Will be interesting to see what Labor proposes with tertiary course fees
come next election.

Two politicians are responsible? Balls! The major parties must have agreed.

With only 27.3% of Australians with degrees (as at 2019), the cost of them is not going to jerk too many tears from the populace, particularly as that 27.3% cause most of the problems suffered by 72.7%.

Many/most of the humanities and social sciences courses Malcolm King has in mind have been destroyed by postmodernism and identity politics , so that rather than history, feminist studies, indigenous studies and so on are offered. And science is not immune, as can be witnessed in the appointment of Bruce Pascoe, author of the fabricated Dark Emu, as Professor of Indigenous Agriculture (which did not exist) in the Faculty of Veterinary and Agricultural Sciences, Melbourne University.

Hmm, in an economy that is funded almost exclusively on debt! Something has to give! And that something has to be things like the sports rorts, fully franked dividends to folk who don't pay tax, or worse folk who don't pay their tax here, and much of those dividends, foreign CEO's, executives, supported by jobkeeper/monumental debt!

Or for negative gearing that has no limit and again now funded/supported to a large extent by the taxpayers' purse/government debt.

Not only are these young folk being penalised by the "crony system", but as the future workforce/taxpayers, will be the ones expected to repay this huge but necessary debt!

And many will be now over eighteen and eligible to register to vote, and have Parents and Grandparents, who support these youngsters as best they can and look at the current crop of pollies, many of who got their degrees free! Guess where their first preferences are going? Talk about shooting oneself, in one's political foot Genius!

Negative gearing should have a top ceiling o f 5 residential investments/houses/individual apartments.

Fully franked dividends should only go to resident Australians who pay some tax here and here I include the GST, stamp duties, petrol excise and land tax! All of which are tax! And would mean, no pensioner/self funded retiree or Australian living here would be negatively affected.

The saving we could make in this space would more that pay for any shortfall of reduced fees, without making an arts degree (learning how to think critically) financially untenable, especially for the poor and downtrodden and the first people!

This is an investment in our future, not as now, in the past/political cronies/hasbeens/entrenched, if totally undeserving, unearnt privilege, i.e., Negative gearing/fully franked dividends!
Alan B.

After reading the story from the ,Late ,Adelaide Review , a picture of what really plagues the 'Arts" in Australia emerges. It's all about themselves at the end of the day .

The quote near the end sums it up, "Perhaps the problem lies in a perception that Australian voters fail to see or value the link between arts funding and the culture they consume."

I fail to identify any 'culture ' that I consume from the examples quoted either in the Story OR in Malcolm's Article ... These groups simply cannot grasp that they target a tiny minority of Australians who , being so small , cannot or will not keep their "Arts " financially afloat ..

ttbn. Labor rejected the legislation in the lower and upper house, but it was passed by the coalition and enough minor party votes to win the day! And all that eventually got it through was two critical, centre-right, deciding votes!

So, balls to your non-fact checked balls and par for the course for an ideologue, programmed like Pavlov's dogs to react to the facts the way you traditionally do? Bark at them!

When it comes to elections? 30% of us understand economics, another 30% who understand the politics and the remaining 40% who understand neither, as you so remarkably demonstrate in almost your every utterance, who decide our elections!

Then it is the same fools who invariably wail about outcomes or the way the country is going to the dogs. Go figure.
Alan B.