Now would be a good time for the Federal Government to pledge fifteen billion dollars for the Olympic Dam expansion in return for half the profits, and three billion dollars for Fairfax in return for a controlling interest in its management, to be run by the ABC.
If one third pf the Olympic Dam money were to be spent in 2013-2014, and all of the Fairfax money, the eight billion dollars could be raised by a levy of twelve dollars a week on each taxpayer, who would get it back tenfold after the dam is up and running. A government bank could be acquired in the same way, and Qantas. And a flood and fire insurance company.
This would return the Labor Party to where it used to be, a useful entrepreneurial socialist enterprise, of the people, by the people, for the people.
Discuss.
Name:
Yay! Socialism!
Good ideas Bob, bold and over the horizon. It occurs to me that, if suggested, they will be gasbagged by pettifoggers until the wind has left the sails and the ideas lie forlornly amid the detritus of debate.
It’s too bad our political system doesn’t allow for the position of three wise men who are authorised to direct the govt to make these types of ‘for the common good’ decisions.
This is a good idea that should be fed into the Light on the Hill speech in Bathurst in September.
Brilliant. (My only reservation is whether the Fairfax venture is of negligible gain [socially & economically], and if that 3 billion could be better directed to fund a new ABC channel/online outlet, commissioned to be explicitly more progressive, less “balanced”).
OR (with that idea being deemed too ‘political’) perhaps a new grants initiative –as is done with community radio– making funds available to new not-for-profit papers to start up… thence, realistically, it will only be hard Lefty one’s that will run away with it.
Excellent idea Bob. I have a bridge I would like to sell to the Labor Party. Fairly cheap too…and when the proverbial hits the fan, Labor has a ready made excuse I can feed them.
“We did nuffin’ wrong. We wuz young and naive!”
I reckon Fairfax and the ABC will buy that excuse.
I reckon a bridge is also an excellent idea for a ‘PPP’, Frank — nice one.
So there will be no call for uranium in the future you say, or not enough call to make mining of it profitable?
Please say yes or no.
Or be banned for life.
Fairfax is already four fifths of the way to the knackers yard, entirely through their own efforts.
They’ll be gone in three years and won’t be missed.
Yes they will.
Yes, they will.
The $15,000,000,000 would first have to borrowed from China before you “pledge” it.
Perhaps socialists might like to start on something modest like running a fish and chip shop. Let’s see how they go.
Was Pauline a socialist, Simon?
Also, Simon, the suggested “levy of twelve dollars a week on each taxpayer,” is modest enough…
(given the ALP policy approach, it would be a progressive levy and exempt those earning under $50,000 pa, I’d imagine, too)
Fairfax is f–ked. The neo cons will reign supreme. Egalitarianism is F–ked. It is the Australian/American way
Nationalise the bastards. Can’t run an airline, can’t make money out of refining petrol, take industries over just to close them down – government control would be worse how?
Leave it in the ground I reckon. What would be wrong with borrowing money from China? Get used to it. How would it go down if staff from the Chinese Embassy were making casual ‘social’ visits to Doug Cameron?
National salvation? Teach every kid mandarin, pump the money from the stupid mine into education and R&D, reform media content rules, increase taxes, start a program of de-urbanisation/regional development, increase the refugee intake to 50,000 with a planned settlement program using government sponsored enterprises. Oh yeah, and tell the USA to go and fuck themselves and maybe run our own country. You have to watch the bastards said Gore Vidal on the early 70′s version of QANDA, this is the CIA’s business, usurping governments.
One needs only to look at the role of central authority in China and how that single component of control gives them the huge economic edge.
Socialism? This is 19th century terminology. 21st century socialism does not exist in this country. Not in reality or in thought.
How much of that profit would have gone overseas? How much of BHP is Australian owned? Beside the point that obviously the mine will no longer be profitable?
The day Obama gave his speech to Beijing from Canberra, I went camping. I stopped at a servo near Avalon Airport, waiting in line behind an American woman who was about to try and pay for her mars bar and coke with American dollars. She was stunned, ‘oh you don’t U.S. dollars?’ I can remember the little green pyramids. I didn’t hesitate to appear the xenophobe, and I will quite happily admit to finding the American accent in its many forms to be spine chilling. Whether it be in a lecture theatre or a servo. It is a disgusting sound. Anyway, I felt sick the whole weekend, from the time I left the house and well, I still feel sick. It is sickening. Mark Arbib. Why did Rudd challenge from NY? After meeting Beazley? Who cares? Crayon time. Set it to purple.
There will be another Fukushima within ten years. What then?
Abbott and Gillard are both as fucked as each other. Americanisation of politics she says. Anti-misogynist pro-Gillard nut cases are running and ruining both the discourse and the left in general. Wake up.
Here is a question. Is it racist to be anti-American or to sterotype Americans as you seem to be doing? If not, what is it called?
The Americans are not one race. It is not racist but ‘anti-American’: a stance that should be no more derided than ‘anti-fascist’ or ‘anti-Communist’ or ‘occupy Wall Street’. It is an opinion of how the world should be. How can that be racist?
dawsonb,is it racist or anti-Australian to say that Abbott and Gillard are both as fucked up as each other?
Reply to Bob. Just asking: when somebody stereotypes a whole multitude of accents and derogates them, I think it is worthy of comments just as if I said I hate the way Chinese speak. To Helvi, mo it is not racist or anti-Australian to make that comment about Gillard and Abbott; it is just an intelligent comment.
Of course, I meant no and not mo, curse these fingers.
I don’t get this William. “Teach every kid mandarin”? Whatever for? “start a program of de-urbanisation/regional development” When are you moving and where to? Start a trend.
As for your ignorant anti-Americanism (hating their accent?) or judging 307 million people on a single visitor? Did you know that only about 10% of Americans have passports? That ANY American you see here is part of a mere 10%.
Get to the United States. Get to know not only the diversity, but the friendliness of most Americans and you might broaden your mind a bit. IF, by some strange chance you actually have been to the USA then all I can say is “There’s none so blind….”
One billion Mandarin speakers. We already speak Engrish pretty well you know. It is rather self-explanatory.
Some people don’t like cats because of the hair, or dogs because they feel unsafe. Personally I like to fall asleep on the train, on the way home from the city, listening to old Ukrainians speak in a language I can’t understand. It is soothing. As opposed to the culture I’ve grown up in, the one saturated by the mundane U.S. media machine. Bazinga.
Why is Savage Garden seen as the height of Australian musical ability? Or Nicole Kidman in acting? Or why does ‘Red Dog’ have an American star?
Doug Cameron says on national TV, the US embassy sends its suited goons round on ‘social visits’, What the fuck for?
Kristina Kerscher Keneally is unelectable. Why? Because she speaks auditory sand paper, yet somehow she gets to be Premier and while committing electoral suicide- and you tell me I’m blind.
The west, is depressed.
Thank you William, your words show the clarity of your thoughts.
Oh, and Nicole Kidman is obviously eligible to become a member of the 5-star “Wooden Players” in more ways than just one then.
Interesting William. BTW You are looking a little horse lately.
I think you are wrong about Keneally. What she actually did was to put her hand up to lead the Party and the State when no-one wanted the job except for Frank Sartor (who I favoured at the time) and managed to hold the losses to what in the light of Anna Bligh’s disaster now looks not so bad.
She showed courage and determination in the face of impending disaster, a disaster which was inevitable from at least the fall of Iemma in 2008.
It has been my view that Labor in NSW should have lost in 2007 but for the unelectable Debnam; the removal of a decaying government was long overdue by 2011.
Governments have a use-by date; it seems to be about 8-12 years depending on circumstances.
As for musical ability, Australia has the Sydney Symphony Orchestra, The Australian Brandenburgh Orchestra and the Australian Chamber Orchestra; all of them are world class. And that is just the Sydney-based orchestras.
Forget the fluff of popular music, go for the real thing.
“Forget the fluff of popular music”
You can’t be serious.
Never more serious.
Is it that popular music is..well… popular?
Maybe ‘of, by and for the people’ doesn’t jell?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IdSUwV4ALbg
Slap my elbow Doug.
Yes indeed, Chris is so talented. A fine send-up.
BOB! ~ see this article below:
http://www.theage.com.au/national/the-power-and-the-story-williamson-turns-his-pen-on-murdoch-a-modern-richard-iii-20120823-24p0i.html
(isn’t this a rip-off of your own long anticipated work on Murdoch??…)
Is there a long anticipated work?
The answer as to American is that What we think of as America is being taken over and ransacked by the same oligarchic forces as Australia and everywhere else in the western world.
The Americans I know are deeply concerned at the way their society goes, for the same reason we are perturbed at what has been happening here.
Anti-monopoly laws aside, it would be delightful and economically rational if the ABC took over Fairfax, as the ABC has simply out-competed them as a broadcaster. The ABC are just too good at what they do, and it isn’t fair!