Daggett, Govt planned economies have failed everywhere, including
here. If an industry collapsed when it was deregulated, then
clearly there was not much substance behind it in the first place,
maybe just propped up by tariffs. Thats a cost to other industries.

Nobody is saying that Australia can't be technologically advanced.
Nothing is stopping anyone going out and starting a new industry,
being exactly that. Its how the Swiss became wealthy after all,
with no resources. Just don't base the whole thing on Govt
subsidies. Better to reduce taxes, charges and red tape to your
industries, so that they have a better chance.

All the socialist economies were run and planned by Govts, the whole lot failed.

The global environment is a global issue and needs to be tackled
globally, starting with stabilising the global population.

What Australia does, does not even matter in the bigger scheme
of things, so shutting down industries just to feel better will
help nobody, simply hurt us. Thats fairly pointless.

Fact is that if we were wiped off the world map tomorrow, including
our whole continent, the world would still face the same issues.
That needs megasolutions, not touchy feelgood ones.

Yabby,

How about dealing with evidence instead of spouting forth your unfounded ideological prejudices?

Telstra didn't collapse. It was crippled by the policies of the then Telecommunications Minister Kim Beazley with the support of the then Liberal Party Opposition. It's revenue base was slashed when it was forced to give away a huge slice of its market share to Optus and Vodaphone. Then in 2000 it was forced to shut down a perfectly good analog mobile phone system built at a cost to customers and taxpayers of the order of $AU1billion in order to make the digital networks of Optus and Vodaphone more financially viable.

'Deregulation' was in fact regulation of Telstra so that it could not take full adavantage of its natural monoply, and the cost of this has been ultimately borne by taxpayers and Telstra's customers.

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I am a little bit tired of the argument that what Australia cannot possibly have an impact. How can you know for certain that other countries won't follow the example of a country which is prepared to put the longer term intersts of the planet ahead of its own short-term interests (which, in any case, are more the intersts of foreign corporations than of this country). At least we should try.

daggert I suspect those idealogical views may be the ones you have exposed here.
It is understood is it? that climate change and your view the world is already over populated are different issues?
In an ordered world, one that says this is my land you are not wanted, we could rest on our present population and close the doors to world trade, invasions still however take place.
Under population may very well be death for the Australia we know.
Our balance of payments is real, what will it be without mining?
I just can not for a second think the housing boom was in any way driven by big business.
I however caution the boom is not to continue without pain.
Migration, I am unsure of some bigotry seen here, bizarre stuff, on one hand refereeing to government refusal to allow 457,s then insulting migrates?
We are short of skills and people the next ten years will make that clear.
And just maybe xenophobia will still be a problem we must over come, well for some it will.
The numbers of unemployed Australian workers has not been this low for years, yet some continue to want us to think we have the workers to do the jobs?
Remarkable but quite wrong.

Daggett, you forget of course, that Telstra was a complacent, lazy
big fat monopoly, with no need for efficiency of any kind, as it could
simply screw its consumers, at huge cost to them.

Whatever one might critcise about how the telecommunications industry
was deregulated, (there is lots one could say), one thing is clear,
consumers have been winners!

In 1995, I was the first around here to go online. Telstra charged
me 6$ an hour, later 9$ an hour for that. What does it cost you
now to use the internet? At that same time, my business involved
talking to overseas customers on a regular basis. Phone bills
were in $ per minute, they were huge! Now I can do the same
for cents. Fact is, despite all the mistakes made by Govt,
consumers have been winners!

You might be sick of the argument about Australia having no impact,
but the reality is that its true. Even on OLO, you won't convince
people that we should address the fact that 6.5 billion is already
pushing over the limits, that 9-10 billion will massively increase
our global problems, or that all women on the planet should have
a right to family planning etc.

Just read the daily news. China is pushing ahead with new large
highways through Africa, to access their resources. Those
countries with tropical rainforests remaining, now want billions
of $ to not chop them down. China, India, Latin America, etc,
all surging ahead, as their populations strive to live like we
do. Megacities sprouting up everywhere, ski slopes built in
the middle of the Arabian desert, etc etc. And you think this
will all change because you think its a good idea? Think again
in terms of human understanding. Shooting yourself in the foot
will not solve your problems

Sharkfin:

Europe has a long history of "guest workers" as they used to call them.
I know what will happen as I have worked amongst them in the sixties, they will get married or put a bun in the oven of a local girl whilst having a wife and kids in their own country, guess what, they can stay here and settle, on top of that they will send money home to support their families. European countries have a lot of trouble sending these workers back because of their created ties. Lets learn from their mistakes and support local workers instead.

“And just maybe xenophobia will still be a problem we must over come, well for some it will.”

A very commendable ambition, Belly, and something for you to aspire to. You might start by considering these comments you made:

“We will develop our country and export its goods or in truth some one else will.”

“we could rest on our present population and close the doors to world trade, invasions still however take place.”

So you are saying that xenophobia should influence Australia's policies?

All options need to be evaluated. The mining boom might prove the perfect opportunity to change the economy for the better.