Ozandy - yes the left have some great ideas, their best was communism, that worked really well, most communist state are doing great. Why reward people for working, a lazy person just did not have a working gene, they should not be disadvantaged by not having this gene

“the “neo-liberal” experiment of the last 30 years, which allegedly pursued policies which were anti-tax, anti-regulation and anti-government,”

I suppose that would be the deregulation initiated by Hawke (which I thought at the time was counter to the usual “protectionist” posture of soclalism)?

And continued by Keating, through his orchestration of the “Recession we had to have”

Leveling the playing field (and much industrial infrastructure) for John Howard to rebuild the economy.

And for Krudd to suggest it “failed”, begs the question

If the efforts of the Howard government were such a failure

Why was the KRudd government sitting on an annual budget surplus when they came to power, yet the Howard government inherited a non-sustainable deficit from Keating?

I personally believe the share of GDP expropriated from individuals and into the pockets of government bureaucrats has an ongoing and long term detrimental effect upon the commercial interactions upon which wealth is created and taxes generated

In short “killing the golden goose”

Therefore, the pursuit of “smaller government” is a worthy and ethical pursuit which is more likely to generate a healthy economy rather than the sort of economic stagnation which initiated the 1991 recession and was at the cause of the moribund economy, which dominated performance and (what passed as ) quality of life in the early 1970’s and instigated Hawkes departure from tradition.

“Sadly, the Rudd Government appears to be repeating many of the mistakes of the Whitlam years,”
Yes the tried and trusted failures of the past…
Simply packaged and paraded out as “policy nouveau”

Margaret Thatcher described it thus

"Socialists have always spent much of their time seeking new titles for their beliefs, because the old versions so quickly become outdated and discredited."

Milo, I track the sub-prime crisis back to Jimmy Carter’s Community Reinvestment Act but agree, it is not rampant capitalism but rampant government meddling in what should have been a free acceptance of commercial risk by the investor/lender.

Jacinta comments on SEC etc.. are valid… when government "co-habits" with commerce, the regulator replaces his primary responsibility with political expediency.

Regarding Rudd’s mania to return Australia to a Labor Socialist state, over-regulated and ruinous, see Christian Kerr’s comment in today’s Australian:

“Why does Rudd want to re-regulate when last week's line (Rudd’s) said "This crisis was not of our making"? Didn't that imply our regulation was fine? “

This very day in Australian Politics ought to have demonstrated the level of and the abundance of pathological liars who will stop at nothing to sell you the virtues and abilities of the Federal Labour and Kevin Rudd – Aka a; A Messiah. – As was pert raid, but in fact, the high calibre of being a National Masochist of a scale never seen before;--

Maybe it was only a spelling error.

A new named socialist sport ;- Kevin Rudd’s very own newly created Gaza Strip economics ; Lob Idiot spherical econno Missiles at random - at anything – anywhere - at any time.

Then blame Someone or something else for it .

And what the hell does Roof Bat Insulation have to do with economic stimulating?
Unless it is a Labour party owned industry- Don’t laugh- Remember the future fund?
Have a guess who manages it now ?

The Kruddy proposition is that capitalism has failed therefore government must step in to regulate and manage.

False assumption 1: “We have had capitalism up until now.”
WRONG, we have not. We have a very overregulated, overgoverned market place. Capitalism has no need of an ACCC, FIRB, ASIC or any of the other myriad of bureaucratic regulators at each level of government.

False assumption 2: If what we have has failed then the government can – without argument or justification – do better.

WRONG! Others have eloquently quoted examples of government failure in the commercial marketplace.

My point is: If your Cruddy argument starts on a false premise (we have capitalism), develops on a false assumption (government can do better) then no rational debate is possible and the outcomes will be flawed – as they are.

Evidence: The banking system was politically interfered with by US politicians, I wrote Clinton but Col Rouge points out Carter’s also. Either way it was GOVERNMENT interference demanding loans for uncredit worthy folk without security to support them. The result is clear.

Interesting: although the world has been dramatically affected by the savaging of the banking system, worst effected have been the UK not the USA, arguably because UK has more market interference than the USA.

Bush Bunny (above) accepts that capitalism has collapsed and blames it for his meagre pension. That pension is paid for by those still working – corporations and individuals who are also providing for their own retirement not wanting to sponge on others in retirement.

Business basket case handouts: Hawke supported Kodak in Melbourne. Like candlestick makers they did not keep pace with technological change. Billions spent propping up old style vehicle manufacturers who have not invested in fuel efficient cars won’t keep them afloat, no matter how many unionists they employ. Worse: the huge disincentive to the makers of hybrid and other genuinely fuel efficient vehicles which have been developed with capitalist shareholders funds.

Net result: Productive investment and more jobs thrown on the scrap heap by a government investing our money in a wasteful and unproductive manner.

Milo just out of interest, can you nominate any country which has had a capitalist system? Or is it your view that capitalism has never been adopted anywhere?