FRIENDS AND MODERATOR--SORRY, "IF" DOUBLE POSTED ABOVE, WRONG BUTTON, I THINK , THIS WAS UNINTENDED--

In some Scandinavian coutries for farmers, there is something like our "work for the dolw scheme". The farmers work assemblying electronic components on mobile phones (?, or something). To receive Governments or even direct salary, we can do the same. Farmers act as call centres for North America. Moreover, the Farmers would speak better English ;-). Also, there is plenty of road work leading into to do on cariageways leading to small county towns: Farmers caould become, fairly paid iterate workers on those country roads, they are so found of complaining about.

Australia is the Wealthiest country in World (Assets/Popilation - World Bank), usually second/third with Canada on the Human Development Index (UNESCO), often fasted growing OECD economy, way ahead of the US on its ability NOT to import or Export and has AAA national soveign credit rating. Not because of the farmers, since 1957 (Common Mark), anyway.

Australia can import food during the droughts! Meanwhile, the farmers should do productive work.

If a Sydney or Perth a retrenched white collar worker has to drive a cab for a year; why should a farmer a stach shelve in Coles, say in Tamworth or Bourke? The former is more likely to have a mortgage and not an inherited property.

-- My Father (b.1911), who was born in rural Victoria, told me that, that during post-WWI and through the Great Depression, Farmers didn't do unto less fortunate others, as they now want the Government to unto them.

-- Admittedly it is European farmers, Japanese (rice) and US (lamb) farmers are a drain on economies and have huge politcal clout. But these even folk don't farm in th desert! We need a progressive liberal party, non a conservative liberal [oxymoron] party having one hard tied beihind its back by a country party national party clothing.

Dear reader, you can challenge my opinions. But the economic facts, ARE FACTS.

Regards,

O.

There is nothing special about farmers, and the less able among them certainly should not be receiving taxpayer handouts. Other businesspeople who cannot make a go of it have to sell out before they are eligible for the dole. Failed farmers should be no different.

While we are being asked to accept change in just about every aspect of our lives, we are still expected to believe that all Australians have some magical connection with the land and therefore, we really, really care for farmers. What nonsense! Farming is a business like any other, most of its product going to exports – a mere 3% of exports.

The vagaries of weather is one things farmers have to cope with. A cyclical drought is no excuse for handing out money to poor managers farming on land that was never any good in the first place.

Australians should be telling Messrs. Howard and Vaille very firmly that they are out of date and out of touch with the electorate, and to be more carefully how they toss our money around

Lee, Oliver.

Im wondering why they seem to have special services accorded to them..

It used to be said a few years back that 'Australia rides on the sheeps back'
And I think that this is much the same for all farmers and primary industry.

Will our economy go down the tube if we dont assist when they are struggling and theyre livliehoods are being threatened?

These primary producers of stock, sheep cattle , pigs and grain farmers etc would make a much larger impact to our economy than say a privately run business..

Maybe we just cant afford to let them go under?
The workload for the average farmer/stationowner is huge.

Wayfarer,

"It used to be said a few years back that 'Australia rides on the sheeps back'. And I think that this is much the same for all farmers and primary industry." - Leigh

Friend, that was fifty years back, when other Europe had been wiped of the map and purchased Commonwealth goods. This was the case and not is the case. When the rural industry held I percentage of exports, it was not mentioned Australia is a relatively self contained economy. Exports wre/are a small portion of GDP.

Leigh is right WHY ARE FARMERS DIFFERENT, REPEAT, WHY ARE FARMERS DIFFERENT?

Perhaps, help out with a drought ever fifty or one hundred years, because of atypical misfortune. Fine. If an earthquake leveled a bicycle factory. I would have no objection to govenment helping with reconstruction.

But when farmers establish their livelihood in arid, out of the way places, the rest of us need to dig deep into our pockets to cover their mistakes, year after year.

"Riding on the sheep's back" is an anchronism: Like buying horse shoes in Pitt Street.

If the roads leading into a small country town have pot holes and broken shoulders and local farms are unproductive half of the time; why not multi-taskand receive a fair labourer's pay for to productively dig new roads, rather than unproductively dig dry furrows.

Farmers: You are not special. You need help once/twice only as limited assistance, or, move, or, retrain, or, multi-task. That's what everyone else does.

You have "rock fisherman" mentality... "Here, Fisherman, don't fish off Point Danager". "B---er you, mate, I always do what I want!"
"Wow, look at the size of that wave... Oops, I'm drowing... Do I get a state paid funeral?"

I think there is a reasonable case for the rural sector receiving assistance during tough times. One reason is that farmers produce food, a necessity for our survival. Most non-rural businesses, however, do not provide essential goods or services. The loss of such enterprises would therefore be barely noticed, except by the owner and his/her employees. Food, whether locally produced or imported is essential. A reliable supply of imported food is by no means assured, so it is in Australia’s national interest to maintain the rural sector, especially because of the variable nature of our climate.

As to Australia being the wealthiest country in the world, perhaps you should take into account liabilities/population. Indeed, thanks to the non-rural sector, which is responsible for the bulk of our imports, Australia constantly runs deficits on its current account. Our performance as an exporter has been appalling, despite the recent mining boom. To realise the consequences of years of current account deficits, one only need examine the size of our foreign debt, the extent to which foreigners own commercial property and the extent of foreign ownership of Australian companies. We really are a banana republic with clean drinking water, except we don’t have any bananas and it looks like we won’t have any water before too long either

Oliver, you may need to do a little research before commenting on something that you seem to know little about. This drought is classed as a 1 in 100 year drought. This is why farmers are asking for a little understanding and assistance. There are still plenty out there tht are too proud to ask for assistance, even if they are eligible. Farmers are a very proud and stubborn bunch of people (there are a few bad eggs that will take every dollar they can lay their hands on, but these types of people are throughout society). I am a country accountant for whom farmers make up 80% of my client base. Most of my clients have been eligible for drought assistance in some form or another for 3 years. They first had to have 2 bad years before qualifying. Some have now lost their 5th crop in a row. This is becoming a city v country debate, because so many in the city have lost touch with the country around them. Many years ago a large number of city-dwellers had relatives and friends in the country, either as farmers or relying on farmers for their living. This is no longer the case, and has affected the city-based view of the country. Few can imagine the struggle of not only having zero imcome with which to pay household bills, but also having to find money year after year to replant. Those that had places paid off have had to reborrow often large sums of money to keep going.