excellent piece, Peter.

trouble with Australian voters is they only think of their hip pocket, not their childern or grandchildren...

LS

100% agree. Is it necessary to have a TV in every room of the house plus one in the shed. This is where the tax system has really got to get a grip of. All that power being used. There should be a daily quota of usage, after that you pay double. Fuel quota. If you have to use fuel for daily living. [ normal price ] If u have access to public transport, and don't use it you pay double for fuel. Consumerism is out of control,
for no other reason than greed.

I see two major flaws in our private banking system.

Interest free loans from large retailers, and re-drawing on your home loan to buy toys and or holidays.

Remove both of these and we will go a long way towards bringing people back to within their affordable spending levels.

I also think we need to find a more efficient tax system as the one we have is failing.

You all know I want a transaction tax as opposed to the income tax system we already have.

I was in the work force in the 1950's and '60's - well from 1945 really, when the top tax was at 66.6% and we had better living conditions than we have had since. There are two things which have destroyed conditions now, mainly the mining exports and the reciprocal imports we end up, goods we had been manufacturing previously, because of that. The unemployment rate is reported as about 5.4%, but that is because our employers have agreed to employ workers for two or three days a week to keep them employed rather than have 15% or more unemployed while everybody else is on full pay. The 45% top tax, has allowed unrestricted access of incomes to obscene levels, causing higher costs of goods and services and causing hardship to many workers. They cannot buy a home at the existing prices and so resort to buying something they can afford - or think they can, and give up. If they stopped voting for the big politicial parties, and some one started one with a good comprehensible constitution which you have to sign "to honour and obey" we may well get a decent government with the 66.6% top tax, and have the first $30,000 free of tax, this will improve the living conditions for everyone, and not really disadvantage any.