Kerryanne,

You have raised in your posts several important issues such as regional development and the necessity for the revival of agricultural industry up in the west. It is slightly beyond the topic of this thread so I respond briefly.

I said "forget about the regional development" in the context of the topic of our debate. MARKET FORCES will not revive the regional Australia, but they have rather an opposite outcome. (Sorry Yabby for my double standard again.) The GOVERNMENT has a primary role to play in this. However, the government planners conveniently forget about it.

The country towns revival and renewal is something we all should be pushing hard. The problem is again climate change and water. However, technical problems can be overcome if the government funds proper infrastructure.

Halal, Kosher or organic food accreditation, it does not matter. People in the developed world are expected to pay good money for good quality produce. This is a chance for the regional Australia, both economically and environmentally.

I understand that when it is suggested that migrants should be sent to the country towns, they would be fully aware of where they are going and what they will be doing.

If you send refugees there on the compulsary basis, their trauma will continue. Hope it is not based on the gulag model from the ex-Soviet Union ? Mostly FARMERS should be sent there, people who enjoy doing it.

I do not necessarily support what Israel has been doing in the occupied Palestinian teritories, but they have come up with several good ideas how to attract Russian Jews to such unhospitable areas. They have also developed a farming model there about which you might be preaching (?).

The problem is how to retain people in the country towns and make these places culturally atractive also. My view is that it is rather unlikely they might ever compete with the vibrant coastal cities.

To be continued in the next post.

(cont.)

Kerryanne,

The only idea which comes to my mind is the development of transportation system - rapid train and motorway networks. When people could travel to the coast less than 2-3 hrs, this would allow newcomers to plan their lives up west.

With 400 km/hr trains that is perfectly feasible even from very remote areas. Such rapid transportation system would assist the remote areas in development of relatively small-scale organic farming, but also manufacturing and construction industries. Miners should not complain either.

These issues deserve a broader nationwide debate, Kerryanne.

Dear Rob Canoe
I have just read your latest post....are you talking about 'out west' in the Eastern States or some of the other States/Territories.
I live in Western Australia, 700 odd kms from Perth, and 400 kms south of the City of Kalgoorlie. From Kalgoorlie I can catch a high speed train which takes 8hours to get me to Perth after travelling on a bus for 6 hours to Kalgoorlie, or, I can take a bus to Perth which will take me 10 hours to reach Perth from where I live. These are things which need to be considered before sending people to the bush to kick-start a new life....there are many towns in W.A., which are falling by the wayside,(lack of water is a problem which, I am sure can be re-developed to not only house newcomers, but indulge in perhaps pre-fabricating certain products for manufacturing companies etc.in Perth, or Kalgoorlie for example.
Fruit and Veg markets are not really viable in a large part of W.A. due to lack of rainfall. Fly in/Fly out jobs are not always an option, families cannot be with their FIFO workers, as the cost of housing in the mining areas is up to $2000 per week, not much of an option for these workers, who live in huts while they are working away. Like anything, the big fixes are very difficult to manage, and there are no easy solutions. Most Country towns welcome people from overseas, who assimilate well in Western Australia, but I think that for a start they are truly able to get a handle on the Aussie way of life in country areas for a start.
Noisy Scrub Bird.

Rob,
I am with you regarding Corporate greed, on both the Shareholders and CEO salaries.
I know that it is expected that Corporations should perform good citizenship, but do they? I can bring to mind the day that Sol Trajillo
(I don't think that the spelling of his name is correct), gleefully left the country with a millions of dollars bonus, (for what, is beyond me). Then to add salt to injury, at the departure gate when he left Australia, turned round and said that Australia is a backward country (says he as he pocketed he millions)., surely we don't have to import CEO's from overseas, there is plenty of talent within this country., even then do they really need to be paid so much?, I am angered when I see people of repute 'sleeping rough' once a year to get a grip on what it is like being homeless....what a joke..., don't clap folks....just throw money in the direction where it is realy needed. I had better step down from my soapbox before my blood pressure rises.
NSB

PS Rob,
Sorry about my post after your last one, I clicked the wrong button whilst I was editing my post, needless to say it disappeared before I could finish.
Cheers, keep posting,
NSB

* I am with you regarding Corporate greed, on both the Shareholders and CEO salaries.*

Hang on Noisy, before you get too noisy and condem shareholders.
What do you think is a fair return on your hard earned savings,
given that you could lose the lot, if things go wrong? Or do
you just intend to bleed the taxpayer in your old age?

Believe it or not, Sol, as much as he was disliked, including by
me, did do a hell of a lot of good for Telstra and for all of
us. To give him credit where it is due, he did know his technology.
Our phone system was pretty backward, with all sorts of systems
in place, which cost a fortune to maintain. Sol got rid of the lot
and came up with one standard system, 3G. That makes perfect
sense. I benefit today with my internet connection etc, because
Sol had the testicles to make the changes. But I admit, he had
zero people skills.

When Telstra was Govt owned, I was paying up to 9$ an hour for
internet access. Today I pay a fraction of that. Why should
I complain?