Not sure where we are headed, but what I do know is we can I'll afford a repeat of the past six odd years, regardless of who is at the helm.

I am suggesting the biggest challenge for the next government will be finding away to stop the boats.

While there are those who suggest we are in goos shape, I have to wonder just what shape we were in six years ago, with no debt, next to no boats and the country beaming with confidence.

Perfect shape perhaps.

Has Australia ever really been 'lucky' or has the term been just a label applied for whatever reason ?? If as I suspect its to do with the minerals we once had, surely that no longer applies since a lot of the stuff has gone to enrich overseas companies ?? I've always been a bit bemused when politicians or whoever crap on about how good is the mining boom ... I'm certainly not aware of any benefits coming my way. What am I missing here ??

The boat people issue is another area where I believe we've been conned. Its obviously an extremely profitable event for the legal leeches paid out of the public purse to represent the 'rights' of aliens and for the businesses supplying stuff to detention centres, but I have no idea what its costing taxpayers. Since we have been kept in the dark by both sides of the political circus, and have never been consulted as to our opinions, one can only assume (a) there is something they don't want us to know and (b) the total is mind-boggling.

praxidice, not sure, but I think the term 'the lucky country' came from early immigrants, as they could literally arrive here with little more than the shirt on their backs, and with a huge amount of 'hard work' make a real go of it.

As for what you have received from the mining, may I suggest you do some research into how much your state has received over the past ten or so years in royalties.

Now once you have done this, then take that total figure and add it to the debt of that state.

I say this, because without the royalty dollars, that same amount would have had to have been borrowed, and given most states are in debt crisis land, there is little doubt this debt would have been repaid.

Then, unless you are yourself in 'the lucky part of the country', not sure where that is, you will realize what the mining has actually done for you.

Mining also accou ts for a huge portion of the jobs out there, not just directly, but indirectly, as many service type businesses have literally been saved by mining.

And to think this government see the miners as leaches, not paying their fair share.

As for the illegals debacle, this will be the incoming governments largest task to try to restore border controls, you know, like we had before K Rudd came along, as this is one issue that has the potential to break us as a nation.

We are already seeing the signs, with cut backs on many things being just the beginning.

rehctub,

The origin of the phrase, "The Lucky Country"...taken from the title of Donald Horne's book....

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lucky_Country

"Horne's statement was an indictment of 1960's Australia. His intent was to comment that while other industrialised nations created wealth by using "clever" means such as technology and other innovations, Australia did not. Rather, Australia's economic prosperity was largely derived from its rich natural resources. Horne observed that Australia "showed less enterprise than almost any other prosperous industrial society.""

Praxidice remember the expresion the harder I worked the luckier i got.

Where exactly IS this country heading ??

Barring tectonic shifts in expectations, currently this country is heading 35 degrees east of north at 67mm per year.