It was a step toward democracy when English parliamentarians got paid. It meant that no longer did a person have to have independent means to get a seat in parliament. Malcolm Turnbull stated that he spent enough money to get preselection in his electoral district. He is a throwback to the era when men such as he dominated parliament. Some rich people are capable of understanding the needs of those who are not economically secure. Some people coming from a poor background such as Ronald Reagan no longer identify with their roots.

I am thankful that Kevin Rudd is who he is.

Yes I think Kevin is trying to articulate a vision of what the collective good-life might begin to look like from within the ruins of what is left of our culture, which was systematically wrecked, beginning with the Reagan/Thatcher years.

I quite like the book The Man Who Sold the World:Ronald Reagan and the Betrayal of Mainstream America by William Kleinknecht.

A book which describes what the Reagan agenda really did to Main-Street America, as compared to the starry-eyed horse-pooh of those who champion the "great"-man and his legacy.

What Rudd did was to try to produce a political spin on one single event in isolation. He showed that he did not understand the cause of this event, and came to the wrong conclusion that government should tax people more and accumulate more power.

Key question is, why did the sub prime mortgage happened in America, why did it not happen in Australia. Why is the Australian bank not in trouble, when we operate in a capitalist economy like America?

Lets contrast Australia Vs America. Australia bank requires a deposite of almost 30% on a property, if you do not have 30% deposit, you are required to take out mortgage insurance, the free market had led to some of the best lending principles in the world

So why did this fail in America, In America, govenment ensure that the bank can only lend on no-recourse loans, ie if you cannot repay, the bank can only get your house back. America's governmetn also forces bank to lend to minority, with little ability to borrow. This is hardly a free market, like it is in Australia, in fact the government had stacked the deck against the bank so much, that the Sub-prime crisis was always going to happen.

At every turn, you can see Kevin Rudd's government know best socialist idea happening in America, what Kevin Rudd is trying to emulate are also the things that caused the sub-prime crisis in the first place, - Government social intervention.

The Australian Banking system operate well in the free market, lets hope Rudd learns the lessons from America, and does not cripple our economy, like the US did theies, the early signs are not good

We do not have a true free market. There has always been some form of regulation. The free market followers are of the belief that the market can fulfill all peoples needs. Therefore when it came to housing, it had to be provided by the market for all. Intervention is not seen as worthwhile. In Australia it has been the role of various government to cater for the low income earners to a greater or lesser degree. This is not true for countries such as USA who claim to be a free market. The market is not able to fulfill this role without some government intervention. The result is the disastrous outcome in the USA.

dovif2, Not sure where you live in Australia but here in Victoria a similar "Sub prime" lending spree lead by a labour State Government lost the whole of our "State" bank. South Australia the same thing. All forgotten by the labour-luvvies in the media. It never happened, it is never talked about and cannot be brought up again.
Ditto South Australia.
The Labour Party who lost my State Bank will do the same again but this time to our whole country.
But do not worry chaps all the labour politicians who lost all our money are being stupendously rewarded from our current taxation less what John Howard salted away for the rotten miserable lot of them..

Speaking of the vision thing, John Howard and George Bush used to tell us that they werent in to the vision thing---which was a lie.

Under Howards rule every aspect of the Australian body politic was affected and changed, and thus stamped by his personality---that is by his world-view or "vision".

So too, with Bush and America---and his case, by extension the entire world. Which is why there was a collective sigh of relief when his term ended.

Leaders always and inevitably impose their personality and world-view (vision) on to every aspect of the organization, however small or large, of which they are the leader, head, or uno numero.

The labels are shifting for once, and it is now action to see more from "we".

Where is the mirror if not directly reflecting eachway at ourselves.

Bugger the A-typical arguments on theory unless we apply it to community. Take serious the well written essays of people like Debra Orr, 'We despise the poor, but not the rich '.....

http://www.independent.co.uk/opinion/commentators/deborah-orr/deborah-orr-we-despise-the-poor-but-not-the-rich-1625820.html

And the 'for many Australians', world recycling ......?

http://www.abc.net.au/am/content/2008/s2497651.htm

It is our world, and it is up to us to get vision on what we endorsed through the Federal vote.

http://www.ndbroadcasting.org/program.php?id=3275

No government is the hero. Who are we if as it begins to action toward a progressive direction, we label the ground bothered, insisting we're heading for muskeg?

What does it take to be common about the obvious.

Worth more than the spin is the action delivered on the policy work by Health Minister Nicola Roxen knowing full well ... "there is capacity" if we utilise our workforce better. Because as she said, on "collaborative, multi-disciplinary teams", so midwives and obstetricians and GP's working together ....provides options for them to have care closer to home, which is [economically] very important....

Yet local professionals [and not the mothers] in community have aggressively opposed this kind of effort.... Why? In truth these kind of professionals divide us, until we stand up for the new-old common values we voted for rather than repeat the old-scripts or labels that were written to help advance us in a time of previous turbulence; war, poverty and human mental stagnation.

We need balance.

As Tim Costello inferred there is no better time than a good crisis.

Regarding the Liberals, Peter of the World Bank needs to use their study hall. We know he has a good chance to lead the Liberals - he is nowhere if his talent reproduces the clever but failed account policies of yesteryear for obvious reasons. Until the issues of real equity is addressed the Liberals practice no more than a overpassed Christmas carol.

As a party today, they are not even a credible opposition.

http://www.miacat.com/
.

miacat, I believe the Liberals are a very credible opposition. The Media however are incredible. Not one word about our personal "Sub prime" credit crash in Victoria and South Australia and the attendant loss of the State Banks.
The Media are focussing on Liberals who disagree with each other, so what? Last time I looked we were a free society and the Liberals are not in Government.
The Media just keep repeating the cliches they have used frequently over the years. Reporters too lazy to do anything but cut and paste what someone cleverer has previously written. It is a disgrace. Why not a reminder of the State Bank of Victoria story? Of course that could not be repeated as it does not help their Labour mates who reward them for their "Cur" like behaviour!

JBowyer,

"The Media just keep repeating the cliches they have used frequently over the years. Reporters too lazy to do anything but cut and paste what someone cleverer has previously written. It is a disgrace."

There are, and have been many, in the media who have written the truth in the past, or at least tried to. The trouble is, it doesn't sell. It's the average, apathetic Joe Bloggs that's responsible for this. Just to sheet the blame home to one party is only going to start a blame game. Everyone's responsible.

RobP, Blame game? start the Blame Game? What are you on about? The Victorian and South Australian Banks were lost by Labour administrations who allowed what has now happened to the large US Banks. Gee before we start thinking we know whats going on in the US/World let us start on what happened here in Australia.
Lets blame! Lets have a Witch Hunt! the perpetrators of all this nonsense are let off the hook as Labour was. It is the only way to discover, humiliate and punish otherwise it all happens again.
I say again the Media are a wanton Disgrace. In the last few months I have heard the Victorian State Bank referred to fleetingly a couple of times only. Those who do not learn from history are doomed to repeat it!

I find it imcredible that K.Rudd can use this 'opportunity' of a banking crisis to create a phantom menace in the form of 'neo-liberalism'.
I am flabbergasted that, as political leader of this country, he thought his essay was the most important thing he could do with his time.

The huge, cripplingly huge, tax bills that our small business must pay quarterly is proof in itself that we do not live in an extreme free-market environment, and indeed are most unlikely to within any of our lifetimes.

Small business people are a silent minority in this country, with views that are unpopular and pretty much unrepresented in parliament in any solid fashion.
Craig Emerson is a politician who springs to mind as somewhat aware of some issues facing small business.

Generally, politicians seem to see small business owners as the serfs that must carry the weight of their expensive, theory-based, popularist budgeting decisions.
The popular imagination, seized by feverish visions of exploitive business owners, erects huge barriers to small business.

The result is subdued entreprenerial spirit, limitations to entry, and higher costs that reduce the standards of living for us all.

'Neo-liberalism' is hardly the biggest problem our economy faces at this time. I am surprised - indeed, crushed - to see K.Rudd has got it so very wrong. He seems determined to turn basic economics on its head (and overturn previous public image stylings of himself) to score a short-term political point.

JBowyer,

"Lets blame! Lets have a Witch Hunt! the perpetrators of all this nonsense are let off the hook as Labour was. It is the only way to discover, humiliate and punish otherwise it all happens again."

No offence intended, but with who's army? The fundamental problem is that the majority don't give a damn.

"I say again the Media are a wanton Disgrace."

I pretty much agree, but put yourself in the position of one of the few remaining honest reporters who tries to tell the truth and happens to be out of step with either public opinion or his proprietor's interests. It won't be long before that reporter is given his marching orders. It's virtually impossible to make a difference. And if he is flatfooted or hedges his bets, there'll be an ambitious cub reporter who's all to willing to trump him. When you look at things from in amongst the weeds, you soon see how hard it is to change things.

Wondering if young Rudd has has ever heard of the old term pitstock politics, simply meaning that it has been pitstock politics that has kept Australia going pretty well right through the Howard Costello era.

But now it looks like our long-time pitstock importer China is now in trouble, and wonder in the West should we should let out saviour China become part of our own production by grabbing and saving Rio Tinto as the only way to possibly save ourselves till our global economic problems blow over if they ever will?

And there we thought us cockies might help to save the situation, but Rudd has foolishly thrown away our single desk, letting in the same Big Biz buyers that buggered us up during the Great Depression.

Thus because the Single Desk allowed us to handle the buying as well as the selling, it was us making the extra profit instead of the canny buyers.

And back to pitstock politics, we might now have to let China become part of our own Aussie export system wonderng where in blazes it's all going to end.

Have Fun,

Regards, BB, Buntine, WA.

Floatinglili, from a social science viewpoint, Neo-Liberalism is still Free-market, the terms both letting too many uneducated people, believe it means going for broke like betting on a horse.

That is, if there ever was a right way, especially in the modern version where the term Deregulation alone encourages both old hands and new chums to take business risks that have caused most of the global money problems the world is now facing.

Cheers - BB, WA.

Try this as an example. I was working in a job far below my qualifications , I had been ill for some time and returning to work needed something not too stressfull . People around me were doing things financial that I knew they were unqualifyied for . I enquired how were they able to do this ? The answer was use a financial adviser
up front fee was 500 , extensive resume was crafted and a few days later an appointment with GE finance arranged , I had to tell GE that I wanted to purchase a Boat and a Caravan . A week or so later I had my deposit on a House What could John or Kev do about that ? Follow loan recipients around for a couple of months peering out for a boat and caravan ? No the enviroment breeds the brute Kevs got nothing to do with it . I needed money , my 500 buck adviser knew how to satisfy all GE's criteria , I go my house , done deal .....so let's say Kev makes up laws to stop this bearing in mind my own house halved my rent .......would you vote for Kevs draconian laws ?
Lets look at credit cards , back in the good old days you bought a washing machine , you needed to keep it for ten years so when it stuffed up you repaired it , not so now , we are a lot flasher , up to the GoodGuys with a credit card grab a camera while your there no pay for 24 moths Whoppie .........what Kev goin to do about this financial tryst , would anybody vote for him if he did ?

Well you see it's a no go zone , no Global Warmings the go, Kev knows he didn't start it and ditto he can't stop it , run a scare campaine talk about 20/20 etc etc etc , buy up a heap of empty dams conduct the water savings to the CoooWong by TV ( a bit like Harry Potter ?)

Sorry, was for Rudd before he threw out our single-desk.

Former Ccckie's Unioner, and still an agrarian activist turning 88 in June.

Have Fun, BB, Buntine, WA.