Who ever got the idea in their head that members of political parties were intelligent or had integrity? Despite having a reasonable constitution, none of the parties require or demand that members promise that they will honour and obey the terms of their constitution. From what I have seen, to become a member, all one has to do is sign a form promising that they will agree with the decision of the majority. This implies that persons joining, have no integrity, and little intelligence, and the decisions made by the parties show that my remarks are true. The resources exporting shows this up, the reciprocal imports demanded for this trade, allows those companies like Wesfarmers/Bunnings/Coles/KMart/Target, Big W , Lowes and hundreds more to import all those clothes, cotton and woollen goods etc., Tools and electric tools and other goods etc.etc. As well as the State Governments importing the Electric suburban trains, all these imported goods are goods our own Australian manufacturers were producing before, and employing hundreds or thousands of our workers. Our Queensland company Walkers I believe were building them for Queensland, and a similar situation exists in other states, or did. The employment does not show this unemployment, because to deceive the public, have decided that as long as a person has got a permanent position even if it is for only one hour a week, that person is employed. In actual fact, thousands have only got employment for two or three days each week, and this certainly does not provide enough wages to feed a family, buy or rent a house or provide many essentials. And yet look at the other end of the income scale, Seventy years ago, Harold Holt as the treasurer, experimented and found that a top tax of 66.6% was ideal for controlling excessive obscene incomes, and applied it and the workers and small business people were enthralled because their lifestyle was vastly improved, and the rich people didn't really suffer, they still had plenty and the cost of everything was much lower.

Belly,

I do oppose the tax. It is a prime indication of Labor incompetence. The $1.8bn is about 0.7% of the annual budget, far less than many of the low value to the community pork barrel projects they are not prepared to sacrifice.

Here's an article itemising all the cuts to planned projects.

http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2011/01/27/3123277.htm?site=thedrum

Poirot,

The PM has used this as an excuse to axe some of the more moronic Labor policy initiatives that were beginning to stink like a 10 day old piece of fish.

How about some of the pork barrel promises to the independents?

Today we present

Friday's edition of

Anti-Labor spin

Merv09;
I agree with your sentiments. Frankly I would like to saw off the rest
of the world and let ourselves be self sufficient.
About the only things we would need to import would be specialised
computer chips. We certainly won't want to import jet transport
aircraft because the fuel will be too expensive.

Manufacturing will return to Australia just as it has started to return
to the US. 25 Knot container ships are sailing at 14 knots to save fuel
so how long before their fuel is too expensive to undertake the voyage.
Higher wages in China, higher oil prices, loss of air transport etc.
No, things are starting to change, but it will take some years.
No one really knows how long but hopefully it will be gradual not a
systemic collapse.