So many misconceptions, and so many blinkered/myopic/biased views; interspersed, fortunately, with some truths.
Policy determination by popular consensus 'of the people'? In such circumstances (of so much staunchly-held misconception) could only be tragic (or at best, comical).

A few points: 45 kids to one teacher? Education is controlled, conducted and funded by the STATES. (Except for our very successful 'private' schools of course.)
Likewise, HEALTHCARE. (18 hours waiting in Emergency? Who's your STATE health minister?)
(Private hospitals and clinics might serve you better - but of course, rebates for taking out private health insurance is Liberal, and therefore has to be anti-Labor, although it results in lowering demand on the already-stretched, State run, public health system.)

Labor for 'workers'; Liberal for viable business conditions which create sustainable, long-term jobs. Two sides of one coin, but veer too far in either direction and someone gets squeezed - and everyone ends up paying.
Of course, contrived differences in policy direction have to be magnified (and exaggerated) both in words and (unfortunately) in 'actions' in order to win votes.
From what I've seen, Labor is noisier, and more prone to rash judgements. (Hawke/Keating good; Rudd/Gillard a disaster.)
Libs, steady as she goes, re-balance, and row, row, row.
The problem with politics is a fickle constituency.

Another misconception:
Floods, bush-fires, cyclones, droughts - all 'natural disasters'. But, with one significant difference - whereas floods, fires, cyclones, of any great significance, are usually wildly dramatic events (and plastered all over the media), DROUGHTS are creeping, insidious demons, with potential and damage unperceived until they reach 'critical' or 'disastrous' (and only then, when farmers are committing suicide, does the media deign to offer a mention).
But, who cares? After all, farmers are all rich landed gentry, are they not? A spoiled lot, who probably inherited their 'wealth' and just sit back and employ loads of low-paid workers to do the lifting. But, think again, my old mate. Few farmers can afford farm-hands - even when you can find any - and the majority of farmers would be the hardest and most all-skilled workers you could ever hope to find - and they mostly do it for peanuts, and for love of the land, the stock, the 'product' (and have to 'love' all manner of machinery, technology and plain hard work, just to survive).

So, the public and governments leap to provide assistance, support and re-building to those inflicted by flood, fire, cyclone.
But, drought? That's only the farmers problem, isn't it?
A 'fine' differentiation - built of a multitude of misconception.
And, farmers (and their stock) die in consequence of apathy to their predicament. Shame.

its grumpy bum again..[this explains..why..we got only a two party/AND A HALF..SYSTEM]

why bancok.' occupy/movement..is working
[and occupy our main streets..failed]
http://www.activistpost.com/2014/02/why-occupy-bangkok-is-working-and.html

<<..Thailand's Occupy Bangkok campaign proves that the real power of protests are to take territory*..[areas of enslavement]..from an unjust regime -

but that terri*tory..must then be filled by
the institutions backing the protests...stop that..and nothing can change..ever*

If, like Occupy Wall Street, there are no such institutions, it is inevitable that the protests will eventually collapse. Occupy Wall Street, then, is not a failure, but a lesson to be learned from and built upon.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=xP3it6U7oew
The next time Americans take to the streets, hopefully they do so with their own indigenous institutions backing them...instead of those going colluded high treason

conspiracy autocracy excepted.
http://www.ukcolumn.org/sites/default/files/Bankers%20Bradbury%20and%20the%20carnage%20on%20the%20Western%20Front!%2030:11:12.pdf

AS LONG AS GOVT NEEDS BORROW..its own money..frOM bankers
nothing can change/till they realise owning implies a duty of care.

and those in power..dONT CARE
but we running their institutions must*
heck the public service owns us/look at our pension..compared to theirs

common wealth?

Once again Many Thanks for your contributions.
Thanks to Johan (OUG), Shaggy Dog, and Saltpetre.
I absolutely love it when posters give me food
for thought and make me re-think things.
I guess that's how we learn (if we keep open
minds), so again Thank You - you've done that in spades!

Hello there FOXY...

Firstly, I hope you're feeling well, and have overcome you last bout of ill health, you're too scarce a commodity to lose on this Forum !

I understand that you and I are from diametrically opposed, political ideologies. Therefore from a political point of view, there's probably very little we can agree on, or find some common ground ?

In my humble view, those in Labor try very hard to cure or relieve at least, many of the economic woes the electorate at large find themselves in. And in so doing, they try to spend themselves out of the problem, instead of finding alternate ways of producing the same outcome.

The LNP on the other hand, are a little too tight with the purse strings, and often try to retire the debt that Labor has incurred, by introducing too soon, far tougher economic sanctions, than probably necessary to do so. Therefore, the LNP will always be 'on the nose' with most of the working class, whereas Labor generally try to be Mr 'Nice Guy' to the electorate at large, thus are seen as much more flexible or pliable and very much more approachable ?

Therefore, One Party is too tough ? The other Party, too lax ?

How can there be any difference they just oppose each other. Germany and Japan lost the wars they started yet they are both the worlds strongest economies.why.........simply because when they were beaten so was their politicians and best of all their beaurocrats so they started with a clean sheet. Thats what we need to do because while we have the same beuros there will be no change, just different figureheads for each department, just ask yourself a pollie is minister of health one week an then he can be minister for tourism the next and know nothing about either. Labour is more like liberals and the libs are just plain facists..........