* argue on the merits of your view rather than attack the assumed work ethics of those whom you know nothing about.*

Pelican, I could not care less about others work ethics. What I do
care about is when those who refuse to help themselves want to
rip off those who have worked their butts off to help themselves.

And I get really pissed off with this attitude of lets screw those
big corporations for all we can. For what are big corporations?
They are paper entities, respresenting hundreds of thousands of
little people, many who have worked their arses off to help themselves.

I once employed a 17 year old farm girl, straight from school.
She saved her pennies and when her mates were out buying pretty
dresses and cds, she was saving her pennies. She worked hard for
every dollar and did without many things. In the end she landed
up buying a heap of bank shares with her savings. Frankly I was
impressed. Impressed that a young kid would work so hard and think
about her future. Today she is married with 3 kids, her hard work
then, still benefits her every day.

There are plenty of people owning BHP shares, who have done much
the same, but they are clearly forgotten in this debate, by people
like yourself.

Yet Aussies can blow 20 billion a year on gambling, most of it down
the pokies.

Isn't it time that those of you who want to rip off the savings
of those who have worked hard, done without etc, get off your
arses just a bit and learn to help yourselves a bit more?

Of course mining companies are pissed off, so are their shareholders
and I remind you that around 40% of Australians own shares directly.

Mr Goose has finally now admitted that its not 17% tax that miners
are paying, but that under the new tax, they could be paying 58%,
as miners have claimed all along.

I am frankly amazed that you have been sucked in by Govt spin as
much as you have.

Pelican your right on the money for mine. And Custard.

The only people talking down the Australian Mining Industry
is the Australian Mining Industry an the Opposition.
I for one, don't understand their logic.

The very shareholders they profess to defend are the short term targets
of their shenanigans. But of course they know, that the longer term prospects
of their business is on the up and up, and all their shareholders
really have to do is hold or increase the investments to benefit , tax or no tax.

This was the whole point of posting the Big Money Spin post.
To point out the danger of talking down the economy.

Having an Abbott led Coalition Govt would see me moving
to New Zealand as I have previously stated.
(Now recognised officially as the the most stress free
and satisfied nation on the planet, incidentally).

It is interesting that the Australian electorate now favours a Coalition Govt
according to polling, even though they haven't released a policy yet other than
drawing the race card, trashing anything the Govt wants to do,
relentlessly character assassinating the P.M. and supporting Multinational Miners.

I maintain the position I've held from the start. The Gov't overall, has done
a reasonable job of the economy. The Govt was and is primarily the backbone
of recovery and not the Mining Industry. And that Yabby and Rehctub, is a fact.

$1000 might not be much, in your view to join the gravy train , but lot's
of people never have a spare grand to spend on shares in their entire lives Yabby.

That also is a fact despite their ethics (work or otherwise),
and even because of their ethics.

*relentlessly character assassinating the P.M.*

Ah poor Kevie. Never mind the porkies, the spin, the bad
temper etc. Thinker 2 loves him, how sweet :)

*The Govt was and is primarily the backbone
of recovery*

Actually it was Costello who set it all up and left things
in good order. Barack Obama could only dream of such luck,
he missed out and our Mr Goose has benefitted, as we see from
your post. The masses will be sucked in, some rather easily.

*but lot's
of people never have a spare grand to spend on shares in their entire lives Yabby.*

I happen to agree with you here. For indeed we have people in wheelchairs, people with mental problems etc, those who cannot
help themselves and who deserve all the help that we can give them.
For healthy Australians, its really their choice, 50 weeks by 20 bucks and you have made your start.

You should be watching Masterchef, Thinker 2 :) You might notice that
when people just try a little, they can achieve all sorts of things
which they thought they were never capable of.

Thinker2>> The Gov't overall, has done
a reasonable job of the economy. The Govt was and is primarily the backbone of recovery and not the Mining Industry

Wow! Where do I start.

Well firstly, they had money in the bank and nobody thought anyone could waste it so quickly. We also have a huge 'credit card debt' that we didn't have less than three short years ago.

Secondly, just count the number of trophies they have for'failed Projects' with the mining tax (in it's present form) at the engravers bench right now.

Ruds best achievment thus far is the way he and his lot have wasted the countless billions in what must be all time record time for any government, anywhere.

>>Having an Abbott led Coalition Govt would see me moving
to New Zealand as I have previously stated.

Carefull you don't hit your head on the door on your way out!

Yabby, why are you covering the board for the Mining Industry, they have spent millions on spin, way exceeding that spent by the government. They have suggested that jobs would be lost, local economies impacted, ad nauseum. You have repeated this crap as if it were gospel and it isn't. There is no way they will leave their investments, they have sunk too much into them.

If they abandon them, they revert to the Crown & the Crown will sell them to the highest bidder. Jobs will not be lost, local economies, etc. will not be effected. So the entirety of their spin in that regard is shown to be just that, spin.

Now, as to the investors, yes, there are investors, but their share of these companies is firstly miniscule compared to the large corporate investors with voting rights and their percentage of the profits are miniscule as well.

But to the extent their profits are reduced, ke sara... I don't see why I am being forced to subsidise them, by selling my children's inheritance for a pittance. Work ethic, equitable distribution, is all crap. I see absolutely no reason why those who have the money to invest now have the right to rape our countries natural resources, selling them for bottom dollar to suit their own selfish needs/wants.

OUR natural resources are NOT RENEWABLE, ie. they can only be sold the once. There is absolutely no value adding with the majority of this, no follow on investment, no refining, no anything. It is the most shortsighted approach possible and we are supposed to feel sorry for the idiots who are making bottom dollar returns from it?

Yabby, for some reason you seem determined to see these minerals be stripped from the ground, as cheaply and nastily as possible, shipped overseas, refined, smelted & shipped back to us, so that you don't miss out on your bit?

GAGF

Yabby
Most of us work hard, whether you run a business and pay tax or are a PAYE. Business also pay tax on their profits. The Government is asking the mining industry pay a fairer share. As usual there is the great brainwashed that believe corporations should be absolved purely on the basis of risk on investment ignoring the fact that the tax is only on profits - the risk factor is no longer applicable once profits are realised and the investment sound.

Risk factors are inherent in any business venture and that alone is not a good enough reason not to pay a fairer share.

A PAYE earning $180,001 and over pays $55,850 tax plus 45c for each $1 over $180,000 (taken from the ATO website).

Why is it always the working man who has to pay more than their share of the tax burden while companies continue to avoid tax wherever possible.

Ken Henry has it about right in regard to the mining industry hysteria.

http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2010/05/18/2902825.htm