Shock horror we hear today that inflation is once again on the rise and interest rates look like doing the same.The prime drivers of this inflation were not wages but fuel prices and drugs on the PBS.Ever since the Howard Govt and now the Rudd Govt have made the RBA ever more indpendant of of their influences,the RBA aggressively raises rates with gay abandon with no consideration for the desruction wrought on households or businesses.What are they they trying to achieve?

Well with a $600 billion balance of payments deficit and industry still deserting Aust,real wages must fall under the philosophy of free trade.You do this by letting price inflation take more money from the pockets of consumers and then take even more by increasing interest rates.Canada for example does not have such an aggressive tarrif reduction regieme as us and their interest rates are always lower.Even with much lower wages how do Aust businesses compete with Govt red tape,rules,taxes and regulation?

The philosophy of free trade was that through specialisation all countries would benefit and third world countries would match our living standards,but no one predicted that demand for energy would outstrip supply.

By making the RBA totally independant Govts cannot be blamed for recessions caused interest rate increases or the lowering of living standards to match those of our economic competitors.In one way it is an abrogation of responsibility.If Govts bare no responsibility for our economic woes,why not let the RBA run the entire economy and just have elections as a side show?Pehaps this is why our modern pollies align themselves so much with movie stars.Democracy is an illusion.

We have a $trillion economy,the highest per capita in our history of $47,000.00.Why are ordinary Australians doing it so tough?The answer is we don't as a pop own our resources and energy.We have been globalised.Were dilemmas like these ever posed at the 2020 summit?

Arjay, maybe the Reserve Bank knows that the inflation genie is a lot further out of the bottle than either it or the government are willing to admit, due predominantly to rapidly rising fuel prices - which very quickly affect the prices of everything else, and our overall economics.

Maybe they are not raising interest rates quickly enough. Maybe not by a long shot….if they desire to cancel out or significantly reduce the enormous upward pressure on inflation generated by rising fuel prices.

Maybe the problem is 99% due to rising fuel prices. Maybe everything else that you mentioned amounts to a sideshow – RBA independence, tariffs, illusionary democracy, etc

Maybe there is just no way that we can avoid massive inflation, interest rate rises, unemployment and civil upheaval……..unless we put our collective minds towards addressing peak oil with the urgency of national defence in the face of imminent invasion.

Ludwig putting up interest rates here,is not going to stop the Arab world and Caltex from increases in fuel prices.The very intent of interest rate increases in the past was to reduce demand.Fuel is a fairly inelastic commodity.We need it for production of food to the transport of other necessities as well as getting to work.

Woolworths and West Farmers are virtually cartels,which sell us food and other necessities.How will interest rate increases make them reduce their prices?We have become modern day serfs in our own country and the media is used as a distraction from the real source of our woes.

Don’t get me wrong, I’m not an advocate for raising interest rates. I was just proposing a possible scenario as to why they have risen more than some people think they should have, including many who think entirely within the narrow and warped parameters of continuous-growth based economic rationalism.

I agree that putting up interest rates would not stop increases in fuel prices. It would put more pressure on the battler to reduce consumption, of fuel and everything else, while not addressing the root cause of the problem at all. But I can just imagine the RBA putting them up largely due to rapidly rising fuel prices, while not admitting the main cause and placing the blame on whatever else it can.

There is no doubt about it; we are being distracted by our unillustrious new government, by many institutions including the RBA and by the media, from the real source of our woes.

Incidentally, I wonder if we really do have a trillion dollar economy, and whether it gives us the highest per-capita rate in real terms that we have ever had, or whether that is just another furphy? https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/as.html#Eco

I wonder why the last character insists on dropping off every time you cut and past into OLO (:>\

https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/as.html#Econ

And still the link isn’t active. Now I’m completely befuddled |;~{

Yes there are so many anomalies in the interest rate/inflation argument that one truly does wonder if living standards are being driven down intentionally and indeed as Arjay states 'by stealth'.

Not to mention the availability of easy credit which has built up debt to unprecedented levels one wonders who is doing all the buying and how are they paying for it. Consumers have little power over prices of food, housing and petrol in a global market.

When the reality of peak oil is forced apon us there will have to be major changes made to adapt and this will involve some courage from our leaders in regard to economic policy and a rethink on the 'religion' of free trade and globalisation.

Ludwig

have you tried using Tiny Url to translate a long link into a handy size?

Here is the link: http://littlurl.com/

On topic: I can understand oil prices impacting on food and every other product.

But I fail to see how PBS is impacting on the overall economy. Without it, people would simply not afford life saving medication. My mother is on oxygen now, but she still contributes to our nation by caring for my niece and nephew - saving on child care and freeing my sister and her husband to go to work. Arjay some evidence please that assisting people to live more productively is "driving down our living standards".

And "by stealth" - what do you mean 'by stealth'? Conspiracy theory perhaps? Isn't it in the interests of the free market that people are able to aspire towards higher living standards?

I think Pelican has a point about the far too easy credit availability - when are the financial institutions going to by regulated?

Australia is no longer an island economy, what happens overseas impacts on us here. Why we are not urgently financing research into alternatives to oil never fails to astound me. All we do is talk. The only action is the Reserve Bank increasing interest rates, which further drives up prices - the only people who benefit from this are those with investments and no outstanding debts.

I wish to pose the following questions for consideration and analysis:

1) Why has the RBA no power to control unscrupulous actions by the Private banks?.....Government can issue Bank Licences, why not be able to remove them?

2) Why did OPEC state approximately 12 months ago, that they would be happy "when oil attained $50 per barrel!" and it is now approaching $120 per barrel?

3) Why doesn`t the Federal Government reduce the Excise Duty on fuels?

4) How accurate or HONEST is the CPI?

or look outside the circle and ask why [cept for votes] did Howard allow interest rates to get so LOW, thus the exponential rise in property prices

and why did he allow Ozzie Home Loans and mates to loan to people with no deposit

and Hey, some of us forecast an energy crisis back in 1970s as plain as nose on der face

but easy to fix, just bomb the sh** out of Iran [Iraq was a dud]

As for: "Driving down our living standards by stealth!":

It seems that the " Masters" of our destiny (the faceless, nameless monsters that profit in power and wealth !.....and wouldn`t it be interesting to know exactly who they are?) have tried to reduce our numbers by various nefarious methods over the years:

a) The Great War (to end all wars)- 1914-1918!

b) The Second World War (sorry we were wrong about WW1!)

c) The Korean Police Action (holding back the yellow hordes!)

d) The Vietnam Fiasco (holding back the yellow hordes-2)

e) The Afghanistan Fuel and Poppy Campaign!

f) Desert Storm (Keeping Kuwait and fuel)!

g) WMD Invasion and ultimate destruction of IRAQ! (keeping ALL the fuel!)

Throw in a plethora of infectious pandemics eg: AIDS,SARS,H5N1,etc and they still haven`t been able to thin out the population sufficiently, so the final solution (save for Nuclear holocaust) must now be utilized: ......we will simply starve the world to death!

The poor will perish and the rich will survive!.....(and your Credit Card will buy you nothing!)

Ludwig,

The link is not active in the OLO post because, presumably, the OLO software recognises the 's' immediately following the 'http' in the link you typed or pasted as a typo.

If you copy and paste the link as you supplied it in your post into the address bar of a new tab in your browser, and press 'enter', the link works.

I thought the 's' was a typo myself, and removed it from the address when I first tried it. The 'corrected' link worked, but only to the extent of getting me to a CIA redirect page, the links in which do work. That redirect page advises that the site is now an encrypted site for the security of visitors, whatever that might mean.

If you copy and paste the link as you have given it, without removing the 's', you go straight to the page in question. It seems the 's' is some sort of indicator of a secure or encrypted site.

Be ye not flummoxed, O Ludwig. 'Tis but OLO being OLO. The 'missing link' in the OLOduvai gorge, perhaps? CIAO.

Ludvig

"And still the link isn’t active. Now I’m completely befuddled |;~{"

Seems that https links are not recognised as URLs, only http links.

Perhaps something to draw to the attention of OLO admin.

I believe there is a fundamental error in raising interest rates to
reduce demand.
The increase takes money out of the people who have borrowed.
It puts it into the banks, who take a percentage off and then pass
an increase in interest rates to their depositors.

These depositors then have more money to spend.
The banks shareholders then also have more money to spend.

Does that not cancel out the original purpose ?

Or is it me that is stupid or is the economists ?

If you believe in infinite growth in a finite world then
you are either a madman or an economist.

"But I fail to see how PBS is impacting on the overall economy. Without it, people would simply not afford life saving medication. My mother is on oxygen now, but she still contributes to our nation by caring for my niece and nephew - saving on child care and freeing my sister and her husband to go to work."

Yes indeed that was all simply the Abbott & Costello show under Howard, and I hope my UTube did its little bit to rid us of that scum

http://au.youtube.com/watch?v=7gLcmbhII-o

Bazz

People who have money on deposit, or own shares, can probably be assumed to have more money than they current feel the need to spend. Consequently, transferring money to them will not generally increase their expenditure and the demand that they represent. Note the "generally" - there are some exceptions.

By contrast, those with a mortgage can be assumed to be spending some portion of their income, and using the rest to make repayments. Now, some will be repaying more than they're required to, and the effect of an increase in interest rate on them will be that more of their monthly repayment will be for interest and less for capital. That is, it will have no effect on their expenditure. But those who are in any case only paying the minimum they're required to will have to cut their expenditure when interest rates rise.

So as a way of controlling demand, and thereby inflation, interest rates can be expected to work.

It's unfortunate that the required reduction in demand is forced on a particular subset of the population, but short of limiting demand by rationing, it's hard to avoid.

the mix of wages, interest rate, CPI and house prices MUST always equalise itself

but as I see it there is a greater feeling of "right" to the ozzie dream now, without a need to "Build up"

back when I started it was $30,000 to get that dream home in St Ives, but even as 2 professionals we needed to start with the 100 year old terrace, put in blood sweat and tears and finally USE that to get to the dream home [which Buttercup then of course took for her own in Fam Court]

seems to me present Droogs want to have it all up front, and settle back to watch Big Brother

Sylvia Else;
I think there is a fault in your logic.
If the depositors and shareholders decide to leave the funds in the bank
the amount of money available for lending increases by the same amount
as the extra the mortgage payers have to pay out.

The bank won't just put the money in a safe and look at it, they will
takes steps to get it lent out. Thats what they do.
So where is the reduction in liquidity ?

Liquidity could only be reduced if the extra money was given, not
lent, to the Reserve Bank and burnt !

Don't worry Divorce Dr,drugs on the PBS will continue to flow.This was the latest excuse for the need to rise interest rates.We also have the highest food inflation in the Western World primarily because we don't have sufficient legislation to stop the anti -competitive practices of West Farmers and Wollies.Currently they control over 80% of the food and household products we buy.We are seeing food prices climb for two reasons,a shortage of world production and the lack of competition in our own market.

Kevin just wants to invite more competition from OS but he will bite the bullet and bring in legislation to stop these anti competitive practises,neither did John Howard.The Corporates have too much power and we are now the serfs.In Canada for example you cannot use a preditory price technique to eliminate small competitors from the market.Now on numerous occasions the RBA has moved rates up because of primarily price inflation and not wages inflation.

John Howard tried to reduce living standards through work choices.Initially the work place agreements gave most of the power to the employer,this is why he lost the election.No one has made the connection between lowering of tarrifs and the need to lower wages.Fisher and Paykel have closed down and Mitsubishi look like following.Unlike Canada we don't have a large country like the US at our doorstep as a market for our goods.The rain has kicked in and with food prices on the rise our farmers will improve our exports,but will ordinary Aussies benefit?We have large Corporates exploiting our energy and resources,but you don't benefit unless you have enough money to buy shares and the taxes taken from these Corp have been put in a pollies future fund rather than being spent on infrastructure.We are not well managed at both a Federal particularly at a State level.

Those on the board of the RBA are primarily ex CEOs or directors of large corporates.What empathy would they with the plight of ordinary Australians?I think it is about time we stopped large donations by the Corporates to any party,since the individual is being screwed.

Arjay.
The present banking systems are part of a new world order as yet... not appeared.
You can find the story of this new world order in books like "None Dare Call It Conpiracy" by Garry Allen, "The Cosmic Conspiracy" by Stan Deyo; "Warning", "Second Warning" and "Final Notice" by (pastor) Barry Smith (NZ) and through many other books at christian bookshops.
And of course in Revelation 13:16-18 and 14:9-11.
Its going to be "1984" for a season as a charismatic and quite mad global dictator steps up on to the stage.
Its all in the Bible...and its going to happen.
With the microchip on either the right hand or forehead (13:16-18) they can watch our daily movements whenever they want.
We just got to make sure we dont take that chip (14:9-11).

For goodness sake don't be infantile. The federal government's planned $31 billion tax cuts will be their last they would be the government's last cuts. Labor is committed to delivering tax cuts in this budget, they had to, they were cornered into it during the election campaign,But they have also said this is the last time you will see tax cuts under a Labor government, and I think that will be a very retrograde step.when the coalition was in power it consistently delivered, year after year, tax cuts so that people had money in their pocket it be interesting to see how many, if any, of the ideas from 2020 summit turn up in the federal budget or become Labor policy.We have seen a lot of spin and but we have very little substance,let's see how many of the ideas that actually come up that people have put forward in a genuine and well meaning way, let's see how many of these ideas actually end up in the budget or in Labor's policy platform. we should continue to review Australia's taxation system to ensure we are internationally competitive and people don't pay any more tax than they have to, a review of taxation is something that should be ongoing. Mark my words this will be the last tax cuts that Labor will ever deliver. They have scrapped Australian Workplace Agreements whch in time will prove that to scrap them will be a disaster just watch Inflation and Interest Rates climb to 17% and unemploymetn rise to 8% time will tell to prove that little Johnny Howard was right.

40 years ago I was harassed by homosexuals who were so disturbed that I feared they would burst blood vessels and they were molesting other students. When I tried to get help for them and protect other students, I was without my saying anything diagnosed mentally ill.

I have been unemployable since 1982 and tormented and disabled by psychiatric treatment since 1969 and am now on a DSP.

Dr I D Clark
BSc(Hons Melb 1968 Maths Stats) MSc PhD(Monash 1969 1973 Symbolic Logic)
Member of Statistical Society of Australia, Econometric Society and Royal Economic Society. Eldest child of Douglas Hall Clark OBE JP Esq

Dr Clark,

Welcome to the Forum.

I'm intrigued. You presumably see some connection or relevance of your own career experience with the subject of this thread, the driving down of living standards in Australia by stealth.

I accept at face value the outline you have given as to the qualifications you claim to hold, and what happened to you as a consequence of diagnosis. Had you been, prior to graduation in 1968, in receipt of any scholarship, or studying under the terms of any cadetship or other sponsorship with respect to your then future career? I ask this because I imagine career opportunities in your area of expertise to be relatively narrow and/or limited. Did you anticipate, in 1968, a career in what was then the Commonwealth Statistician's Office, now the Australian Bureau of Statistics? Or were you looking toward an academic career?

What had been your father's position/profession over the years leading up to your graduation? Was his experience, guidance, or influence likely to be seen by others as being of help to you in setting you upon a career path? I note your father's OBE mentioned in your post. In what connection was it awarded? Were the 'sins' of the father being visited upon the son?

I note that you were apparently able to pursue post-graduate academic qualifications with success between 1969 and 1973. Were you regarded as having either 'unconventional views' or being relatively gifted, by the academic establishment (or any part thereof) during your undergaduate and/or post-graduate years?

You also mention that you became unemployable in 1982. Had you been able to secure employment within the area of your professional expertise between 1973 and 1982? If so, where were you so employed?

I am not trying to be intrusive in posing these questions. You, after all, have seen fit, and had the courage, to reveal what you have about yourself in the first case. I sense a story that may be very much in Australia's interest to be told.

There's lies, damn lies, and STATISTICS!

Dear Dr Clark,

1. If this happned at school and you have witnesses be aware that in NSW, at least,schools are not protected by statute of limitations regarding their duty of care.

2. You might find employment offshore, HK, Singapore, Shanghai or the Emirates. If lack of publications is a problem since you left Academe you might try for a major, well resorced Asian polytechnic, like Ngee Ann.

Cheers.

O.

well seems you are a bit younger than me as I graduated in engineering in 1966, but I feel I was able to deal with whatever came my way by then.

but my attack by homosexuals was in the confessional of the Catholic Church when I was but 12, and that has always been hard to deal with [and I may soon sue the "One True Church", having found their Towards Healing by Professor Parkinson to be a cruel joke].

but without making light of your case, it sounds very similar to the plot of the most boring film I have ever seen, A Beautiful Mind, with "Our [boring] Russel"

why not give the part to Kylie Monogue? lol

I am 66 and I have seen improvement in Australian standards of living that would have been beyond imagination when I was young. That's not only material standards which have reached extraordinary levels. As Dr Clark's situation suggests, there was no way society would allow anyone to take the lid off forms of abuse in families or institutions and frankly, no vocabulary to define the category of abuse.

Our politicians of every hue have in their way contributed to the present undeniable wellbeing. I vote more to the Liberal Party side (more opportunity) than Labor (more rules for our "benefit") but all sides have left good legacies. I think the vocabulary with which we express our opinions of various regimes should be toned down, abusive imagery blocks off any sensible discussion. We should have two defined categories of political discourse, one the histrionic where we make the cruel jokes and so on and the other a common sense category where we converse and provide reason and research and are less liable to become boring

"Our politicians of every hue have in their way contributed to the present undeniable wellbeing."

Oh to live with you and Alice in Wonderland. As Dylan said:

Now all the Rules of the Road have been Lodged
It's only people's Games you have to Dodge

I would far rather have been a [virtual] slave working 15 hours a day 3,500 years ago for Queen Hatshepsut [my favourite person besides Kirby J] on her Temple, than for Queen Greer, morphed by Howard PC into "lifestyle/justice" today via his army of blood sucking lawyers/feminists.

At least there WAS something of beauty in the end with Hatshepsut, whereas as Cohen says, the Greer victory is "a cold and lonely Hallelujah, waving her flag on the Marble Arch".

You then say:

We should have two defined categories of political discourse, one the histrionic where we make the cruel jokes and so on and the other a common sense category where we converse and provide reason and research and are less liable to become boring

well I will skip the jokes IYW but for the common sense category [and remember Kirby J says thinking is Beyond most lawyers] I will simply refer you[s] to a chapter of my book as an example of how the noble idea of citizens having privacy was bastardised by Howard.

It is FREE at http://www.ablokesguide.com on the right, 2nd from top

This thread started on the economy of Australia regarding The best Treasurer that this country has ever known Lord Peter Costello who I am sure will either be our next Prime Minister or President being a passionate Republican. Then right out of the blue we had a so called Doctor come on to this thread telling us that he was accosted by Homosexuals. Lucky Him.
But unfortunately he has since had a mental breakdown. Speaking of other s that have had unfortunately this type of attack what about these allegations which of course relate tremendously to the finacial situation of the Australian Economy. Buswell 'sniffed' staff chair
Joe Spagnolo
April 26, 2008 05:00pm

WITH just months before the state election, Troy Buswell's leadership is
being actively undermined from within his own party.

Liberals have been spreading potentially damaging new allegations against Mr
Buswell of inappropriate behaviour towards women.

The new allegations follow admissions by Mr Buswell in January that he
snapped open the bra of a Labor staffer during a drunken night at Parliament
House last year.

Liberal MPs have contacted The Sunday Times claiming a former Liberal female
staffer was the victim of a "chair sniffing'' incident in Mr Buswell's
parliamentary office when he was a deputy to former leader, Matt Birney, in
2006.

It was alleged that Mr Buswell lifted her chair and started sniffing it in
front of her after she had finished interviewing a constituent.

He then allegedly repeated the act moments later in front of several Liberal
staff members.

It's understood that the woman had warned Mr Buswell about his pranks
before.

On a previous occasion, he had allegedly crawled around on his hands and
knees in front of the same woman pretending to be her husband. When
confronted by the allegations this week, Mr Buswell declined to comment. Can we really believe that this actually happened ?

"Lord Peter Costello who I am sure will either be our next Prime Minister or President being a passionate Republican"

well yes but your little tin hero "did the bunk" AFTER taking our $60 billion

http://au.youtube.com/watch?v=hLRg1U4h-2Y

are YOU TOO a little piggie

Cuphandle, Dear Cuphandle:

I wonder why nobody replied or made comment to either of your posts 16 and 18 back?

Maybe there was no answer because the statements were "spot on"?

Maybe there are just NO answers to the questions posed?

Maybe the contributors think that you are getting too close to the truth and the subjects are too contraversial to discuss further?

MAYBE WE SHOULD ALL STOP FEIGNING FALSE CONCERN....and skip off down the "yellow brick road"!

"I wonder why nobody replied or made comment to either of your posts 16 and 18 back?"

well cuphandle, you are spot on so I have been pointing out parallel issues re the Yellow Brick Road PC of our society

that's why I wrote my book on the Fam Law Industry, Howard Style

http://www.ablokesguide.com

Divorce Doctor:

It appears that you and I seem to be the only ones that are concerned with the REAL issues in life!

I remain amazed that so much time is wasted by so many to say so little,.....a statement that I have made before in other threads!

I remain convinced that most subscibers to these threads would make good politicians!......they say so much about trivialities, but seem afraid to venture into the real world of hard fact!.....maybe they are afraid of retribution by "Big Brother"?.....if so why bother having a Forum at all if contributors are afraid of speaking the truth,..... as they see it?

We are repeatedly being told that we are living in a Democracy...(Quote "Vibrant Democracy"). Democracy was founded upon the principle of "Freedom of Speach" (subject to the laws of defamation) yet we see more and more fear of it`s use and the stifling of this right by an increasingly Orwellian type social modorator (successive Governments)

DD: I have started reading your interesting book!

"We are repeatedly being told that we are living in a Democracy...(Quote "Vibrant Democracy"). Democracy was founded upon the principle of "Freedom of Speach" (subject to the laws of defamation) yet we see more and more fear of it`s use and the stifling of this right by an increasingly Orwellian type social modorator (successive Governments)

DD: I have started reading your interesting book!"

thanks cuphandle, and there is now an ironic twist in this where the Droogs at Howard/Ruddock Cash for Comment site PIRATED my book [fairly obviously under direct orders from Ruddock, but I don't need to prove that]

So we will soon see a very rare application under the Copyright Act for damages.

did you actually buy it or just answer the invitation from Conan of a FREE copy? [don't worry, the offence is by the person offering the free pirated copy and not you]

the irony is, just as Howard set up a system of firewalls via Privacy Commissioner, Ombudsman etc to keep people away from courts and justice, Ruddock would have told his Cash for Comment Droogs they were quite safe

But Ruddock now too has been thrown overboard so can't save their ars** [and I assume Kevin 07 will also throw the Cash for Comment site overboard when the funding comes up for renewal]

Divorce Doctor:

No! I simply went to the website that you quoted in the last thread and have proceeded from there!

I, no doubt like yourself, am awaiting a bombardment of idignant contributors who will inevitably voice their many and varied protestations about my statements of discontent with the direction in which the various threads are nefariously guided away from the hard cold facts of reality!

Who are these people actually representing,.....maybe they are simply misguided souls who achieve some sort of satisfaction from the act of berating each other, whilst rabbiting on about insignificant prattle that leads away up that wonderful "yellow brick road!"

"Twas Brillig and the slithey toves did gyre and gimble in the wabe!"

"Twas Brillig and the slithey toves did gyre and gimble in the wabe!"

yes indeed and later on in ACOrange, Droogs provided more insight to such matters, espec the good old "in - out" as I sort of remember from 40 years ago

What a strange, strange group of people are manipulating our society:

We have a problem!.....(some) young people are drinking lots of mixed drinks and (some) are getting whacked!

The legislators as usual do NOT investigate the reason why!....they simply belt up the price of the kids favourite alcoholic drinks!....that will stop them they say!

Yes! with an increase of around $24 to a carton of 24 mixed drink cans, these wayward youngsters will now have to pay around $80 to $100 per carton...that will stop them!

Nobody seems to consider the fact that these kids who were getting whacked on booze, may now consider that it may be cheaper to get a bit better whacked on drugs and the hard drugs, which will suddenly appear on the streets in copious quantities creating a problem much greater that the original problem with the booze!

Then again these wayward kids may simply give up their "disgusting" habit of boozing and run straight and clean!....giving up booze and drugs?......(the Pope may also become a Protestant!)

This is the easy solution that is being created by overzealous "do gooders" in an effort to control these confused and disenfranchised youngsters who are wondering what the world really holds for them in the way of a "secure" future?

I wonder how much extra Excise Duty will be created by this little exercise, and I wonder what other mind-boggling "solutions" are in the offing?

Yes,I think our society needs a dose of reality to appreciate what past generations have done for us.The present Aust culture has lost the plot.