Minister for 'Short Memory'

[MAPLEMAN]

Watching the ABC the other day,suddenly there is a break in regular transmission,and a N.B.N newsbreak by the LABOR party is aired...the oppositions communications minister proceeds with a barrage of nasty,continually accusing the current government of 'breaking' election promises ...i can still hear the echoes of the fallen..THERE WILL BE NO CARBON TAX ..WERE STILL GETTING $1000 POWER BILLS ...i don't wish the minister for 'SHORT MEMORY' (Jason Claire)a merry christmas...maybe he can send me some ham,as we,along with millions of others,are bloody battling...sick to death of politicians and their rhetoric,as i am sure most of you are..Merry Christmas to all the battlers out there..MM

[artme]

Well said sire!!!

I notice all the circus clowns in Australia have expressed the same
opinion as Bill Shorten about the impending closure of Holden. Taxi
drivers have also, joined the cue!

Mind you I do feel for the workers who will be out of work, but Newcastle
adjusted very well to the closure of BHP there so I think some hope is
still in order.

[MAPLEMAN]

Well said sire!!!

I notice all the circus clowns in Australia have expressed the same
opinion as Bill Shorten about the impending closure of Holden. Taxi
drivers have also, joined the cue!

Mind you I do feel for the workers who will be out of work, but Newcastle
adjusted very well to the closure of BHP there so I think some hope is
still in order.

Shorten is minster for 'SELF IMPORTANCE''...MM

[Sebastiaan56]

I cant think of a politician that kept their promises. Politics is unfortunately/fortunately a game of compromise that forces moderation on extreme positions. The role of an opposition has become to oppose whatever because, well, you know, they are the opposition. Abbott is a past master at this, I think Shorten has a long way to go. He just cant generate the sense of panic that Abbott could. When I was young oppostions did things like come up with alternative policies and cooperate on big changes but those days are long gone. There is a 24 hour news cycle to manage and no one has the guts for structural reform any more. Which brings me to Holden.

The whole business of Holden fascinates me. As a multinational player they pit country against country to have them operate in any given area. All of these countries subsidise these parasites. The decision to leave Australia was probably made months if not years ago. It means an overhaul of lots of logisitics and some buckets of cash need to be allocated to close plant and equipment, pay off employees etc, etc. Im sure it was a very careful decision made on a spreadsheet and was just waiting for the rubber stamp of the new CEO who started the day before the announcement was made. They also pulled money out of Peugeot, removed Chevrolet from Europe, etc, etc. With Ford and Holden gone it is inevitable in my opinion the Toyota will go as well. It is part of a trend that has been going on since the 60's. We will get structural reform because the world is moving on even if we dont.

Wouldnt it be great to have some pollies who had some real vision about where to go with this conundrum we have. Middle class people make things and sell them for a profit. Australia digs raw materials for other countries to process out of the ground. We compete with lower wage economies because we cant create industries that pay higher wages. We will become a low wage country, it is inevitable. We were the leaders in fields like solar research 15 years ago. Why arent we now? Because the appetite for reform went after the introduction of the GST. I dont mind the car makers going as it is 19th and 20thC technology. I would love Australia to enter the 21st C. Im pretty sure none of the current crop have what it takes.

[artme]

Well said Sebastian!!

The polies are very good at making headline grabbing speeches and doing sound bites.
What they are not good at is considered planning ang making good strategic alliances
in the areas of trade and manufacturing.

Australia has always been a hunter- gatherer type economy. We hunt and gather fish,
we gather wool we gather rocks and ship ém overseas. We are good at skiting about
our innovations and discoveries. These never seem to get us anywhere, everything
just stalls or is sold off.

As for GM and other such companies, I don't consider them to be multinational at all.
They are trans nationals, owned in one country but putting their filthy feet where ever
they can extract the greatest benefit for themselves.

Maybe Marx was correct!?

[MAPLEMAN]

Well said Sebastian!!

The polies are very good at making headline grabbing speeches and doing sound bites.
What they are not good at is considered planning ang making good strategic alliances
in the areas of trade and manufacturing.

Australia has always been a hunter- gatherer type economy. We hunt and gather fish,
we gather wool we gather rocks and ship ém overseas. We are good at skiting about
our innovations and discoveries. These never seem to get us anywhere, everything
just stalls or is sold off.

As for GM and other such companies, I don't consider them to be multinational at all.
They are trans nationals, owned in one country but putting their filthy feet where ever
they can extract the greatest benefit for themselves.

Maybe Marx was correct!?

Was in a major furniture/homewares store today (Morayfield),and was told by the franchisee that they had taken $59 for 1/2 a days trading ..not good ...i will be finalising the milling over next few weeks,and then that's it,no more ...had enough..MM

[Sebastiaan56]

The race to the bottom for prices is IMO the single biggest scary cultural change I have seem in my lifetime. Competing with lowest cost producers and distributors can lead only one way. The only people it benefits are those who can afford to finance large economies of scale. And I don't care what anyone says, quality suffers, always.

Strewth MM, that sucks, are you serious?

[MAPLEMAN]

Strewth MM, that sucks, are you serious?

Yep,as much as i love the magical process of milling,pain and associated depression is taking its toll on me Sebastian.I can't even put my shoes and socks on by myself anymore ,let alone mill and stack wood by myself.I just hope i don't slip into deeper depression when i stop,as timber has been an immeasurable joy in my life for many years.It's all i really know..MM

[beer is good]

"Wouldn't it be great to have some pollies who had some real vision"

Yes!!!!
I am getting annoyed at the lack of "vision" in Australia as our third rate pollies hurl insults at each without providing any semblance of a solution to the problems facing Australia.


Then they have audacity to rort their travel claims. Malcolm Turnbull seems to be a man who could look beyond the next ten second sound bite; or he might just be another pollie....Perhaps we should elect Dick Smith as PM.

It seems that any attempt to change anything gets shouted down and the status quo remains. The Snowy River Scheme built in the 50's and 60's and about 80 dams were built. I really don't think that we could do it today - every short sighted, self interested nutcase would bog it down in more red tape.

In August I spent six weeks in Germany and I was very impressed with their strong work ethic and the amount of construction work going on in Berlin. The EU is a bit of a basket case but Germany is cruising. Yes, they have four times our population but they also have six world-class car makers. (Mercedes, BMW, Volkswagen, Audi, Opel, Porche). Of course, they get a subsidy of about $90 per head (compared with about $18 per head in Australia), and they invent and innovate. Ford and Holden kept on making the same cars they did in the 50's, but the market changed.

I really feel for the workers, and the government should impose a tariff on imported cars to level the playing field. And Detroit should put in more of their money.

[lesmeyer]

I have to agree with the sentiments above. An observation of mine is that many people here in OZ (I have been here for 16 years) that would be in a particular age group (40 - 70) or thereabouts often come up with some great common sense ideas. However the pollies seem to be going on their own tangent spending our taxes in some ridiculous ways. As some of you have said, there is no real vision from our elected governments. As an example I do not begrudge decent schools and services, but throwing money at education alone will not fix what is wrong. I grew up in abject poverty, and those around me were also poor. However, there was no such thing as anyone in school who could not read, write and do sums. We were smacked until we could read and write and do our sums. No money needed there.
I could go on for yonks, but I am sure you get the drift.
PS. I am not advocating going back to the draconian days, but some discipline would go a long way.
Les

[rustynail]

Yep,as much as i love the magical process of milling,pain and associated depression is taking its toll on me Sebastian.I can't even put my shoes and socks on by myself anymore ,let alone mill and stack wood by myself.I just hope i don't slip into deeper depression when i stop,as timber has been an immeasurable joy in my life for many years.It's all i really know..MM

MM, Sorry to hear you are stepping away from milling. I to am unable to put on shoes and socks unaided. Being fortunate having a wife who is a physiotherapist, she came up with a sock aid that has an insert and two long straps. You slip the shoe or sock over the insert, put it on the floor, slip your foot in and pull the two straps. Works real good. Can get more info if you think it could help.
The worst thing about depression is the snow ball effect. You get depressed about being depressed and then depressed even further by being depressed about being depressed etc etc. For that reason, I refuse to down tools.
Try to keep doing a bit if you can. There is nothing harder on a true working man's disposition than having to admit defeat.
All the best,
Ken.

[MAPLEMAN]

MM, Sorry to hear you are stepping away from milling. I to am unable to put on shoes and socks unaided. Being fortunate having a wife who is a physiotherapist, she came up with a sock aid that has an insert and two long straps. You slip the shoe or sock over the insert, put it on the floor, slip your foot in and pull the two straps. Works real good. Can get more info if you think it could help.
The worst thing about depression is the snow ball effect. You get depressed about being depressed and then depressed even further by being depressed about being depressed etc etc. For that reason, I refuse to down tools.
Try to keep doing a bit if you can. There is nothing harder on a true working man's disposition than having to admit defeat.
All the best,
Ken.

Cheers Rustynail,thanks for your reply.Would certainly love more info on the sock aid ..And yes,your right in suggesting to keep doing a bit..an idle body leads to an idle mind..really appreciate you taking time out to share your thoughts,Rustynail...MM

[rustynail]

Cheers Rustynail,thanks for your reply.Would certainly love more info on the sock aid ..And yes,your right in suggesting to keep doing a bit..an idle body leads to an idle mind..really appreciate you taking time out to share your thoughts,Rustynail...MM

MM, There are two products on the market, one is called Soxon and the other Sock Aid. I prefer the Sock Aid as it is satin lined which makes it slip on much easier. The Soxon is terry toweling lined which makes it a bit harder to pull on if your feet are sweaty. Both are just under $40 and available from stores selling or hiring wheelchairs, walking aids etc. Places like disability aid stores or a good chemist should be able to help. If you dont have any luck, sing out and I'll send one up.

[chambezio]

OH Chris....That is not good news about you not milling. Being idle and letting your brain start getting twisted views on things is a downward spiral. I am talking from experience and a 25 year battle with the "Black Dog". I had to give up work because of it. If I hadn't found this Forum I am sure I wouldn't be as well as I am now. The Members of this Forum have helped me through some rough spots and I am very grateful to them. So keep us updated as to how you are travelling because we know what its like.