The government is only in for 3 years, if their policies are crap, then the voters will get rid of them and the new government will change them. That is what democracy is about.

What we have is governments being unable to implement the policies they promised the voters because the previous incumbents are blocking it.

The reason I gave two examples is to show that it is happening to both sides.

Dear SM,

«The government is only in for 3 years, if their policies are crap, then the voters will get rid of them and the new government will change them.»

Yes, but 3 years is more than enough to ruin someone completely - physically, emotionally, mentally and spiritually.

If you are after examples, then my example is the Roman policy that Jews must eat pork. The Roman army entered Jewish villages, set up stages on which they roasted pigs and the villagers who refused to eat were slain on the spot. It all took less than a minute.

So long as the policies affect only the public realm, that's OK - just have safeguards in place that the government's decisions do not devastate people in their private life.

Oops, my mistake: these were the Greeks of course, not the Romans - and this policy resulted in the Maccabi rebellion.

It is true! Shadow Minister said it and I agree! if both houses face election for three year terms at the same time we could expect the wrath of the voters on bad government, but too an elected government could get its bills in place, any answer that installs the ability of minority's to blackmail us can not be right

How far with the opt out do you want to go Yuyutsu.

If people don't want to comply with the society they live in, they should also not benefit, but where to stop.

Obviously they should not benefit from tax payer funded welfare or health care. Their kids should not be eligible for public education, & they should not be eligible for publicly funded health care.

But how about the public funded road system, water & sewerage systems, or the protection of them & their property by the police service.

I'm afraid that you will have to submit to all the rules of the society if you want to benefit from any. Deciding to benefit from any facilities obviously requires you to help fund those facilities.

I've sailed much of the nicer areas of the Pacific, & I just can't find a suitable unclaimed island where you could survive trying to live your independent life. Best just pay your taxes & use the facilities, or accept the rules if you are being supported by the taxes of others.

One good thing about the Senate is that we now have General Jim Molan in it. The Australian political class has been lacking military expertise, which has seen Canberra caught on the wrong foot time and time again. Consequently, these no-hopers are apathetic and indecisive. As Molan has said, China has won in the South China Sea: mainly because the rest of the world, and the useless UN, have allowed China to get away with illegal behaviour - aided by the cowardice of the Australian government and others in the region.

The situation is regarded by Senator Molan as a “lost cause” for Australia. China can now close the sea to shipping if it so chooses. And our political class just sat back and did nothing. It's a pity that Molan wasn't in Canberra when Chinese aggression in our region took the shape it did