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The Forum > Article Comments > Under Labor, 'no ticket, no start' is back > Comments

Under Labor, 'no ticket, no start' is back : Comments

By Joe Hockey, published 2/5/2007

Its conference showed that the Australian Labor Party is in cahoots with the unions.

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a few years ago, the catch phrase du jour was: "expecting a different result from the same system and same input is insanity."

that is, unfortunately, the situation in australia. no one of any stature, or at least of any celebrity, says anything new. 'not done here' is the sum of discussion. but the old ideas have brought us to the brink of ecological disaster. kevvie doesn't know what to do, and johnny doesn't think anything should be done. not their fault, the structure of political society strictly limits what can be achieved.

we need some new policies, and we need them fast. so:

1. the electorate should demand democracy, on the swiss model. people participating in policy formation will be vastly more active in planning and execution.

2. outlaw labor unions. replace them with co-operative labor companies. the co-op will provide the protection of numbers and law while subjecting the workforce to market restraint.

3. remove all taxes. taxation is looting, made customary with time and submission. since it is inherently unfair, by design, it creates an 'us and them' society, resulting in crime, unemployment, and a heavy bookkeeping burden on business. to fund social activities, everyone should contribute to the national treasury in proportion as they receive material benefit. computers have made this very easy: every (non cash)transaction passes through a bank computer now, x per cent can be clipped off.

4. require public records of all public transactions to be uploaded to the web as performed. the result will be 'no fraud' and 'best practice' in business and public affairs.

5. get out of the warfare business. it'll save a lot of money. it will stop inspiring people to teach us they don't appreciate our soldiers on their land.
Posted by DEMOS, Wednesday, 2 May 2007 11:37:14 AM
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I like your brave new World DEMOS. I just hope I live long enough to see it, but unfortunately, we don't have any leaders either now or in the foreseeable future that will create the changes we need to implement your ideas. It's tragic that we've allowed ourselves to reach the stage whereby we're forced to vote for one of two political parties who's "future" depends so strongly on the "past."
As I said in my above post, Australian people are beginning to wake up to this political sham, but we have no one to turn to so we vote as we've always done in the short term. The big concern is that by the time we break free from the current mould, it will be too late to put in place the ideas and infrastructure needed to assure some kind of future for our grandchildren.
Wildcat.
Posted by Aime, Wednesday, 2 May 2007 11:52:03 AM
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BHP Billiton's glove puppet is becoming very boring.

Why worry about "trade" unions if you do not care about other unions.

Nearly all members of cabinet have law degrees and are members of various bar associations (lawyers unions), others used to lead farmers unions another used to lead the doctor's union.

All NSW members of cabinet have law degrees from Sydney University.

No ticket no start is alive and well in the Law and Medicine.

If Chip Goodyear doesn't like Labors IR policy it shows me they are doing something right.
Posted by ruawake, Wednesday, 2 May 2007 12:08:14 PM
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Unfortunately, this man Hockey represents me in parliament.

As a result I have followed his career with more than the usual vague contempt in which I hold the majority of money-grubbing, self-centred trough-swillers that constitute that august body.

And it isn't at all edifying.

One of his briefs has been "Minister for Small Business and Tourism"

Hockey has absolutely no experience of small business, having moved from being a student "activist" (if a young Liberal can be called active) at university into politics, with only a slight detour... into a lawyer's office.

Consequently it was hardly a surprise when he did absolutely nothing for the small business part of his portfolio, while he was a regular "opener" of new resorts, hotels, even ferries. Minister for long lunches, in fact.

But let me not suggest for a minute that this lack of experience (or trough-swilling) is unique to our boy.

Mr Hockey contends:

>>The cost of not representing the entire community is bad policy<<

The implication is that Howard's Cabinet *does* represent the entire community.

I think not.

Of Howard's seventeen Ministers, no fewer than ten are lawyers. Howard, of course, was a provincial Sydney solicitor before entering politics, so that's a total of eleven out of eighteen. 61%. And Hockey's key point?

>>70 per cent of Rudd's frontbench are former union officials<<

I wonder whom the public holds in greater respect, trade unionists or lawyers?

Now, there's a philosophical question for our times...

Incidentally, of the remaining seven, one (Downer) is a career politician. Two were farmers. One was an Estate Agent. One a GP. One a journalist.

And one (Mal Brough) an intriguing (and slightly mysterious) background as a manager of a telecommunications company (unspecified), proprietor of a wholesale business (unspecified) and a partner in a trade show and promotions business. He sounds almost human.

So, Mr Hockey, sling your mud. It just might come back to you.
Posted by Pericles, Wednesday, 2 May 2007 1:00:30 PM
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Here we go again - 'the union bosses' are back under the bed and the insults to the intellect and integrity of the Australian worker keep coming.
Union membership is down because current employers, taking full advantage of the existing draconian labour laws, won't employ union members. Very small business (about one to ten employees) has always employed non union labour because the virtual 'one on one' management/worker relationship tends to attract those workers who love sweetheart deals and are too miserable to pay union dues although happy to take advantage of hard won union conditions - there is nothing new here. Also, if I were you Joe, I would avoid bringing attention to Julia Gillard. Ms Gillard has thrashed you in every public debate so far - you haven't won a point.
I note also, among many other things in your nonsensical rant, that the title of your piece is in the present tense - a Freudian slip? Or an open acknowledgement that you are about to be beaten? As I see it, your best chance is to convene a combined cabinet prayer meeting, and pray for another Tampa. You can fool some of the people......etc.
Posted by GYM-FISH, Wednesday, 2 May 2007 1:20:51 PM
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Yes Joe Hockey - I am in agreement. Labor thuggery is not my cup of tea either.

However, nor are you or your cohorts.

You are also yesterday's man and your short-sighted party policy on nuclear energy clearly portrays the Liberal party as environmental vandals. That's some legacy you plan to leave for the next generation when your very own experts advise that uranium will run out in 50 years - 80 if you're "lucky!"

You may deny anthropogenic climate change - that's your perogative. You cannot deny the desecration of our eco systems and public health through excessive industrial pollution, a result of your party's sycophantic love affair with the big polluters who dump unregulated, uncontrolled and unmitigated toxic emissions over communities and the environment.

Both you and your opposition now want to greatly increase the toxic exposure by allowing the expansion of the very dirty and dangerous industry of uranium mining. We well know that renewable energies are treated as a joke by your ill-informed colleagues, obsessed with profits, where they regard the current and future citizens of this nation as simple cannon fodder.

For what it's worth, Mr Hockey, this Liberal voter ain't voting Liberal no more!
Posted by dickie, Wednesday, 2 May 2007 1:32:39 PM
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