Nathan, when I said 'poor parents' what I meant was poor parenting, as even well off parents can have poor parenting skills.

I will continue at a latter time.

So Foxy, So I'm guessing he wasn't referring to the hear and now, because what we now have is a huge debt, a dwindling revenue system, a decreasing demand for our minerals and a few years until we loose our car industries.

Sorry, but I just can't get much out of that to suggest we are in great shape.

Dear rehctub,

I think Peter Costello was being optimistic
about our future. But you'd have to read his
book and make up your own mind. From my reading
it seemed to me that he was a very positive
sort of bloke. He was a great admirer of Sir Robert
Menzies. And I do believe that Costello did believe
that "the best years for our country are still in
front of us."

Costello did also say, "We are in a relentlessly
competitive world and we should aim to have taxes
and spending as low as possible, consistent with
the standard of health, education, defence and
security that our public is justly entitled to
receive."

Read the book for yourself.

"MacDonalds provides the fare that once comprised porridge, gruel and turnips...." No it does not. If we take that line no one will change their life in this country.

I know my skills on basic cooking work well - and I want to get that message out there, that people can make a difference. For example I won a mushroom creative cooking competition. People had to put in a written entry about mushrooms and I won. I realised why. I have lots of fantastic delicious mushroom recipes I eat. At the end of the session were given a few minutes to talk and I spoke passionately about mushrooms!

For example a day of three dish recipes (that are under $5.00 in total) can include:

1. Breakfast: Easy cooked oats, half a fresh orange, a banana, a piece of toast (drizzled with healthy oil) and a glass of milk or water.

2. Lunch: A salad sandwich (of any type) - basic and cheap but nice and healthy to eat. Also include an apple with that.

3. Dinner: Spicy lentils cooked with rice. Simple. Curry powder mixed with 1/3 - 1/2 cup of water made into a paste in a saucepan. Add cooked split red lentils. Serve with cooked rice. Have water or milk with the dish. This recipe came from a Heart Foundation cookbook.

McDonald's does not need to dominate a life. I believe in a positive "food forward" approach that is easy, fast and achievable.

MacDonalds and most other fast food purveyors are to health in peacetime what the Fifth Column was in wartime.

Nathan,

"No it does not. If we take that line no one will change their life in this country."

Excusez-moi....but my reference "MacDonalds provides the fare that once comprised porridge, gruel and turnips...."...was meant to convey that that was the fare of the poorer members of society - especially those who found themselves in the hastily concocted urban conglomerations at the dawn of the Industrial Revolution - who didn't have the time, knowledge or access to more wholesome preparations.

I'm very pleased that you eat well...but many people in Australia, it's a shame to say, have been dragged up on a fare of takeaway garbage - and spend more time watching cooking shows than actually cooking food.

I'm all for promoting healthy eating habits...but I have my doubts as to whether the lady who opts for affordable McDonald's is the type who is going to go to the trouble that you obviously do. She's probably addicted to all the "interesting" ingredients as well. It takes a bit of doing to wean people off the trans fats (and goodness knows what else)...not impossible, but a challenge just the same.

The best time to start is in childhood. I'm not confident about that - when all one has to do is glimpse what busy parents throw into a lunch box these days....very little fresh, mostly prepackaged glutinous and sweet.

One has to be passionate about such things - as you obviously are : )

rehctub,

I am out of this thread however I thought you may be interested in this,

<Child psychologist Dr Michael Carr-Gregg lashes out against ‘crappy parenting’ in new book

One of Australia’s leading psychologists has issued a damning assessment of Australian parents: you are doing a crap job.
Dr Michael Carr-Gregg’s new book, Strictly Parenting, includes a chapter titled “The Unfortunate Rise of Crap Parenting”. In it he details some of the “dysfunctional, over-involved parenting styles that have emerged in the past two decades”.
As Dr Carr-Gregg notes in the book, some people “may be offended by the term ‘crap’, arguing that parenting is hard enough without psychologists slagging them off for being incompetent”.
“But the truth is that they are crappy,” he said.
The problem, he told the Herald Sun, is a “vitamin ‘N’ deficiency in Australian parenting”.
“Learn to say no,” he said.
...>

http://www.news.com.au/national/nsw-act/child-psychologist-dr-michael-carrgregg-lashes-out-against-crappy-parenting-in-new-book/story-fnii5s3x-1227033801984