority understand what Glen Stevens was saying.
Unfortunatelly, there are some that are putting personal vendettas ahead of Australia's well being.
I can understand the Labor parties hatred of Abbott, but what he is proposing is unpopular but necassary, so the public will dislike the coalition for implementing it anyway.
What I can't understand is their unwillingness to let it be implemented, that is just pure bloody mindedness at the expense of Australia's wellbeing.
Just another example of moronic union ideology, if you can't beat the company up, tear it down. Who cares about the job losses they didn't win.lol absolute dicks.
Julia
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Satire or not, there's some truth in that, Calliope.
However, I think Rumpole sums it up well. I don't believe the majority of the electorate fail to understand that.
sp, I might be wrong, but my interpretation would be that the electorate opted for the Libs in the expectation of some responsible fiscal management and would have been prepared to take some pain to that end.
But the government's budget does seem to go against basic instincts of fairness in the way it penalises those who are the most financially and socially disadvantaged.
This is in contrast to the ridiculously generous PPL in the face of a good portion of the electorate believing the taxpayer has no appropriate role in people's choices to have children.
Then, not a single member of the government has done any sort of decent job of selling the ultimate outcome of fiscal responsibility and the need to provide for future recessions and other global events beyond Australia's control. Neither have they adequately explained how much we are borrowing every day to just pay the interest on the debt.
Another example is the way they have just doggedly maintained the 'we will stop the boats' mantra, causing consternation about the current situation with people being held at sea etc., without properly explaining the sequelae that if the boats are stopped, this allows our generous humanitarian refugee resettlement program to do what it is supposed to in taking in the most genuinely needy people, many of whom have endured years of waiting in various refugee camps throughout the world, their refugee status already confirmed.
If the Prime Minister had some personal charisma, was prepared to perhaps do an 'address to the nation', explaining the longer term objectives, and asking the country to appreciate the need for a conservative approach, along with an altered budget which people could perceive as fair, then I believe the response would be hugely better than it is at present.
Seems to me the government is still functioning in opposition mode, they are secretive and defensive. This makes the electorate suspicious and reduces confidence.
So_Cynical
The Contrarian Averager
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Its more about political point scoring than good policy, you wont ever hear the Noalition talking about the 13000+ refugees that will come to Aust annually while they are in power...but you will hear plenty about boats.
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Very good points Julia.
With regard the budget, I personally thought the immediate clamp on spending and a review of the tax base, was probably a prudent move.
It obviously didn't prove to be a popular one, which is understandable, with our current belief of we want it, why can't we have it.
As doc mentioned, maybe Abbott will let things slide untill the chorus of hecklers start begging for change.
I'm not sure an address to the nation would work, there isn't many stations that would run it.
If the ABC were forced to run it, I'm sure they would have a programme immediatelly after to debunk it
I ran the question past my other half the other day, "what do you think of the senate blocking the budget"?
This isn't being indulgent, she hates talking politics and doesn't watch the news.
Her response was, "I hope they have another election and Labor get in, then everyone can get what they deserve".
So Julia, you're not alone in your thinking. lol
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Groan, the 13,000 through correct channels, aren't a problem they are budgeted for, it's the 50,000 that come in that weren't expected.:1zhelp:
I can see why you bought a place in the Phillipines, can you give some suggestions to suitable locations.
Groan, the 13,000 through correct channels, aren't a problem they are budgeted for, it's the 50,000 that come in that weren't expected.:1zhelp:
I can see why you bought a place in the Phillipines, can you give some suggestions to suitable locations.
Sp, I know of a couple from Townsville....she is a Filipino and he is an Auassie. .....They are both on the aged pension.
They sold their house here and moved to the Philippines and are living in luxury.
And guess what?....they still have their aged pension sent to them every fortnight.
Mmmmm cheap living over there mate.
Been there 4 times myself and married one 32 years ago.......but I still prefer here.
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I've not been to the P'pines so I'm interested in your preference for Aus. Just looking at the news I get the impression that the P'pines can be a dangerous place, political murders, life is cheap, that sort of thing. Does that affect your desire to live there ?
Rumpy, it all depends what part of the Philippines......yes, some places are very dangerous to live but you must remember there are some 700o island over there and there are many safe places to live.
IFocus
You are arguing with a Galah
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I knew a lot of union officials with those valves..............
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What they think, and this was Bill Shorten's view on The Insiders this morning, is that a government that attempts to balance the books by bringing in a "horrow" budget, has Buckley's chance of being re-elected. What the people think they deserve is a big-spending, big-borrowing government.
Most have no conception of what a deficit is. We managed very well fo six years under Labor. These were the good times, and the huge borrowings were put to good use to boost the age of entitlement..
Let the good times roll.
What they think, and this was Bill Shorten's view on The Insiders this morning, is that a government that attempts to balance the books by bringing in a "horrow" budget, has Buckley's chance of being re-elected. What the people think they deserve is a big-spending, big-borrowing government.
Most have no conception of what a deficit is. We managed very well fo six years under Labor. These were the good times, and the huge borrowings were put to good use to boost the age of entitlement..
Let the good times roll.
Yes, so long as people's pockets are being filled with borrowed money they will be more than happy.
Like those $900 cheques Ruddie gave out......I keep telling everyone it was just a loan and now we must all pay it back....No doubt if Abbott was to do the same, he would be a very good fellow.
But you must remember, the Fabian indoctrinated Green/Labor left wing socialist like to spend other peoples money until it all runs out.
THEN, who has to pay eventually....yep...you guessed it.