I think Douglas Adams summed it up about right:

"On its world, the people are people. The leaders are lizards. The people hate the lizards and the lizards rule the people."

"Odd," said Arthur, "I thought you said it was a democracy."

"I did," said ford. "It is."

"So," said Arthur, hoping he wasn't sounding ridiculously obtuse, "why don't the people get rid of the lizards?"

"It honestly doesn't occur to them," said Ford. "They've all got the vote, so they all pretty much assume that the government they've voted in more or less approximates to the government they want."

"You mean they actually vote for the lizards?"

"Oh yes," said Ford with a shrug, "of course."

"But," said Arthur, going for the big one again, "why?"

"Because if they didn't vote for a lizard," said Ford, "the wrong lizard might get in."

untutored mind,

When I worked with Westpac c. 1991: The Bank claimed four billion dollars in bad loans. In fact, it was six billion dollars. Ordinary, trading bank loans are classified 101 accounts. 102-104 being various degrees on being unproductive. When the big companies were near to going under, the Bank would keep the principal as a 101 account type and show the overdue debt at as a 104 account type, One billion dollars of the debt at risk was not report to the RBA. Office accounts also seemed to have a one billion bulge. And we critique Enron.

Misleading and Misleaded. Australia needs to clean up it's ACT.

The Federal Police's role in those BAli person's 'muled" now facing the DEATH PENALTY? Needs a National Conversation.

Australia's public response to SEX OFFENDERS who'd done time, + who wear a BAND - with nowhere to live? Juxtaposed with the Church hiding or protecting sexual perpetrators is conterminous.? Needs a National Converstion

Australia's role in Iraq, Afghanistan and all others Wars given the cost of this form of leadership? Juxtaposed, is the war on our own streets and how we deal NOT with it. Who are those real Civic Hero's we fail to celebrate, working to protect the meaning of our everyday things in a NOT so everyday LIFE? Needs a National Converstion.

Australia IGNORANCE on Statistics, issues with Casual Labour, indicators of Household Disturbances, Debt, Mental Health and the causal elements of Crime. Our Treatment of those Displaced, being the Elderly, Indigenous, Migrants, Disablities and other minorities groups including Refugees. Needs a National Conversation.

Australia's role in the ABW's, the Tamper, the so called Marshalls distractions, the Selling our public Assets, the extent of multi-national worker redundancies ie: Telstra, Airlines, Manufacturing plants, the focus on non-sustaining business choices in economic's . Needs focus and more economic balance... a new form ethic based on a National Converstion.

The administrive abuse under policy and in the Law, be day-to-day, it the Terror Laws or those at street level. The lack of access and the burden of proof, the FINES and outragous double standards given to ineffective administrations, including the media, needs scrutinising through a National Conversation.

These are a handful of issues that politicians avoid, as they have in health, bullying in the workplace, bullying and scape-goating in politic's, and the serious fabrications impacting issues like water and climate change.

The Social and Economic indices issues that contribute and result in long-term break-down of all that is "Australian", given we have national knowlege to help ourselves make the difference.

There is a Kettle calling a Pot Black.

It is credulous and begs a TIME TO GET REAL.

http://www,miacat.com
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I believe that the gist of the article indicates a trend in thinking that is emerging more and more regularly. However, (and there is always an 'however, isn't there?), how powerless are we when we turn up at the ballot box on voting day and are presented with the same assortment of people who regard us as merely a resource?
Our representatives aren't elected, they float to power on a raft of IOU's from whatever vested interest groups it is convenient to be involved with at the time.
There is no simplistic answer to this situation, but it may begin if a single reporter insists on a straight answers to a question, or if a single politician decides to run on their record and not their (deniably phrased)promise.

I think the author has it all wrong. We cannot trust ethics or goodness of heart. The only sure foundation on which a system can be built is "self interest". It is true that for many of us there is a struggle between ethics and self interest, but when the chips are down human nature will opt for self interest, be it the self interest of self, family, tribe, state, nation or maybe some supra national identification. There are many contradictions to this general law - folk who suffer or die for their principles, but the best bet is on self interest rather than on altruism. And, before I am silenced by the howls of protest, we are enormously skilled at presenting our selfish preferences in some kind of altruistic garb.
So what we need is a system of governance that is based on the sure foundation of self interest, but self interest that is put under some kind of leash to protect those who would be exploited. Social democratic governments seem to come closest to this. If we were all more open to the truth, sometimes unpalatable, our politicians would have less need to spin and lie.

An interesting article, but it didn't come up with any ideas how to encourage Australians to demand more from their governments.

Australians have so far been lucky in that a small, isolated population live in a bountiful land with plenty of space.

We are extraordinarily wealthy in mineral resources. Until fairly recently, very wealthy in important agricultural products.

It is amusing to see how many Australians firmly believe that our life style and wealth is somehow due to some special intelligence, cultural inheritance or indeed prime minister.

We will continue to have governments of little imagination and very short vision precisely because Australians have little imagination or vision. It has been too easy for us. We've never seriously had to think of our long term future and previously never had to think at all about how the rest of the world impacts on us.

Political discourse and ideas for our future have to go beyond the silly 'left' wing-'right' wing slagging. It's so last century.

Demos, having a more direct say in government would be great, but first you need a reasonably educated population. Australians are overwhelmingly political/economic illiterates. That's why it is so easy for any politician to say whatever they like. The majority will take as gospel whatever is said by a politician from the party they vote for. And why do they vote for a particular party? Because they've aligned themselves to the 'left' or 'conservatives', usually with little reason that can be articulated rationally.