Dear Jay,

I don't live in Sydney so I can't really
comment on the problems you face on a
daily basis. I know that it must be
difficult for locals when they see so many
changes going on around them. It's hard for
everyone. All I can hope for is that we'll sort
things out in the end as we've always done.
That's the Aussie way - isn't it?

I did some work for Nestle at one time which took me into many
restruants clubs etc. Where the food supply was contracted out and was
held by a Chinese company, I never once saw an Australian employed.

Oh yes I did, the cashier at one club was an Australian.
How do they get away with it ?

> Ever wondered how a one block shopping strip can support five Chinese Groceries, three nail salons, sundry phone shops, two dollar joints and half a dozen Noodle restaurants...collusion, price fixing and clan loyalties.

This is how the real world has always worked, and at the basic level always will. The problem with the likes of Lexi, the Greens, and innumerable other Oz fantacists is that they think legislation and moral indignation will force a change. It won't. I spent the best years of my life in Singapore, and have a deep affection for the Chinese. They're certainly not perfect - in many ways they're far more racist than Europeans - but at least they're realists. And, given that my accent convinces strangers I'm a Brit, I can tell you from innumerable casual conversations that they regard Ozns as ludicrous - which, of course, they are. Do any here seriously believe that Ozn parliamentary behaviour would be tolerated in Singapore, or any other civilized place? Until we can demand adult behaviour from our Parliamentary Pillocks, Ozns will not only continue to be seen as Third World buffoons, that's all they'll ever be.

Yes, the Malaysian solution IS an exercize in incompetence. No question. What are we - who as members of a democracy are ultimately responsible for it - going to do about it? All other discussion is p'ing in the wind.

Lexi,
I'm not a nationalist but it seems the "Aussie way" was to boot out the Chinese.
Look at the rationale for the immigration restriction act, the Chinese were doing exactly the same things then as they are today, price fixing, driving down prices, undercutting locals.
These are NOT Australians we're talking about BTW, they import foreign made goods and foods, employ foreign staff,use their own suppliers everything's in house and they organise very much along ancient clan lines, they are a merchant class, a society within a society.
If a business or precinct is taken over by Chinese you get a Chinatown, an enclave which will persist indefinitely and exclude all other commercial interests.
But almost every suburban shopping strip is being overtaken by Chinese businesses, there's no diversity, it's a traitorous government allowing a takeover of retail by one specific group of foreign business people.

Bazz,
If everyone else is charging 350-500 a day for labour why are Chinese tradesmen working for 100-150?
Why not charge the same and make more money?
The only reason you'd charge a pittance would be if you had a long term plan to dive all the others out of business.
This didn't happen when the Europeans were establishing themselves in the 60's a 70's, they put prices up, the accusation against them was always of overcharging. They'd always say that they were "European Trained" to get an advantage over locals and they are shocking "White anters" but they always give us a share of the spoils, they give me and other "Aussies" tons of work.
I always ask builders who talk up the Chinese: "Will these guys take on your kid as an apprentice?" That shuts them up.

Shoot up report:
Two events in the last two days.
A home invasion by three men and a shot fired into house in Revesby on departure.
Another event by two men and shots fired into a house in "SW Sydney".
This may be code for certain suburbs of interest to police middle east squad.

Today, a police operation sealing of streets in "SW Sydney".
More info if it is publicised.
It is getting this common that these events only get a short mention
in a news bulletin. Gets about the same coverage as a traffic accident.