This is a reponse to a post on another thread at http://forum.onlineopinion.com.au/thread.asp?discussion=830#14604 concerning "How Bad is terrorism" I am putting it here to prevent putting too much off-topic material in the other thread. It also interects another current thread topic "Workchoices the hidden victims" at http://forum.onlineopinion.com.au/thread.asp?discussion=847 and the article "What do AWAs really pay?" at http://www.onlineopinion.com.au/view.asp?article=6138

Australia's claimed record low unemployment levels has become a catch-all answer to any concern about any consequence of any Federal Government policy decision. Some examples:

* A standard reponse to objections to the removeal of protection against unfair dismissal or any other abuse resulting from Howard's "Work Choices" legislation is that with such low unemplyment any worker can easily leave one job and find another.

* Once when confronted by a caller on talk-back radio in late 2005, as I seem to recall, by a woman who feared for the loss of her husband's job in a Telstra call centre due to Sol Trujillo's plan to axe at least 10,000 jobs over the next five years, Prime Minister John Howard responded that the economic propserity and low unemplyment he claimed that his government had brought about would ensrure that her husband had little to fear if his job was lost.

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(I couldn't fit my post into the 350 word limit. For the rest of this, please visit http://candobetter.org/node/98)

(Thanks for having approved my forum topic so promptly, Graham(?)) Now if you will permit me I will try to post the rest of my article below ...)

Also, hysteria about our supposed 'labor shortage' is also used as an excuse to break down Australia's immigration control. Without allowing skilled migrants into the country, it is claimed that our economic boom will be brought to a gringing halt. As a consequences the categories of 'temporary' workers allowed in under the section 457 skilled worker visa program have been expanded.

Partially as a result of 'skilled migration' under Howard who famously said on 6 December 2001 immediately prior to the Federal elections of 'We will decide who comes to this country and the circumstances in which they come', immigration has rocketed up to an unfficial 300,000 from only 68,000 in Howard's first year of office (See Ross Gittins in the Sydney Morning Herald at http://www.smh.com.au/news/opinion/backscratching-at-a-national-level/2007/06/12/1181414298095.htm

However, a good many important facts are overlooked when these claims of low unemployment are made. Many of the jobs that people are forced to take are not the same kinds of jobs that were on offer a generation or more ago. Many occupations are casualised with no career path. The hours are often shorter and unpredictable. Largely, thanks to "Work Choices" provisions for penalty rates have been effectively removed.

One categories of very unpleasant and work which appear to be booming is traffic controller. The frenetic expanson of road building to cope with our enforced poulation growth has created the necessity for ever more people to control the flow of traffic past roadworks and construction sites. It would be hard to imagine a less interesting and more unhealthy occupation than to stand at the side of a road in the hot sun from the order of six to ten hours per day breathing in poisonous car and truck fumes.

Other categories in our emplyment 'boom' would inlcude telemarketing, delivery of junk mail, casual unloading containers (low paid work that leaves one physically exhausted after having worked, and been paid for, only four hours).

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Our economy has largely shifted away from a situation where practically every motivated person could aspire to achieving a stimulating socially useful and well paid job to what we have now.

The number of jobs in Australia's now booming mining sector still seems insignificant compared to Austalia's overall population. Also, this industry is not sustainable in the longer term because it depends upon the extraction of finite non-renewable resources and is contributing unacceptably to the planet's grave current environmental problems.

Quite correct Dagget, but we haven't seen anything yet. Imagine this scenario....

Believing the "boom times" will last forever because big business and the Government tells us so, people become even more indebted to financial institutions because they mistakenly believe they'll have all the time they need to pay it back. "Hey, lets wack a new LCD TV on the credit card." "Don't worry about taking 40 years to pay off the house, we'll be able to go straight onto the pension by then and live on clover." "So we owe half a million? Who cares!"

Now, some years down the track, exactly what you predict happens Dagget and the mining boom comes to an end due to resource depletion. The world will never be the same again. We'll have the mother of all depressions and it will never end. People will starve as the "green revolution' grinds to a halt, but people will continue to carry that terrible debt. That's when it gets worse....much worse!

The Government of the day will tear up any workchoice legislation concerning "fair pay" and force all those who owe money to work off the loan. It will be structured so that those people will never be debt free and big business will have an army of slaves to work practically free of charge. Oh yes, they'll be given a sustenance wage. It's here already. It's called "work for the dole" only when times get hard, all indebted people will work for the dole.

Howard is busily laying the groundwork for this type of future, a future he knows full well is coming and will see all those mums and dad investors struggling to survive. Serves the mums and dads right I say. It is, after all, their greed that continues to prop up a business regime whose only interest lies in making even more obscene profits at the expense of all who fall into their ruthless trap.

yes, aime, you're right: pollies are nasty. but you have just said that most ozzies are dim. you're right there, too.

so what's the solution? wish really hard that pollies will be kind uncles? that's the usual suggestion. bound to work some day, and may be we'll all win lotto if it doesn't. so relax, she'll be right.

Demos said....
"but you have just said that most ozzies are dim. you're right there, too."

Good grievous bodily harm Demos, I said no such thing, although I suppose I did allude to the fact that all mum and dad investors are greedy. Actually, I don't believe that either. I think it's more the case that mums and dads have been conned into thinking that politicians can somehow manage to keep the economy wheels in motion despite the fact that resource depletion is already starting to bite. Australia is over populated for the amount of arable land available on the continent and Howard's mob insists on bringing in more and more foreigners in order to prop up an economy that will, in due course, fail.

It's high time small investors woke up to the fact that it's THEIR hard earned that will go up in a cloud of bull dust once history repeats itself (as it will) and the economy goes belly up. If Labor is in power when it happens, the Libs will say "I told you so" like a spoilt little adolescent brat. Should the Coalition be in power, I'll laugh like hell, but I refuse to vote for either of them.

By the way Demos, what did you suggest we write on the ballot paper? I'm actually beginning to warm to the idea.