The workforce has not changed - the workforce was newly created.

Beforehand, people just worked when they wanted to feed themselves and their families - that was their private matter and they were not a part of any such "force".

When I first came to Australia, I was impressed and refreshed to see how people live for themselves, not for some nebulous "nation" or such, each following their own unique lifestyle as they wished and most were pretty relaxed about it. There was not any such "national agenda", and even if there was such somewhere in Canberra, ordinary people did not feel it and were at liberty to completely ignore and not do anything about it.

Life in Australia was so much more direct and simple.

This is sadly no longer the case.

Nobody was speaking of "identity" either then, neither national nor sexual nor of any other kind: Identity was, as should, reserved to be just a mathematical symbol!

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Dear Foxy,

I was not intending to participate in this thread, but I saw that line of yours with the single "Y": were you referring to me by chance?

Hi Yuyutsu,

I think the Y was probably a typo.

I'm sorry that you won't be taking part in this discussion.
but I understand. I also am very nostalgic about many aspects
of this country's past.

However, life always offers you a
second chance. It's called tomorrow. And what we do with it
is up to us. I find that just criticizing and finding fault
is not very productive. Plus some of the constant attacks
that continue to take place on this forum for me take up
too much negative energy.

I prefer to remain positive - and try to seek solutions.
We have to try to learn to live with each other on this
planet - and look for what unites not divides us.

But enough said.

Anyone remember the days when you could pay by cash not
have to pay to a machine with plastic?
When you could talk to a person in a business on the
telephone directly without much delay?
When sport was played for fun not money?

When people lived well on one income?

When housing was modest not flashy, dodgy, and
contrived When TV was black and white and radio was
strong and content was more important than the
presenter? When movies in cinemas were popular?

When people didn't have to pay to exercise.
They exercised through exertion and working hard?
When you bought meat in a butchers, greens in a
greengrocers, shoes in a shoe shop, clothes in a
clothes shop and beer in a pub?

When you could buy Australian made products. Be it cars,
white goods, electronics, souvenirs such as koalas, and
many woolen products from blankets and jumpers to coats
and jackets?

When few people had air-conditioning. This was reserved
for large department stores and some cinemas. It was rare to
have air-conditioning in cars and homes. When you voted for
policies not personalities. When more companies had regional
offices and people who didn't eat much were poor, not bulimic
or dieting?

Remember when we had more banks to choose from and more
branches locally. When banks were more competitive?
When public transport was the way to travel as not many had
cars. When there were Royal portraits on display everywhere
from schools, offices, and even pubs?

Yes things certainly have changed.

Perhaps I have lived in a bubble in the past.
One major change that I have noticed in 21st
Century Australia is the mean-spiritedness, aggression,
and intolerance that exists today that was not so openly
obvious in the past where people did care about being
polite and good-mannered. Now days even on our roads,
when driving, road rage is common.

A shame this trend is rearing its ugly head.

No then & now, just pre Labor & Labor !

Indyvidual,

I remember the times when you had to be exactly the same
as everybody else. When you didn't want to rock the boat
and had to fit in. When your relatives were told to
"Speak English" on buses and trains. When you Anglo - sized
your names to be acceptable. And the list goes on.

Today, you don't have those concerns anymore. You can be
who you want to be - and be proud of it.

So I don't know about your "pre-Labor" and "post-Labor."
It's up to your own judgements and experiences and of
course values - but there were/are, good and bad things
then as well as now.

Ours is a country that's evolving all the time. Who knows
what the future will be. But as I'm a glass half full
kind of person - I think we'll be just fine.