Pericles is still preoccupied with policing my intention. LOL!

Indeed, JC Morgan and Cornflower, you have also yet to address the topic. Along with Pericles you prefer to attack the person. Its seems the topic itself, and the questions i directed to you, are too much of a challenge. I see no difference between your behaviour and that of AGIR and his ilk. You are just as much promoters of hate and conflict.

"If Australians willingly gave up alcohol (and other drugs) and gambling then society as a whole, along with these individuals, would be better off."

This also applies to driving big cars, prostitution, smoking, and plethora of other self indulgent, but morally dubious choices. Unless one can program humans to be responsible robots, the choice will always be to either legally regulate these industries or have them operate underground.

The bottom line is that grog, cigs and gambling all create jobs, and lots of them.

Right from the farmers, to the manufacturers, the distributors, the retailers/sellers and the medical and policing staff required when things go pear shaped.

My simple question is, where will these jobs come from if we ban all of these?

Beleive me, if these items did not generate taxes, they would be deemed illigal in a heart beat.

I think the penalty for 'excessive missuse' must be much harsher, but then you start to effect the 'well being' of the innocent victoms, 'the families', of the offenders.

It's like a dog chasing its tail!

Perhaps it would be enough not to create massive opportunities, with pubs and clubs turned into street corner casinos, and boozing on 24 hours a day, and all done now under the banner of 'jobs jobs jobs', along with 'free choice' of course.

Funny how the jobs list only has the 'positive' ones listed, not the mental health workers, rehab staff, ambos, emergency workers who cut bodies, and bits of bodies, from wrecks, lawyers, insurance costs and so on... the other face of the 'hospitality' industry.

Of course, our weak kneed politicians would rather a few drunks killed and maimed people than they had to re-organise the taxation system, so as not to rely on boozing and mindless gambling so much.

As for the punters who moan about 'being taxed too much'... many of them seem to have ample to feed into gambling and over the bar.

Maybe we need to take some of the medicine doled out to Indigenous folk, and have all our incomes 'cared for' by the government, so it could not be spent on fags and booze and gambling.

Seems all our whitie politicians think its a 'good idea' for Indigenous people, why not apply it to everyone with an income in Australia?

That would prevent the rich from wasting theirs too, so they'd no longer have to rort their taxes to be able to spend a penny.

Dangerous ground eh? State control, except when it's done for 'the good of the natives'.

"The lady doth protest too much, methinks." Hamlet Act 3, scene 2.

>>Pericles is still preoccupied with policing my intention... indeed, JC Morgan and Cornflower, you have also yet to address the topic. Along with Pericles you prefer to attack the person. Its seems the topic itself, and the questions i directed to you, are too much of a challenge. I see no difference between your behaviour and that of AGIR and his ilk. You are just as much promoters of hate and conflict.<<

That's a pretty long bow you are drawing there, grateful. It does rather underline my point, though.

Rather than view it as "policing your intention", or "attacking the person", consider it as a simple deconstruction of your opening position.

The "question" you posed is not really a question, since it strictly limits the parameters of an answer. For example, you include the statement "these benefits [of alcohol and gambling] are outweighed be the harm."

Which is an opinion, not a fact.

This, on its own, provides a perfectly legitimate reason to question the motives of the writer.

Your ancillary question "Are we as a society addicted to alcohol and gambling?" also indicates an inbuilt predisposition, by using the word "addicted"

All of which provide a backdrop to your main "question":

>>If Australians willingly gave up alcohol (and other drugs) and gambling then society as a whole, along with these individuals, would be better off.<<

Asking for a yes/no answer from such a heavily loaded question clearly indicates an agenda that goes beyond its purported boundaries.

All of which casts doubt on your opener:

>>I would be interested in people’s responses to the following statements and questions:<<

You go on to make it clear that you are really only interested in hearing from those who agree with you. Sadly, you then proceed to equate any disagreement as promoting "hate and conflict".

You might like to consider why you do that, when you find yourself with a moment for quiet contemplation.