Marko

I think the idea that all economics is about making the rich happy (some sort of trickle down theory) is not tenable. Rudd's working families rhetoric was an attempt to give the impression he did not agree with trickle down.

Marx offers a good understanding of the economics of capitlaism.

I do agree however that some elements of the Left have abandonned the working class. However some, like the organisation to which I belong, Socialist Alternative, see the working class as the instrument of its own liberaton. (See www.sa.org.au). Sure we are small, but we are growing steadily and buliding up our theoretcial knowledge for the day we can put theory into practice. That won't be tomorrow or the day after, but it could happen as the class contradictions inherent in society play themselves out.

This article increases my disregard for left-wing so-called public intellectuals. Spot on, Paul.

"Figures such as Jim Cairns and Tom Uren were not only noted political leaders, but also our most prominent public intellectuals."

And this is supposed to be a good thing?

Peter Walsh and the late Jim McLelland have made it clear in their memoirs that the majority of the Whitlam cabinet were babes in arms when it came to economic management. If 'our most prominent public intellectuals' were unable to grasp the fact that in order to be able to spend money it is eventually necessary to make some, then we are well rid of them. Modern Australian governments have their problems: but thankfully economic naivety is no longer among them.

Faustino's casual 2 sentence dismissal of Marko's article contains no reasoning in support. How can one discuss it? The more that Paul Kelly's journalism is critiqued, the better, and that of The Australian in general. More please, Marko. Kelly's promotion (mainly by The Australian and some other cheer leaders of neoliberalism) as the respected "father figure" of the press gallery and purveyor of "wise, knowledgeable, connected and experienced" political commentary does not fool all of us. By way of recent example, we saw on the front page of The Australian last Friday 22nd a shameless and hypocritical "report" on a sophisticated survey of 14 member companies from the Business Council of Australia that justified the headline, "Carbon Plan a Company Killer". The article and Kelly's accompanying commentary sympathetically countenances the threat of "strike of capital" if these companies do not get the emissions trading policy they want. Putting aside the good and bad of the government's Green Paper, the threatened or real withdrawal and relocation of capital is the most powerful economic and political weapon used by big business, and is one form of economic vandalism that the Kelly gang do not have a problem with. But, a strike of labour? That would be an entirely different matter.

Well all I can say is that Marko should read more broadly than who he thinks left wing intellectuals are.

Paul Kelly is Leftist? LOL!

The reason they are known as the “public intellectuals” is because, given a choice, no one would pay private money to listen to anything they might have to say…

The left are just a bunch of emotional retards, aware of their comparative academic privilege but feeling guilty over the fact they just do not understand how the real world works

Passy “Marx offers a good understanding of the economics of capitlaism.”

Shame he had no idea about the economics of communism….

Oh, that’s the point, communism has no economics, just shared misery.

Actually, having been brought up in UK and migrated here later in life, I have yet to find any real “working class” folk in Australia, the fact is

Australia has a lot of middle class factory workers then a few unemployed bums and stiffs who could not compete against monkeys and chimpanzees. As for working class, that’s something I have still to meet here.