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1
Blah-Blah Bar / Re: Shawny’s concerns about Victorian and Australian Governments
Last post by Lods -
Quote from: Professer E – on
See this is the point that some are making. It's easy to rite off ON as "populist" or call them whatever names you like, but it's a choice, which is about the only thing we have left.  Who is actually worth voting for and can form a viable, effective government - in for example Victoria?  Labour is clouded in a miasma of corruption and incompetence, and the Libs haven't been an effective opposition for years. Plus they couldn't be trusted to run a chook raffle. In the end it's personal choice, the only part of the Democratic process left to us.

That's quite true.
And given the failure of the traditional major parties you can see that some may look to something different.

It may be that the attraction of an alternative needs to be tested by a spell in power before folks understand the ramifications of that choice.
It's possible that experience would put the alternative to rest once and for all.

But the major problem I'm guessing at is that the Victorian election will throw up a dog's breakfast...and stability will be difficult to achieve.
3
Blah-Blah Bar / Re: Shawny’s concerns about Victorian and Australian Governments
Last post by Professer E -
See this is the point that some are making. It's easy to rite off ON as "populist" or call them whatever names you like, but it's a choice, which is about the only thing we have left.  Who is actually worth voting for and can form a viable, effective government - in for example Victoria?  Labour is clouded in a miasma of corruption and incompetence, and the Libs haven't been an effective opposition for years. Plus they couldn't be trusted to run a chook raffle. In the end it's personal choice, the only part of the Democratic process left to us.
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Blah-Blah Bar / Re: Shawny’s concerns about Victorian and Australian Governments
Last post by Thryleon -
Quote from: dodge – on
This isn't disagreeing, with you Thry, but a quick look at the other side...and sorry, it's a longer post than anticipated...

I would be wary of LNP promises and totally dismissive of ON...

LNP are promising to reduce the government wages bill.  Fine.  But where from and what services are going to be reduced is the important part.  As long as the public service isn't replaced by the consulting firms, which leads to an absolute disaster - no accountability, no public service knowledge and no IP retained in the departments and a cost that is eye watering.  It is also additional cost and spending that gives no long term benefit to the state.

What are the LNP plans to replace the CFA trucks? They plan to scrap the fire services levy - so where is the funding coming from?

$5b to fix 1m pot holes - $5k each?  Really?  Better to bring back the Country Road boards and have crews do it properly, rather than privateers who can do a half-Ar34ed job, so it crumbles two weeks later.

They have just announced re-opening trains to Mildura and Dimboola at a cost of $51m.  Is that for the feasibility study? Surely after 30+ years of not running it will cost heaps more to get the tracks back up to standard, get the trains and re-furb the stations.

As for ON who want zero analysis of their policies and costings - let alone any criticism.  Easy to scream about problems, but give a costed viable alternative - everything offered so far costs - where are the savings?  I do however like their Environment policy which talks about saving Koalas and other flora.  Went to a nursery the other week to ask for a Koala plant, but they didn't have any.

SRL is a bit ugly.  It is an inheritance that whoever wins will receive.  LNP to pause and review (a favorite strategy of theirs, so they don't actually have to do anything), with a hint that it will be scrapped.  ON will scrap it.  Labor will continue with it.  Scrapping it means losing everything that has been put into it and cost of paying out contracts.  It seems as if promises are to then fund cost of living relief education etc, however, does providing this bring a better economic outlook to Vic?  Is it better to pay the cancellation or go ahead - the East West Link debate.

Law and order - if the current gov isn't meeting police recruiting targets, how are LNP going to meet theirs (3k) and ON theirs (10k military veterans)?

I really just want the answers to a few questions there are probably a few more: 
1) How are you going to help the lives of the most vulnerable in our society.
2) How are you going to responsibly ensure infrastructure is in place and maintained for the current and anticipated populations
3) What on going actions are you taking to decrease the cost of living pressures/cost of business in an operational sense ie not just providing government subsidies, but meaningful, sustainable decreases?
4) How are you going to help bring our communities back together so that reasonable debate and togetherness is achieved, rather than aggressive us v them style arguments?
I actually didnt post a side, I simply asked an AI, and gave a response that gave credit to both labor and liberal parties.

I dont take One Nation seriously.  If they gain ascendency it should be viewed with the appropriate lens, and that is the lens of up yours to the traditional parties, and a bit wake up call that they are out of touch.

Ultimately, im no fan boy.  Ive spent most of my adulthood voting labor, and im flipping to Liberal since the last election.

I dont see myself as winning or losing off the back of either vote, its simply a matter of balance.



7
Blah-Blah Bar / Re: Shawny’s concerns about Victorian and Australian Governments
Last post by LP -
Just an example of the above and how it is manipulated.

Hanson defends the abuse of Lambie by claiming it's just a joke, she has to get over it, have a sense of humour.

If a similar cartoon or joke is made about Hanson she rallies her social media stormtroopers claiming it's just another example of oppression from the mythical "deep state", the "big end of town" defending it's turf, she is for the little people, for the loners, the true Australians (as long as your name isn't Lambie it seems) and she does this at a rally funded by someone like Gina Reinhart.

The media love it, they suck it up and propagate the myth for profit, while social media beats the drum completely blind to hypocrisy.
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Blah-Blah Bar / Re: Shawny’s concerns about Victorian and Australian Governments
Last post by LP -
You can see how easy it is for the lunatics to cross the line beyond reason, they incapable of separating emotion from fantasy.

But the problem isn't resolved by normal politics or public discussion, because much of what is rally against is fantasy, and the ultimate driver is rooted in the professional media. Sycophants like the Karl, Kyle and Joe who beat a drum for obscene profit. Then you get the absurdity of social media, which will often attack those who call out the sycophants by labelling the critics "Jones pedo sympathisers", incapable of seeing that the problem exists in the extremities.

That is a little window into the mind of the nutter. Perceiving a world which to them appears that 'everyone else' is an extremist, a Andrew Tait or an Alan Jones, with someone like themself and Kyle Sandilands in the middle ground! :o

The fix is to hold the media and social media giants to account, make them responsible for the riots they incite, make them pay fines in billion$ not just million$, much as some regions have already started doing with the likes of Apple and Microsoft. The only language they understand is cash.
9
Blah-Blah Bar / Re: Shawny’s concerns about Victorian and Australian Governments
Last post by Lods -
Folks are free to vote for who they like.
And naturally we gravitate towards those parties that reflect our own views and values.

I suspect the big issue facing Victoria once the election is over will be stability.
If no party has an absolute majority they are going to need the support of a secondary or minor party to govern. The combinations available probably suggest there is little chanc of that being a stable or sustainable relationship.

One of the problems One Nation faces, and we saw it in the SA election, is that their support probably wont be even across the board. They'll be strong in some areas but poor in others, and that won't necessarily translate to a lot of seats...but it might, as their support is fluid and their influence increases with the current impotence of the LNP.

A One Nation-LNP coalition wouldn't last as long as a snowball in hell and any relationship is likely to be one decided on individual pieces of legislation.

You would probably be back at the polls next year.

Then there's the loose cannon that is One Nation's leader. Who will probably want to have some influence in Victoria.

You can see Barnaby Joyce, (who's  bit of a loose cannon himself, but a little more politically aware) standing beside Pauline and it's almost like he's thinking to himself..."Please don't say anything stupid that I'm going to have to go out and explain or defend."