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redhotgreen

Listed below are comments made by redhotgreen between Wednesday, 29th April 2009 and Tuesday, 1st December 2009 (17 Hours Ago) .

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Will Abbott's victory trigger an election? 1:10pm on 01 Dec 2009 The Liberals have just done what all opposition parties do in the first year or two after losing government; they stampede to their safe ground. For the Labor party it's the far left and the Liberals the far right. The only problem is you can't win government in Australia unless you take the middle ground.

Electing Abbott will condemn the Liberals to electoral defeat and they might do it a couple more times before they get it right and choose someone who is not far anything.

As for 'democracythreat', an increase in the frequency and duration of droughts, an increase in the number of extreme fire danger days, and rising sea levels for a country where around 80 percent of the population lives on the coast. Fashionable indeed.
The Republican Referendum: Ten Years On 09:03am on 05 Nov 2009 The Monarchists should celebrate while they still can. The referendum defeat in '99 was a setback for Republicans but that was all it was. You have to remember that the first time the Australian colonies talked about federation, it failed. It took more than a decade before the subject was back on the agenda and some more years yet to come to fruition. It was inevitable then that Australia would federate and become an independent nation and it is also inevitable that Australia will become a republic, the only question is when?

John Howard played a good game and the Republican movement was outplayed. Howard's legacy (and that of the Monarchists) will be that for a few brief years he held back the tide of Australian public opinion, not something to be celebrating i would have thought.
Is Australia needy for acclaim? 11:18am on 09 Oct 2009 Given the geographic isolation, what tends to get reported internationally are stories about kangaroos or sharks (and occasionally both at the same time). The stereotype of the boozing Aussie, sitting on a beach having a good time doesn't leave much room for Australia to be included when more serious discussions arise.

Despite this, i don't think Australia is particularly needy. Australians like to be involved in whatever is going on, and when our contribution is overlooked, it can get a bit frustrating. If Australia was in the North Atlantic, it would get more recognition and for more diverse achievements.
The wonder from down under 08:38am on 08 Sep 2009 19 years without recession is impressive and as Nick has already pointed out there are many reasons. Firstly though, Australia is not the only country endowed with mineral wealth, so the argument that our prosperity is only derived from what we dig out of the ground simply doesn't hold up.

Bob Hawke and Paul Keating deserve considerable credit for three keys reforms that have been vital to Australia avoiding recession. An independent Reserve Bank, the floating of the dollar and the massive national savings generated by Superannuation. The later is a major reason Australian banks avoided the worst of the sub-prime mess, as they had access to a considerable amount of domestic cash and didn't need to get money from overseas to use for lending (particularly from the US).

Costello and Howard should get considerable praise because they paid off the national debt (although much of it was achieved by asset sales) and maintained budget surpluses. The irony is that because they gave so much of the surpluses away as tax cuts, the extra cash in people's pockets helped to increase inflation (ridiculous oil prices was the other main reason). Interest rates then had to go up, which was a big factor in their electoral defeat in 2007.

Both the left and right of Australian politics recognise the need for almost continual economic reform. The disagreements are about how far the reforms should go, not whether they are needed or not. So maybe the politicians should recognise the true architects of our continued economic success, the Australian people, for electing reformist governments for the past couple of decades.
Australian cultural creep, not cringe 10:59am on 31 Aug 2009 I still think there is cultural cringe in Australia, not as much as the past but still evident in the way Australia sees itself, or more correctly, the way we think others see us. Take for example Australian tourism ads, all of which feature the outdoor lifestyle with the almost total exclusion of culture.

There is no mention of the enormous range of fantastic food, the many music and film festivals, art galleries, symphony orchestras or interesting architecture on offer, to name just some of the cultural delights missing from our sales pitch to the world. It is always beaches, BBQ's or buggering off to somewhere remote, all fabulous to be sure, but not the whole picture by a long way.
Obama stardust for teflon Rudd? 12:35pm on 07 Aug 2009 I think Obama likes Rudd because they are both professorial in manner; both of them are long-winded when off script. The main difference in personality being that when they try to appear as the 'every man', Obama's 'beer with blokes' was convincing whereas Rudd's saucy comments was not.

As for poor Malcolm, Australians can appreciate someone with a bit of flash, but not in place of substance. He also seems impatient that he isn't already PM. Ambition is good, but not when it is worn on the sleeve.
The Intellectual Health of the Nation 08:00am on 29 Jul 2009 I lived the first 31 years of my life in Australia before moving to continental Europe for work six years ago. I had always assumed that Australia was a little insular, so you can imagine my surprise to find nearly everyone I met, from many different countries, were also quite narrow minded and parochial. The worst i came across though, were the Americans and British (this is not a dig at you Nick). Whilst i wouldn't want to suggest that those I met were the intellectual elite of their nation, they were supposed to be some of the best minds in their field. I now feel that if I am going to live in a parochial nation, it might as well be one with great wine and sunshine.
Should Poms be denied the vote? 10:49am on 24 Jun 2009 My guess is that Kevin Rudd and Wayne Swan are cursing Mr. Melham right now. Just when they have Malcolm Turnbull on the ropes, Daryl pops his head up and tries to change the subject.

We are talking about a group of people that represents slightly more than 1 percent of voters, and even if they all lived in the same electorate, they still wouldn't vote the same as each other, as Daryl Melham seems to imply.

Many of them have been here for more years than not, pay taxes, obey the law and some even receive British pensions, which they then generously spend in Australia. Their numbers are also falling by the year as many of them arrived in Australia as adults during the 50's and 60's.

Of all the electoral issues that need attending to (like branch stacking by both sides of politics or the influence of corporate cash in election campaigns, to name just two), this is nowhere near the top of the list.
Sport a window on Australia's big issues 12:13pm on 17 May 2009 What choice do Australians have other than to look to our sports men and women as moral leaders? As a nation, we instinctively distrust preaching politicians and political preachers. All we have left are our sports people, business leaders, actors or musicians. So not surprisingly, we choose the better behaved of the group which are sports people.

The problem is that sporting success relies mostly on brawn, not brains, which is fine on the field. Off the field however, brawn mixed with large amounts of money and fame make for a bad combination. It could be argued that as Australia has no less than four professional football codes (Aussie Rules, League, Union and A-League), with thousands of well paid and famous young men, that there is relatively little bad behaviour.

It may be why we are so appalled by the actions of the few who do transgress the implied role of moral leadership they are given in Australian society.

When politicians talk about violence or sexual morals, it is assumed they do it to get elected. When business leaders do the same, it is to sell something. When sports men or women, or sporting administrators talk about any of these issues, it is for the 'good of the game' and that is something we will listen to.
Australian Republic back on radar 2:21pm on 29 Apr 2009 I voted for the Republic in '99 and was very disappointed when it didn't pass. However, my issue isn't with the nationality of our head of state.

I wouldn't mind if the British monarch was Australia's head of state but only if they could answer the following three questions with the words, 'a lot, even more, and yes'.

1. What have they done for Australia?
2. What will they do for Australia?
3. Will they place Australia and its people above all other nations and peoples?

The other issue is accountability. As we have already seen in '99, if we want to replace our current head of state with another, it is no easy task. Whether we elect the head of state directly or via our already elected representatives (parliament) makes no real difference.

The highest office holder in the country, in our proudly democratic country, needs to be held accountable for their actions by the Australian people.

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