Politics Super Thread - keep it all in here

[TillLindemann]

It's been said that China is desperate to lift their birth rate, they have fallen into the same trap as other generally well educated and wealthy nations and stopped having kids. The one child policy has contributed heavily to this and has been reversed in order to arrest the falling birth rates. Apparently their population could dip as low as half of their current 1.1bn.

This year is the tipping point - their population will start shrinking this year. Will make it hard for their economy, especially as they rely so heavily on construction. Ecologically it is good.

 

[TillLindemann]

Kevin Rudd has an interview about China up on YouTube. If you can get through his demeanour, it’s interesting.

He talks about the recent governmental interference with their market that seems to be increasing.

Levers and handles now being pulled that weren’t even looked at a few years ago.

Xi Jinping is very different than other recent Chinese leaders. He is more autocratic, and less competent.

 

[Magpie_Magic]

European populations are largely stagnant since WW1.

Paper economic growth rates may look poor but people are living better.

It seems when western materialism fuses with nations that primarily had strong family values you get people not marrying and having as many kids aka southern and eastern Europe, Korea, China etc.

As does expensive housing.

 

[FinestTigers]

European populations are largely stagnant since WW1.

Paper economic growth rates may look poor but people are living better.

It seems when western materialism fuses with nations that primarily had strong family values you get people not marrying and having as many kids aka southern and eastern Europe, Korea, China etc.

As does expensive housing.

The Baby bonus scheme was intended to support parents with the costs of raising their newborns and also to encourage the growth of Australia's worrying fertility rate.

In 2013, the receivable amount was slashed from $5,000 to about $2000.

With today's world economic crisis and the very high cost of living (housing, food, fuel, and stagnant wages) there can be no amount of Baby bonus that could fix our worrying fertility rate.

The fertility rate will remain stagnant and even decline, unless of course the govt. Is willing to pay over $50,000 for each baby which then might move the fertility rate by an inch.

So Until then, we should all be welcoming all of those skilled migrants who are coming here and who are in fact contributing billions of dollars to our economy.

 

[InBenjiWeTrust]

On economic calculation

 

[Papacito]

We need to put in place a system where when a company’s revenue exceeds a certain amount they are taxed on revenue not profit.

It’s too easy for multinationals to fake a loss. They do this by having multiple divisions, especially overseas divisions where there are tax havens, charge (invoice) other areas of the company so it looks like a division is loosing money, when in fact they are not. Instead they are just transferring funds overseas by internal invoices. It’s a bit more complicated than that but that’s the basis of it.

That’s how multinationals avoid paying tax. It’s a bookkeeping trick. It’s rife in the high tech industries as I am sure it is with most multinationals.

Yes, there are a lot of guilty parties. Uber is one of the worst:

Uber Australia coins it in pandemic, pays pocket fluff in tax - Michael West

Uber Australia’s which defines its drivers as “partners” not employees, is coining it with $7.3 billion in "collections". What’s the scam?

michaelwest.com.au

 

[TSP]

The Baby bonus scheme was intended to support parents with the costs of raising their newborns and also to encourage the growth of Australia's worrying fertility rate.

In 2013, the receivable amount was slashed from $5,000 to about $2000.

With today's world economic crisis and the very high cost of living (housing, food, fuel, and stagnant wages) there can be no amount of Baby bonus that could fix our worrying fertility rate.

The fertility rate will remain stagnant and even decline, unless of course the govt. Is willing to pay over $50,000 for each baby which then might move the fertility rate by an inch.

So Until then, we should all be welcoming all of those skilled migrants who are coming here and who are in fact contributing billions of dollars to our economy.

Yep, that’s my understanding of it too.

When China bites the bullet and reclaims Taiwan, I’d be more than happy to offer sanctuary to many Taiwanese.

And people forget that China is the biggest investor in Taiwan. You’re kind of half invading yourself.

But we need the government into housing across different levels, and sympathetic regional growth, fed by technology.

 

[TSP]

As for overall population growth, the environment would be better served if it slowed down but this would be more easily accomplished if we shared resources.

Take the need away for more kids I guess.

Then again, humankind wastes a lot of resources as it is.

In the long run, the planet can’t survive, scientists say this is the human epoch, but it’s not indefinite here.

If we end the world with wmd there’s talk of bugs and critters taking over for the next couple of milllions of years. That will be a riot. The mandible era.

You wonder whether the next generation of dominant life form will invent rugby league and then a future version of the Wests Tigers.

They could build a time machine and bring back high profile forum buddies @Demps and @WT2K to intervene and sign Bellamy at birth so when he comes of coaching age, whole of life contract.

Souths ex Richo as CEO and his own donut factory into the contract.

To the stars…

 

[FinestTigers]

If we end the world with wmd there’s talk of bugs and critters taking over for the next couple of milllions of years. That will be a riot. The mandible era.

Humans can never obliterate all humans, but those ones who will remain after a nuclear war will most likely be those who were in power and billionaires.

But they won't be known as billionaires then, they'll just be like those paesant farmers that they used to abuse and made their fake wealth from.

Those that used to be billionaires will be tilling the land and try to grow whatever that they can to feed their sick and hungry stomachs under a nuclear winter, while forever cursing their collegues for pushing that red button.

Would any one of them want to give up their comforts of life and push that damned red button?

 

[Jedi_Tiger]

Full credit to Albanese telling Mr Bandt to pull his head in over not standing in front of the Australian flag on Monday

 

[jadtiger]

I will put this in the politics thread because it was Right Wing nutter politics (Trump) which caused it by stacking the court with hardline conservatives.The US supreme court have overturned the federal right of women to have abortions which basically throws the country into the "ideas" of the 16th century.
Guns are legal and out of control in a crazy society and now another act which hurts the majority of americans.

 

[BZN]

Incredibly, we shut down most of our refineries and have scant storage space for local or export.

Soon we will hear our leaders speak of supplying "democracy oil" and "freedom gas" but even re exports we are hamstrung because of a lack of storage.

Santos had loads of issues from "greenies" trying to get their local pipeline approved and it won't be ready for 5 years.

Oil will be $175 within 3 months in my opinion.

We are not placed well enough to help ourselves or export.

Anybody "Green " out there?

Independent but she missed out.
Dr. whatever his name is from the Libs re-elected.

 

[BZN]

With apologies to Banjo Paterson.


There was movement through the nation, for the word had passed around
That the voters there had finally had their say,
And had voted independent – who were mostly Canberra bound –
The Libs thought hard about where blame might lay.
All the so-called “hard right” Liberals blamed the so-called Doctors’ wives,
As they poured through numbers on election night,
For the pollies love the counting – it consumes most of their lives,
The pundits thought the blame lay on the Right.

There was Frydenberg who made his move when Petro tossed it in,
Made Kooyong his then settled in for life,
And imagined that the Lodge would be a prize that he could win,
If he could walk the middle road without much strife.
Tim Wilson hailed from Goldstein and he’d long had much to say,
He hated super, anti-bikie laws and tax,
Look back some years – director of the bloody IPA?!
“A moderate” is a tag that Wilson lacks.

And one was there – a stripling – on the Labor side of things,
Who’d lost some weight and smartened up his image,
‘Cause it’s never really over ‘til the fat, old lady sings –
He was really looking forward to the scrimmage.
Some early slips took bark off and the Libs went for the kill,
But Albanese managed to fight back,
The polls were trending nicely but there yet remained a hill –
The Murdoch rags kept sending up the flak.

So Rupert put his bets on and he doubled down of course,
Scared editors around the country bowed,
And after dark the Sky team poured their own vile type of sauce,
On the Commie, socialistic sort of crowd.
The Indies knew the relevance of Murdoch’s sort of press,
Had nothing like the clout of other days,
So they tweeted and they door knocked on each eligible address –
Hoped to prove that grass roots politicking pays.

The counting it had started and the Libs weren’t looking good
And recriminations came throughout the night,
‘Cause each and every seat that had an Indie who had stood,
Showed the Coalition’s sad and sorry plight.
Even Ant Green wouldn’t call it – “It’s a mess” – he might have said,
As he slowly gave the nod to Albanese,
And the benches in the parliament kept turning shades of red
While the Teals took seats in ways that looked quite easy.

And down at Tory central where the monied people live,
Instead of caviar they dined on mutton,
And they counted numbers carefully, and knew they had to give
The opposition leader’s gig to Dutton.
And he’ll wheel ‘em - oh he’ll wheel ‘em – oh he’ll wheel ‘em to the right,
Where half the Libs don’t really want to go,
They’ll spend terms in opposition if they give up on that fight,
And they’ll learn you reap the seeds that you might sow.

Very clever @Mac It amazes me how you can get those rhyming words and still make the story sensible.......sheer poetry eh

 

[GNR4LIFE]

I will put this in the politics thread because it was Right Wing nutter politics (Trump) which caused it by stacking the court with hardline conservatives.The US supreme court have overturned the federal right of women to have abortions which basically throws the country into the "ideas" of the 16th century.
Guns are legal and out of control in a crazy society and now another act which hurts the majority of americans.

Child support is about to go through the roof. I can already hear Conservative white men in the South saying “Wait, this affects me too?”

 

[BZN]

We need to put in place a system where when a company’s revenue exceeds a certain amount they are taxed on revenue not profit.

It’s too easy for multinationals to fake a loss. They do this by having multiple divisions, especially overseas divisions where there are tax havens, charge (invoice) other areas of the company so it looks like a division is loosing money, when in fact they are not. Instead they are just transferring funds overseas by internal invoices. It’s a bit more complicated than that but that’s the basis of it.

That’s how multinationals avoid paying tax. It’s a bookkeeping trick. It’s rife in the high tech industries as I am sure it is with most multinationals.

G'day Mike.......you sound just like the sort of bloke WT need on their Board
I your new avatar btw.

 

[BZN]

Yeah, so maybe you get credit for CAPEX by the Australian company or division. Maybe that ups the threshold on a dollar by dollar basis for when you start taxing revenue. That may actually encourage CAPEX expenditure. There would be a way to do it so as not to stifle CAPEX. But that is not the area where multinationals fake a loss. It’s the internal invoicing by overseas divisions the allows the loss occur.

WOW!!! you definitely need to be on Our Board.
And take that other old dude CobarCats with you eh .

 

[BZN]

In fairness to Payne seems like she was very much hamstrung and it's not fair to play her off against Wong when she had a government unwilling to listen to her advice.

Was it Payne that called that Liberal Staffer girl that was reportedly raped in Parlt. House a lying [This word has been automatically removed], or similar?

 

[Cultured_Bogan]

Was it Payne that called that Liberal Staffer girl that was reportedly raped in Parlt. House a lying *****, or similar?

Not sure. Either way, while comments like that are awful, but it doesn't change that she was ignored by her colleagues which resulted in a massive shift in regional power dynamic.

 

[BZN]

Interesting.

Smaller population is good in some ways, bad in others. I think their population is aging and people need to work to keep the oldsters going like us.

For the west, maybe the regular couple wanted more material things instead of kids.

Now the cost of living is really kicking in.

Put prices up at work and already customers are pushing back.

Your factory Chinese isn’t altogether wealthy. Tough life for many,

And I hope you are working at least 12 hours per day 6 days per week to keep an "oldster" like me going.
I need to keep living my laid back Baby-boomer Lifestyle going so I need a BIG increase in my 'old age pension'.
Btw, on the 7th day you can rest and enjoy watching WT.

 

[Nelson]

Was it Payne that called that Liberal Staffer girl that was reportedly raped in Parlt. House a lying *****, or similar?

Close, I think the reports were that it was Linda Reynolds and "lying cow".