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boris1gary · ‎20-04-2014

As it's more than 100 days now, it has been suggested that a new thread was needed. The current govt has been breaking promises and telling lies at a rate so fast it's hard to keep up.

This below is worrying, "independent" pffft, as if your own doctor is somehow what? biased, it's ridiculous. So far there is talk of only including people under a certain age 30-35, for now. Remember that if your injured in a car, injured at work or get ill, you too might need to go on the DSP. They have done a similar think in the UK with devastating consequences.

and this is the 2nd time recently where the Govt has referred to work as welfare???? So when you go to work tomorrow (or tuesday), just remember that's welfare.

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2014-04-20/disability-pensioners-may-be-reassessed-kevin-andrews/5400598

Independent doctors could be called in to reassess disability pensioners, Federal Government says

The Federal Government is considering using independent doctors to examine disability pensioners and assess whether they should continue to receive payments.

Currently family doctors provide reports supporting claims for the Disability Support Pension (DSP).

But Social Services Minister Kevin Andrews is considering a measure that would see independent doctors reassess eligibility.

"We are concerned that where people can work, the best form of welfare is work," Mr Andrews said at a press conference.

monman12 · ‎08-10-2014

Napthine under fire over 457 visas for East West Link workers

The Napthine government has come under fire after one of the companies building the East West Link hired an immigration adviser to lodge 457 visas.

ACTU President Ged Kearney said it was "outrageous" for temporary workers to be brought in from overseas when unemployment was around 6.8 per cent in Victoria.

Actually BIG It is a proposal for a project that has not even started, and would appear to cover specialised persons who are familiar with a yet to be imported tunnel boring machine.

"Due to the highly specialised nature of some roles, for instance those connected to the TBM [tunnel boring machine], we expect to draw on some overseas personnel to deliver the best outcomes for the project."

Dr Napthine said local content requirements in the contract for the East West Link were quite high. He said there was no tunnel boring machine in Australia that was big enough to do the job.

"I am unaware whether there is sufficient local expertise to man and operate that tunnel boring machine," Dr Napthine said.

The "fire" is just the ALP head office (ACTU) making some ineffectual noise about something that they can actually not deliver (specialist boring machine operators) actually the Vic ALP are electioneering.

Anyway the Vic ALP have stated that they will cancel contracts for the project, and at the moment would appear to be destined for election in a couple of months.

Perhaps the ACTU might consider importing some union officials from OS with genuine ethics, concerns for their members, and principals removed from self interest and corruption, but then again who would recognise the CMEFU hierarchy if that occurred?

nɥºɾ

debra9275 · ‎08-10-2014

The unions have said they want the project to proceed. If it does go ahead I do hope some Australian citizens get some work out of it. I hope no-one has been misled, 20,000 jobs ( Napthine says) but for whom ? Aussies or 457 visas?

cart9961_quqywhzdn · ‎08-10-2014

When the likes of Farage is the solution ( or even part of it ) we should all should all just turn the lights off , close the door and walk away.

Appeals to the loony fringe and daily mail readers ( one and the same? )

He makes Bush look like a forward thinker,.

boris1gary · ‎09-10-2014

Editorial cartoon 09.10.14 Photo: David Pope

boris1gary · ‎09-10-2014

From Pol Pot to ISIS: Saving Iraq by bombing everything that moves

As Barack Obama ignites his seventh war against the Muslim world since being awarded the Nobel Peace Prize, John Pilgersays he is almost nostalgic for Henry Kissinger.

boris1gary · ‎10-10-2014

http://www.independentaustralia.net/article-display/the-humanitarian-war-furphy,6981

The 'humanitarian' war furphy

This new rush to war not an intervention designed to meet humanitarian goals and objectives, writes Dr Adam Hughes Henry, but simply another bloody bombing campaign to protect strategic Western interests.

THERE IS A PUBLIC PRESENTATION that a war against the Islamic State (IS) is justified outright on clear humanitarian grounds.

That is, universally accepted standards of human rights have been transgressed and these unique perpetrators need to be brought to account.

There is evidence that IS actions on the battlefield contravene international human rights law. There are numerous allegations of ethnic cleansing, atrocities and threats of possible genocidal intent against their enemies.

Yet the actions of IS, in terms of our contemporary world, are very far from unique and as grotesque as their crimes are, cannot possibly be considered the worst of the worst. There are examples of barbaric behaviour which continue to be exhibited by U.S.-UK allies all over the world.

There does not seem to be any clamour to arrest and try any of the IS leadership in a court of law. There is, however, a clamour to bomb them.

Bombing from the sky is not a very useful humanitarian response — it is clearly a one dimensional military tactic contingent on targets. If there is a clear danger of ethnic cleansing and potential genocide in Iraq or elsewhere then the United Nations Security council is duty bound to act.

Current actions do not appear to have any such UN sanctioned legitimacy. Furthermore, there are no foreign troops on the ground to specifically defend these threatened ethnic populations, set up safe zones or sanctuaries and there is also absolutely no talk from nations like Australia of taking in any of the threatened groups as refugees as a matter of priority.

boris1gary · ‎10-10-2014

boris1gary · ‎10-10-2014

How to pay for a war

The Treasurer said if Mr Shorten was “honest” about his promise of bi-partisan support for Australia’s mission in Iraq, he would pass budget measures currently stalled in Parliament. Is he suggesting that sick people, pensioners, students and the unemployed should fund the war?

I have a suggestion.

When Joe Hockey produced his first fiscal statement in December last year, the deficit over the forward estimates had grown from $54.6 billion in August’s PEFO to $123 billion.

Part of this was due to Joe spending an extra $11 billion in his first 100 days as Treasurer, the most significant payment being the unasked for $8.8 billion gift to the RBA.

But the greatest increases to the deficit (and future debt) came from just changing forecasts. Hockey told us that Labor’s predicitions were unrealistically optimistic, despite the independent PEFO coming up with the same figures.

In almost every parameter, Hockey lowered PEFO forecasts, often dramatically, for the performance of the Australian economy . He insisted on the worst possible forecasts in order to exaggerate the “mess” he inherited.

Real GDP forecasts from PEFO were 2.5% and 3%, written down in MYEFO to 2.5% and 2.5% for the years 2013-14 and 2014-15.

The quarterly national accounts figures show the trend annual real GDP growth of 3.2% which is right on the 25-year average and significantly higher than predicted in either PEFO or MYEFO.

The IMF expects the Australian economy to grow by 2.8 per cent in 2014 and 2.9 per cent in 2015.

As for nominal GDP, PEFO predicted 3.75% and 4.5% – Hockey’s MYEFO 3.5% and 3.5%.

He decreased nominal GDP forecasts to their lowest level since the global financial crisis. This has a massive impact on revenues, which are very sensitive to changes in nominal GDP growth. This had the effect of reducing projected revenue over the forward estimates to $51 billion less than projected in PEFO.

In fact our annual nominal GDP rose by 4%. This is less than the 25-year average of 6.1% but once again, significantly higher than predicted by Hockey and even higher than PEFO.

http://theaimn.com/pay-war/