The chief purpose of Howard's revitalised immigration policy is NOT the wellbeing of Australian citizens nor is it the welfare of Australia's future. If it were he would stop immigration till the drought eases.

Every immigrant that comes her is presumabley promised all the water they can use otherwise Howard would have trouble getting the numbers for this year's 140,000 intake. That means the new immigrants expect existing citizens to make sacrifices. Should we be sacrificing our lifestyle choices including water consumption so Howard can get more votes while we get gridlocks, crappy services and water restrictions?

What we are seeing is a political gambit to lower living standards in capital cities by increasing population densities with dubious private infrastructure investments, dilute civil rights with the resulting intense competition and hence increasing Federal power to what amounts to DICTATORSHIP. Why are Australians so accepting of this iniquity, subversion of our democratic vlues and the monopolised media propaganda that is constantly pushing only its side of the immigration debate.

Are Australian's really prepared for this Dictatorship? Do we understand the consequences
of having to compete harder to survive in our cities,
of gridlocks in all services
and of an unwillingness of both federal and state governments to lower taxes or increase services as their new mixed community manfdates enable them to defer responsibility to profit motivated private companies.

What are the uglier consequences that could evolve and when are we likely to see them?

What can we do to reverse the threat and is that even possible when an insecure Labour Party is probably cock a hoop about inheriting a Federal dictatorship and embracing it even harder?

What role is media monopoly by big business playing in stifling debate and even perpetrating propaganda that downplays all the negative implications?

What role does gambling and gaming play in increasing immigration. Studies show that when populations are stressed more, they gamble more? Is John Howard too close to the gambling emperors and moguls of this country and deliberately feeding them more highly stressed Australian populations to bolster this existing $14billion a year industry?

Since Australia reached its sustainable population of 13m people (see Tim Flannery et al)immigration has been national suicide. This would not have been obvious to people with no particular interest in sustainablity or our environment. But now, when we have almost doubled the 13m and are runningout of water, the 140,000 extra people brought into the country in the last year should have even the most complacent jumping up and down.

Unfortunately for us all, our jumping up and down will not do much good as both major parties are big immigrationists and bleeding heart acceptors of "refugees" adding to the strain without putting anything back. In my own city of Adelaide, the idiot Rann government is, on the one hand doing nothing about water infrastucture for the time when it does rain again - merely introducing restrictions on use and, on the other hand, squealing for more people to come to live here.

How much more stupid can these people, who are supposed to look after our interests, be?

We are told by people who study such things that immigration has no net benefit to the country. We needed immigration in the past. We do not need it any longer. In fact, it is going to turn Australia into desert. Just like the Sahara, which used to be wheat bowl of the Roman Empire.

Leigh

No net per capita benefit from immigration has the disturbing implication that any profit derived from immigration must come wholly at the expense of other Australians. In the case of a property developer selling cheaply constructed housing on bulldozed bushland on the fringe of a capital city, any profits will be wholly offset by community costs such as increased charges to the community for infrastructure and associated services

That's right, Fester. It does actually cost the rest of us big time. See Graham Young's post on rent.

Yep, pretty much spot-on Leigh.

High immigration is the absurdity to end all absurdities.

And then just when you think it couldn’t possibly get more absurd, immigration actually rises at the time that we have entrenched severe water-supply problems in most major cities and many other areas across the country.

What the hell gives?

Do we really need to keep reminding ourselves of the fundamental purpose of government – to look after the populace and do the right thing by them in terms of quality of life, now and in an ongoing secure manner?

So what is our government actually doing in this regard?

Its a good point that water and infrastructure are at crisis, and more people moving in will make matters even worse. Putting immigration on hold before we resolve this crisis is sensible to manage a serious situation.

Thank the good lord that Tony Abbot is not Prime Minister. In a speech a few years ago, you can find this in in Hansard, Tony Abbot strongly believed Australia urgently needed to boost our population to 60 million people. He was serious. The Federal Treasurer Peter Costello was right beside him nodding his head. All they think about is short term greed. Now we can see that responsibility must prevail.

Greed was so, 1980s. Time for change.