No point in adding to the debate on Cate. Without taking sides on the carbon tax, I think these sort of ads are counter-productive. I remember being unimpressed with Optus 'Yes' campaign - no info, no nothing, just a market labelling exercise. (Just curious - how many of you signed up with Optus on the basis of those ads? Anyone who did should refrain from complaining about this one).

On another issue (I know, it's been done to death), Shadow Minister wrote: 'That families earning $150k don't get any relief is not going to be forgotten, and is probably why the budget got such a poor response.' Do you really think that the votes of the 10-15% of families earning more than $150K is going to make a difference? I doubt that they live in swinging seats. I did a small poll (newsagent, garage etc.) in my small country town (extremely safe coalition seat) and we couldn't think of anyone we know who had that much income - all (and they are non-Labor votes) thought the cut-off was fair enough, but not a vote-changer. Anyway, if you get less than $50K are you going to change your vote in sympathy with the over $150K families?

Re: the additional 6% public servant bloat since 2007 = school-teachers, police, firemen, nurses, etc. Your don't want more of those? OK, there are too many bureaucrats but guess where the cuts will be.

Cate Blanchett is as entitled , as is any other person , to express an opinion about this subject . She may use more airline fuel than the average overseas traveller , because she has to fly more frequently in the course of her profession . That does not deprive her of her rights . Her opinion is worth as much as , but not more than , anybody else 's . It is the merit of an opinion that counts , not the identity of the person who expresses the opinion .

Shadow Minister,

You're absolutely right. It wasn't a budget with a vision that the government put forward. They will never achieve surplus. Tony Abbott is the answer to everyone's prayers. The Carbon tax is going to be a cost on virtually anything that moves - hospitals, medical clinics, The Royal Flying Doctor Service, pathology labs, funeral homes, What services will be cut as a result? Everything will cost more. Concert tickets, and theme park entry fees, rents in shopping centres, it will affect schools, restaurants and the pub. Food prices? It's like raising the GST above the current rate...

And don't even talk about the NBN - it's much better to cobble together yesterday's technology to give us what we need. Let's all support the "she'll be right" solutions. Why should we put Australia in a position to be a real technological powerhouse. Why do we need that type of forward thinking in government when we can remain a backwater - why should we be people to be reckoned with globally. After-all the NBN isn't better technology - is it? Nah, let's concentrate on the costs involved. After-all we don't really need it.

As for the carbon tax? How right you are. Absolutely! Don't let us put a cap on pollution - we need to pollute more - big business requires it - and we need to pay them to continue polluting. And by all means let's have an election so that it becomes crystal clear that
we get the government that we so rightly deserve.

cont'd ...

And who wants to hear from Cate Blanchett - when we've got Tony Abbott who's so in tune with average Australians. Is there anyone who doesn't find Abbott totally awesome and inspiring. What other politician can lay claim to having a "visions" for this country. Certainly not Malcolm Turnbull.

Thank You Shadow Minister for making me see the light at the end of the tunnel. I've nopw become - like you one-eyed and I can see through keyholes with both eyes.

Delighted to see you back on the beat, Col Rouge.

Sentence commuted? Thought so.

Agree with every word, by the way. The divine Margaret might not have done, though.

http://www.margaretthatcher.org/document/108237

But please, don't make promises you can't keep.

>>As someone who is trained in the topic and has some knowledge of tax, I promise not to don a frock and pretend to be an old queen...<<

We're a tolerant bunch here. And we know you want to.

Hasbeen:) your a riot. Well dumb dumb, all will come to light in this century, and your right pall, money is the only important consideration.

And hasbeen.....all that coal going to China will just fuel the links:) Then population hits 9 billion then 10 billion....wont that be fun:) and all these people like you will want what you want and so on. 75% of power now in Australia is coal fired stations, and its true we have the cleanest coal in world.

If the science is right, and it is, the world you wont be here for, well.....just use your imaginative powers if you poses such a thing, and think really hard about the bigger long term picture.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xv3OLKsQ83k&feature=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Za438_pSkUw&feature=related

However, if people want to roll the dice, I'll just have to roll with it.

LEA