I drifted off to sleep last night after watching
the depressing late news on television.
And I thought -
how lucky I was to be living in this country.

Sure, we've got deadly animals such as -
sharks, poisonous snakes and spiders.
We've got our share of floods,
droughts, brushfires, storms, hurricanes, and the
like. Yes, we've got a high cost of living, and
property is expensive and at times poor customer
service.

But on the plus side - there's - our
stable form of government. A high
minimum wage, and a great standard of living.

Overall - we've got a great climate
and lots of sporting events to choose from.
We've got an outdoor lifestyle which is healthy.
We've got the most beautiful beaches in
the world. Plus the greatest seafood (and yummy mangoes),
and lets not forget our great healthcare system,
our unusual bird-life and animals, and best of all -
our fairly-easy-going - we're all-in-this-together-
attitude.

Your opinions please?

I absolutely agree Foxy.
We do live in the greatest land on earth, and obviously a much prized destination for both immigration and tourism.

I particularly enjoy our laid back lifestyle, with most people who don't take themselves too seriously and are welcoming to all who come to Australia.
We don't take our politics or religions too seriously, and that is very refreshing in this often uptight world!

Mostly I like that Australians can laugh at themselves and laugh with others too.
We have a rare, irreverent humour at times :)

Where does this "good life" exist because I want to move there.
What do I see on my daily morning walk? Piles of rubbish dumped in the street, Chinese brothels,an ugly Islamic prayer hall, empty shops, ugly sub-standard apartment blocks, graffiti on every wall, fence and sign. Drug addicts roaming about High st and Preston Market, people drinking under the Oak trees near the footy ground, the pokie pubs where only alchoholics and gambling addicts still go, knots of young Aboriginals and Africans smoking outside centrelink in Murray Rd with their glazed, red eyes. Two dollar shops, Pho bars and Chinese barbecue joints which never seem to have any customers, the few remaining old men at the Marche club and the last Greek cafe.
I was up in central Victoria on Saturday to attend a memorial service and there's no "good life" in country towns either unless you're independantly wealthy, yeah sure you have the bush but you won't have a job, one old timer I was talking put it this way: "The only export this town has ever produced has been it's young people".

What was good about Oz was the freedoms we enjoyed while growing up. We had very little crime and in fact, security was never really an issue when I was a young kid as everyone respected everyone else.

What's bad about Oz is this freedoms we used to take for granted are now fast eroding and security is now high on the list of our day to day lives.

Personally, I blame certain races who have been allowed to call this once peace loving nation home. I can back this up by simply pointing out that our crimes are all so often being committed by people who's name are near on impossible to pronounce.

Sorry, but the Australia I grew up in is no longer available for my kids kids to grow up in and that sucks.

I dunno Butch,
The way I look at it it's the fact that little has changed in the working class areas except that everything is now more expensive, Brunswick and Flemington were full of White and Southern European hoodlums when I moved down here in 1988 but at least you could rent a run down two story terrace house for 150 a week. Now we've "progressed", the inner city is full of African and West Asian hoodlums but a run down two story terrace is now $700 a week.
I'm also only earning about as much as I was in 1988 in real dollar terms, at 21 I was on $25 an hour as a leading hand on a union site and working five days a week with overtime on Saturdays, now I'm self employed and charging $90 an hour but getting about three days work a week, if that.

Oh sorry Foxy, I forgot what I don't like about Australia.
I don't like whingers who blame everyone else for their unhappiness or problems.
I also don't like those that live in the past and constantly go on about the 'good ol' days'.
Lastly, I really the dislike racists and bigots who pollute our multicultural society.