The current modus of economic/social operation in the country has failed and is failing further. The shadow economy grows every year as a result of the lawful economy falling and favoring the select few. We have outright squandered the opportunity to close the gap between Aboriginal + Torres Strait Islander people and the majority of other Australians. Our waste output per unit population is in the top ten of the world. Our homeless are now in the tens of thousands, the number of those in poverty increases daily, our city buildings are increasingly abandoned due to impossible rents. Our children if they are lucky enough to be born with (or attain or inherit) support go to schools that rate extremely low in relation to comparable countries in terms of OECD ranking. Families are also struggling, those which were once the middle of Australia economically are battling for ever-precarious roles, short term contracts and redundancies.
The public fears the police and witnesses their corruption (fudging breathalyzer tests for example). The Judicial system favors the wealthy and people from low socioeconomic backgrounds represent the majority in our prisons. We the public find it increasingly difficult to trust the political system and the parties/ individuals with in it (unreasonable spending on travel etc). Raids on the ABC's files for suspicion alone, up to two weeks rendition of innocent citizens (again on suspicion) and 'Dob in a dodger' tips to the Australian Taxation Office do little to dissuade our fear. Not to mention the ATO bullying small businesses (already roughing it) whilst immense corporations pay next to zero tax.
Welfare recipients on the cusp of survival are regularly granted debts incorrectly. Childcare workers struggle to educate our future generations in the large classes, aged care and disability care workers are suffering in the massive facilities where there is often only one carer for up to fifty patients. Hospital systems are at breaking point and together we walk into debt willingly. Mental illness in the country is at all time high and the daily grind is isolating us further as business competition becomes the dominant arena in which we interact. Our data is gathered at every point in our lives and we have little to no control on protecting it (if the CIA cannot protect their data, what hope is there for meager Aussie citizens).
Not surprisingly to all involved in the national project the situation is dire. In the best interest of all who participated we have, as a country, more or less arrived in the position we find ourselves in, through choice and not by chance. Together Australia will make it as a country or we shall not make it at all.
Thus:
We need to make well thought out and concerted efforts together. Soon the public will be making a list of ten changes it wants to see take place in Australia within the next financial year – it will be presented to you. We would then like for you to pick five of the ten changes and take steps to put them into Australian law. Should the five items on the list fail to be in place by the end of the next financial year, we the public, will be forced to take measures into our own hands. We will create enormous, assertive, yet peaceable public demonstrations across all of Australia's major cities. These acts of civil disobedience will be extremely disruptive to the economy and proper functioning of these cities, yet it is a price, we the public, are prepared to pay.
With respect a concerned citizen.
PS:
This would be wonderful to actually follow through on, alas we the public are an insipid, sheepish and timid bunch. Incapable of organizing a decent soiree let alone a rally. Although I hear movements are afoot in Sydney regarding the climate and perhaps the rest of the cities will follow... who knows? Mass demonstrations may be coming to a city near you
Oh, that's a shame to hear! I always thought Australia is like an upside down Canada, rich but social, is that no longer the case? This sounds more like an upside down USA, which I agree is less than desirable.
On July 01 2019 18:09 opisska wrote: Oh, that's a shame to hear! I always thought Australia is like an upside down Canada, rich but social, is that no longer the case? This sounds more like an upside down USA, which I agree is less than desirable.
Australia is only good for the wealthy at the moment, if you are poor here, it is very rough. Sadly the slope the nation is on is meaning that many more people are becoming poor, wealth inequality between affluent areas and low socioeconomic areas is massive. If Australia could follow Canada more we would certainly be better off.
On July 01 2019 18:09 opisska wrote: Oh, that's a shame to hear! I always thought Australia is like an upside down Canada, rich but social, is that no longer the case? This sounds more like an upside down USA, which I agree is less than desirable.
Australia is only good for the wealthy at the moment, if you are poor here, it is very rough. Sadly the slope the nation is on is meaning that many more people are becoming poor, wealth inequality between affluent areas and low socioeconomic areas is massive. If Australia could follow Canada more we would certainly be better off.
australia isnt even good for the wealthy, it actually never has been. so many people look at the multi billion dollar international companies (who are the top 0.01%) and all the shit they do or get away with, then proceed to label the rest of the 1% of australia (who are wealthy, but no where near as wealthy as the 0.01) as the wealthy australians who are ripping everyone off and living the life. the fact is, even the top 1% struggle in australia because our taxation and employment laws are completely shit and it decentivises business growth or foreign investment. the entire FWO system is literally the embodiment of socialism. we have the highest minimum wages in the world, with the most entitlements and high super. businesses dont even have the freedom to grade their own staff freely because the industry awards regulate employee pay according to job responsibilities rather than actual performance, so you have a bunch of employees that are inefficient and imcompetent yet sitting there feeling entitled to a living despite being just as useless as the next minimum wage earning idiot. the next biggest issue is we have too many idiots who actually live off the minimum wage, because they didnt care enough to get a proper education when it was affordable and actually worth getting. instead of taking responsibility for their poor choices, conveniently they happen to have significant voting rights and so they pressure the government to further increase their wages at the expense of literally everything else and then they wonder why life in australia is so unaffordable.
the government has no money because theyve sold so many assets and services have been privatised. they lack tax revenue partly because billion dollar companies dont pay the appropriate amount of tax, but also because it has become standard for literally every company in australia to undisclose cash revenue in order to bypass dumb employment and taxation law. centrelink is being robbed of welfare payments because so many people on the dole literally live off the dole, and others use it as supplmentary income because they have cash income that is undisclosed and therefore this makes them eligible for payments. this problem stems from my original point that the employment law here is shit. fwo released a stat last year saying over 70% of companies they audited were found to be non compliant. maybe they should have a look at themselves and consider whether their laws are reasonable in the first place?
there are so many issues with this country that comes from poor judgment and lack of action from the government, but there are also so many issues that stem from the actual people who have voting rights. an increase in demand for further privileges and entitlements (basically socialist systems) and a mentality that says "my life is difficult not because of the choices i made, but because our government is shit and too many immigrants are coming and taking my jobs".
we desperately need to overhaul our education system and actually get australians serious about getting serious education in a wide range of fields. the government needs to provide subsidies to companies (foreign companies included) in a wide range of industries that are serious about starting up something new because without subsidies no company is going to risk having to make it on their own when they have to deal with the nightmare that is our tax and employment laws, especially if the country does not have a workforce available for hire (because who the fucks gonna study in some specialised field when a job market doesnt even exist in the country for the degree they pursued).
we need serious investment in infrastructure and development outside of the major cities that can support increased immigration, which this country is in dire need of due to a huge lack of skills in leading industries and quite simply just a lack of working population.
fuck i could go on and on about how this country has turned to shit because the citizens of the 90s let our government squander everything and act so recklessly with zero foresight. the idea that australia is the "lucky country" and that our natural resources would protect us forever was incredibly stupid and it got the entire nation so complacent that we literally sat on our asses for 20 years and did nothing.
what a load mate, you would laugh until you coughed if you lived in another country. australia's social safety net is second to none. i wish we didn't pay so much to welfare and subsidies so i could spend a bit more of my own hard earned cash. but i am proud that we support those who cannot work themselves and at least give them some dignity. too many people looking for a handout then a hand up.
The idea that the top 1% struggle anywhere in the world is laughable and shows zero understanding of economy. Sorry mate, but you are either being tricked by the rich or dishonest. High minimum wage is definitely not the source of the problems, elsewhere in the world, minimum wage strongly positively correlates with quality of life.
The post of evilfatsh1t is the embodiment of why is it so difficult to break corporate capitalism: if there is a problem in public funding, it is always because the very rich and the corporations evade taxes or are not taxed enough, yet he manages to blame the poorest people, who are actually on his side. This is how you get the US fiasco.
Yes Australia is a barrel of fish at the moment - I am really not sure what to do, I guess I made this post as I feel rather hopeless about the situation.
On July 02 2019 00:35 opisska wrote: The idea that the top 1% struggle anywhere in the world is laughable and shows zero understanding of economy. Sorry mate, but you are either being tricked by the rich or dishonest. High minimum wage is definitely not the source of the problems, elsewhere in the world, minimum wage strongly positively correlates with quality of life.
The post of evilfatsh1t is the embodiment of why is it so difficult to break corporate capitalism: if there is a problem in public funding, it is always because the very rich and the corporations evade taxes or are not taxed enough, yet he manages to blame the poorest people, who are actually on his side. This is how you get the US fiasco.
to get into the top 1% income earners in australia youre looking at roughly ~$250k a year. do you think that number is extremely high? were not talking about the gina rineharts or rupert murdochs. ~$250k is supposed to be fairly achievable for any individual who is serious about increasing their wealth. aside from specialist jobs in medicine, engineering etc. the most common way to bring your income up to the 1% threshold is to start a business. who the hells gonna want to start a business in australia when, aside from the economy being completely shit (because well put this aside as a "temporary issue"), not only do you have worry about what every other business in the world does which is actually having a good business, but you have to battle against the ATO and FWO non stop. how many business owners do you think actually dodge tax payments like amazon does? not very fucking many. the issue of the major corporations not paying their tax is a problem, but its only a fraction of what has turned this country to shit. youre not gonna get economic growth when no one is interested in actually trying to hit the top 1% because its just not worth it. dont give me some bullshit that everyone would want to live the lives all top 1% business owners live. its very well known that "money doesnt buy happiness". there is a quality of life issue for many of the australians in the top 1% which is clearly visible to australians that arent. why go to the trouble of dealing with all that hassle when the FWO guarantees me a livable wage just for cleaning tables at a cafe? this country does little to actually give incentive to australians to generate wealth. our social safety net did perhaps too good of a job so that it got people disinterested in growing the economy at all. like i said, this country is becoming increasingly socialist without them even knowing it.
also, its pretty clear you dont understand how the tax system is flawed in australia because of its inability to claim cash revenue. dont try and simplify the situation and say australias's problems are a replica of americas. the amount of tax revenue the ato loses out on by not claiming income tax from an extremely large number of wage (not salary) earners, and the amount of undeserved welfare being paid out because recipients fraudulently report their taxable income is huge. im literally acquainted with a number of families who have gross household incomes in the ~150k but only declare half of that as taxable income and they receive weekly welfare payments due to being classified as low income earners. yet rather than fixing these situations the government turns to small/medium businesses to recoup their losses and they wonder why australias economy is stagnating
On July 01 2019 17:59 AxiomBlurr wrote: It is not working.
The current modus of economic/social operation in the country has failed and is failing further. The shadow economy grows every year as a result of the lawful economy falling and favoring the select few. We have outright squandered the opportunity to close the gap between Aboriginal + Torres Strait Islander people and the majority of other Australians. Our waste output per unit population is in the top ten of the world. Our homeless are now in the tens of thousands, the number of those in poverty increases daily, our city buildings are increasingly abandoned due to impossible rents. Our children if they are lucky enough to be born with (or attain or inherit) support go to schools that rate extremely low in relation to comparable countries in terms of OECD ranking. Families are also struggling, those which were once the middle of Australia economically are battling for ever-precarious roles, short term contracts and redundancies.
The public fears the police and witnesses their corruption (fudging breathalyzer tests for example). The Judicial system favors the wealthy and people from low socioeconomic backgrounds represent the majority in our prisons. We the public find it increasingly difficult to trust the political system and the parties/ individuals with in it (unreasonable spending on travel etc). Raids on the ABC's files for suspicion alone, up to two weeks rendition of innocent citizens (again on suspicion) and 'Dob in a dodger' tips to the Australian Taxation Office do little to dissuade our fear. Not to mention the ATO bullying small businesses (already roughing it) whilst immense corporations pay next to zero tax.
Welfare recipients on the cusp of survival are regularly granted debts incorrectly. Childcare workers struggle to educate our future generations in the large classes, aged care and disability care workers are suffering in the massive facilities where there is often only one carer for up to fifty patients. Hospital systems are at breaking point and together we walk into debt willingly. Mental illness in the country is at all time high and the daily grind is isolating us further as business competition becomes the dominant arena in which we interact. Our data is gathered at every point in our lives and we have little to no control on protecting it (if the CIA cannot protect their data, what hope is there for meager Aussie citizens).
Not surprisingly to all involved in the national project the situation is dire. In the best interest of all who participated we have, as a country, more or less arrived in the position we find ourselves in, through choice and not by chance. Together Australia will make it as a country or we shall not make it at all.
Thus:
We need to make well thought out and concerted efforts together. Soon the public will be making a list of ten changes it wants to see take place in Australia within the next financial year – it will be presented to you. We would then like for you to pick five of the ten changes and take steps to put them into Australian law. Should the five items on the list fail to be in place by the end of the next financial year, we the public, will be forced to take measures into our own hands. We will create enormous, assertive, yet peaceable public demonstrations across all of Australia's major cities. These acts of civil disobedience will be extremely disruptive to the economy and proper functioning of these cities, yet it is a price, we the public, are prepared to pay.
With respect a concerned citizen.
PS:
This would be wonderful to actually follow through on, alas we the public are an insipid, sheepish and timid bunch. Incapable of organizing a decent soiree let alone a rally. Although I hear movements are afoot in Sydney regarding the climate and perhaps the rest of the cities will follow... who knows? Mass demonstrations may be coming to a city near you
Didn't the people of Australia recently have a choice? As in, people who think it isn't working and the country was failing socially and economically went to the polls with people that either didn't think the same or thought of different solutions?
Soon the public will be making a list of ten changes it wants to see take place in Australia within the next financial year – it will be presented to you.
Unless you think no party represented this vantage point, it really sounds like sour grapes at not enough of the public agreeing with your point of view.
I'm no Australia buff, all I know are some people down there happy with the results of the election and hopeful of Labour's platform.
On July 02 2019 00:35 opisska wrote: The idea that the top 1% struggle anywhere in the world is laughable and shows zero understanding of economy. Sorry mate, but you are either being tricked by the rich or dishonest. High minimum wage is definitely not the source of the problems, elsewhere in the world, minimum wage strongly positively correlates with quality of life.
The post of evilfatsh1t is the embodiment of why is it so difficult to break corporate capitalism: if there is a problem in public funding, it is always because the very rich and the corporations evade taxes or are not taxed enough, yet he manages to blame the poorest people, who are actually on his side. This is how you get the US fiasco.
to get into the top 1% income earners in australia youre looking at roughly ~$250k a year. do you think that number is extremely high? were not talking about the gina rineharts or rupert murdochs. ~$250k is supposed to be fairly achievable for any individual who is serious about increasing their wealth. aside from specialist jobs in medicine, engineering etc. the most common way to bring your income up to the 1% threshold is to start a business. who the hells gonna want to start a business in australia when, aside from the economy being completely shit (because well put this aside as a "temporary issue"), not only do you have worry about what every other business in the world does which is actually having a good business, but you have to battle against the ATO and FWO non stop. how many business owners do you think actually dodge tax payments like amazon does? not very fucking many. the issue of the major corporations not paying their tax is a problem, but its only a fraction of what has turned this country to shit. youre not gonna get economic growth when no one is interested in actually trying to hit the top 1% because its just not worth it. dont give me some bullshit that everyone would want to live the lives all top 1% business owners live. its very well known that "money doesnt buy happiness". there is a quality of life issue for many of the australians in the top 1% which is clearly visible to australians that arent. why go to the trouble of dealing with all that hassle when the FWO guarantees me a livable wage just for cleaning tables at a cafe? this country does little to actually give incentive to australians to generate wealth. our social safety net did perhaps too good of a job so that it got people disinterested in growing the economy at all. like i said, this country is becoming increasingly socialist without them even knowing it.
also, its pretty clear you dont understand how the tax system is flawed in australia because of its inability to claim cash revenue. dont try and simplify the situation and say australias's problems are a replica of americas. the amount of tax revenue the ato loses out on by not claiming income tax from an extremely large number of wage (not salary) earners, and the amount of undeserved welfare being paid out because recipients fraudulently report their taxable income is huge. im literally acquainted with a number of families who have gross household incomes in the ~150k but only declare half of that as taxable income and they receive weekly welfare payments due to being classified as low income earners. yet rather than fixing these situations the government turns to small/medium businesses to recoup their losses and they wonder why australias economy is stagnating
The argument that anyone "serious" can be top 1% does not make sense, because then it won't be just one percent of people. People in the top 1% will always have comfortable lives, no matter what the numbers are, as long as there is a functional economy - because mist of the costs of anything go to other people (work or profits) and thus being at the top of income automatically means you can afford paying a lot of people - think about it for a minute.
As for the actual example, $250k a year is a shitload of money and if someone acts like it's not enough for them, it's their fucking problem and why should anyone care? As for bureaucracy, everyone in the world deals with it and uf you don't like it, you hire people to it - which is especially easy if you have an income that tops 99% of those.
However if indeed there is widespread tax evasion as you say, that needs to be addressed, I agree. The question is, whether that is true, even your anecdotal experience isn't a reliable statistics. In Czech Republic, the current government has abused the idea that "all small businesses avoid taxes" to enact unprecedented surveillance measures - despite it just bot being true and the regained revenue being laughable compared to what big corporations evade. So be careful, this is a very cmon tactics how to mobilize people against false targets for the profit of the wealthy.
Didn't the people of Australia recently have a choice? As in, people who think it isn't working and the country was failing socially and economically went to the polls with people that either didn't think the same or thought of different solutions?
Unless you think no party represented this vantage point, it really sounds like sour grapes at not enough of the public agreeing with your point of view.
I'm no Australia buff, all I know are some people down there happy with the results of the election and hopeful of Labour's platform.
This is one of the voices I was looking for!
My post states that we arrived here by choice, as in it is our fault.
We can only vote on who to pick based on what is said before the election. We study, we learn about the candidates, some even sound promising, we vote. What happens next is a carnivale caricature circus. The elected get into power and WITHOUT EXCLUSION they:
1) Flip on their key stances (which we voted for). 2) Create policy from a 'wealthy white point of view' 3) Fail to create an official treaty. 4) Fail to meet international agreed reasonable standards on pollution outputs. 5) Continue to violate international human rights with offshore asylum seeker detention centres. 6) Further exacerbate the more detailed items/scenarios on my OP.
And then
7) Give themselves a pay rise.
By the time they complete their tenure(or get a vote of no confidence) there is another election and the whole song and dance rolls on. It is our fault because, we the Australian people, allow the farce to continue.
Didn't the people of Australia recently have a choice? As in, people who think it isn't working and the country was failing socially and economically went to the polls with people that either didn't think the same or thought of different solutions?
Unless you think no party represented this vantage point, it really sounds like sour grapes at not enough of the public agreeing with your point of view.
I'm no Australia buff, all I know are some people down there happy with the results of the election and hopeful of Labour's platform.
This is one of the voices I was looking for!
My post states that we arrived here by choice, as in it is our fault.
We can only vote on who to pick based on what is said before the election. We study, we learn about the candidates, some even sound promising, we vote. What happens next is a carnivale caricature circus. The elected get into power and WITHOUT EXCLUSION they:
1) Flip on their key stances (which we voted for). 2) Create policy from a 'wealthy white point of view' 3) Fail to create an official treaty. 4) Fail to meet international agreed reasonable standards on pollution outputs. 5) Continue to violate international human rights with offshore asylum seeker detention centres. 6) Further exacerbate the more detailed items/scenarios on my OP.
And then
7) Give themselves a pay rise.
By the time they complete their tenure(or get a vote of no confidence) there is another election and the whole song and dance rolls on. It is our fault because, we the Australian people, allow the farce to continue.
Let me try restating this. Take someone with a slightly different perspective, but the same style of passion.
The people of Australia voted. They rejected the kind of 'woe is me' defeatism espoused by AxiomBlurr. They keep talking about how "the public" fears that, and "the public" demands these changes, but really the public disagrees with people like him and are building a better future on lines he dislikes. It's time to take back Australia from people that only see more and more victims needing handouts. It's time to reject voices that want to destroy the great institutions of Australia, instead of addressing the problems with prudent analysis and action. We know the kinds of corruption and government failures they focus on would be made ten times worse by their mismanagement. In fact, they'd show such poor fiscal management that they'd likely squander available finances before even giving reorganization a chance to be badly administered!
Equal passion, different diagnoses, different lights shone on past failures. That's why I wanted something substantive in light of the recent election. What proof is there that campaign promises of the victorious party have flipped?
What if your perspective on what constitutes a wealthy white point of view reasonable standards on pollution international human rights is exactly what people rejected in the election? And perhaps for good cause? As in, who is to know if the people voted against your characterization of the issues because they think your understanding is bad and prescriptions are faulty?
That's why I was looking for your perspective on the recent election, if you thought Labour were corrupt and favored the rich, or they won a good victory and flipped, or misprioritized the election promises they're enacting. It is rather hard for foreigners to see beyond the political slogans and into the story of representative or unrepresentative government.
On July 02 2019 15:07 Danglars wrote:... I'm no Australia buff, all I know are some people down there happy with the results of the election and hopeful of Labour's platform.
On July 02 2019 23:31 Danglars wrote:... That's why I was looking for your perspective on the recent election, if you thought Labour were corrupt and favored the rich, or they won a good victory and flipped, or misprioritized the election promises they're enacting. It is rather hard for foreigners to see beyond the political slogans and into the story of representative or unrepresentative government.
Given that the Labor party lost the most recent federal election I am finding your posts difficult to parse.
On July 02 2019 15:07 Danglars wrote:... I'm no Australia buff, all I know are some people down there happy with the results of the election and hopeful of Labour's platform.
On July 02 2019 23:31 Danglars wrote:... That's why I was looking for your perspective on the recent election, if you thought Labour were corrupt and favored the rich, or they won a good victory and flipped, or misprioritized the election promises they're enacting. It is rather hard for foreigners to see beyond the political slogans and into the story of representative or unrepresentative government.
Given that the Labor party lost the most recent federal election I am finding your posts difficult to parse.
I want to hear his solid context in terms of whatever party he most supported. If in defeat, why, if in victory, why. But you're right, I meant to say the Liberals for the election winners.
I do not support any party that operates within the current political framework. It is often said that one who does not vote, does not get the right to complain, yet in Australia's present situation, it is my opinion that those voting and not taking a stance against the ongoing buffoonery do not have the grounds for complaint.
My OP is just one blade of grass in the meadow of actions I have taken towards creating a better Australia, I am no champion, yet I do what I can. My angle is not with this party or that party, it is with the political/economic operation of the country.
I believe politicians' wages should be capped to exactly the average salary of the nation per year. Perhaps then we could get some people in government who were actually seriously interested in improving the average persons' lot as opposed to these chronic narcissists who only consider their own pockets and those of the top end of town.
The facts of my OP stand.
Here is the address to the Liberal government's policies announced in their 2019 campaign:
If you have the patience and genuine interest let us meet here in 6 months time and compare the parameters set out in my posts regarding the state of Australia. I wager that on 90% of fronts conditions have deteriorated even further.
On July 03 2019 18:27 AxiomBlurr wrote: @Danglers, you misunderstand me.
I do not support any party that operates within the current political framework. It is often said that one who does not vote, does not get the right to complain, yet in Australia's present situation, it is my opinion that those voting and not taking a stance against the ongoing buffoonery do not have the grounds for complaint.
My OP is just one blade of grass in the meadow of actions I have taken towards creating a better Australia, I am no champion, yet I do what I can. My angle is not with this party or that party, it is with the political/economic operation of the country.
I believe politicians' wages should be capped to exactly the average salary of the nation per year. Perhaps then we could get some people in government who were actually seriously interested in improving the average persons' lot as opposed to these chronic narcissists who only consider their own pockets and those of the top end of town.
The facts of my OP stand.
Here is the address to the Liberal government's policies announced in their 2019 campaign:
If you have the patience and genuine interest let us meet here in 6 months time and compare the parameters set out in my posts regarding the state of Australia. I wager that on 90% of fronts conditions have deteriorated even further.
My interest wanes a little when you offer no support for any major political party, with any caveats. A third round of vague criticism (opposition to buffoonery is a real tough stance) without any real details hurts. The point of my post here was essentially I can cheer in agreement with you on five or six things, and have a sneaking suspicion we absolutely disagree on it all.
EPT
