Australian Politics

Five years ago, the then federal agriculture minister David Littleproud joined his then boss, former prime minister Malcolm Turnbull, on a tour of the drought-affected regions of New South Wales and his home state of Queensland.

The Littleproud who in 2018 called for people to "Listen to the scientific evidence" and to base policy "On science not emotion" is long gone.

"We don't need to rush this. We can plan properly and look at the emerging technology," Littleproud told the rally.

The "Emerging" technology that Littleproud is now pushing, along with his current boss Peter Dutton, is nuclear - or, more specifically, Small Modular Reactors or SMRs. Just this week Dutton made the magical claim on Sky News that SMR technology is being used in 32 countries around the world, and can be simply plugged into existing grid infrastructure to replace coal-fired power stations.

SMRs are not currently operating at a grid or commercial scale anywhere in the world, and where the technology is being developed the first prototypes are targeting 2030 operation.

The claim in question is about Australia’s debt being the highest it’s ever been. In fact, it was much, much higher during WW2. That said, the claim becomes true if you restrict it to the time since the late 1950s after the WW2 debt was paid off.

If you aren't keen on this proposal sign the petition

The foreign policy and defence session and all attention is on whether AUKUS debates will be publicly aired or smoothed over in backrooms beforehand.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and his allies are reportedly seeking to appease elements of the party hostile to the security pact.

On Monday, partly leaders broadcast the idea of an AUKUS a ‘statement in detail’ on AUKUS, which would ensure the nuclear submarines promised under the deal would be constructed in Australia by a well-paid unionised workforce.

Does Australia really have a choice?

Since when did we stand up to the demands of the UK or the USA? Will we be seeing another Gough Whitlam, a Kevin Rudd - quickly moved as side at the first sign of descent - or the stock standard: a revolving door of Bob Hawk's and slimy, weak polli's?

Meta, Alphabet, and Amazon are some of the largest and most powerful firms in the global economy. Their size, value and the wealth of their founders raise serious concerns for distributive justice. To address these concerns, as well as the threats these firms pose to political liberties, perhaps we need to change how data is ‘owned’.

Hey nice! Lemmy lets me fix titles!
Some other aggregate sites should takes notes...

Hi all,

Warning - Medical and politics

I am a mid 30s male who has just survived infective endocarditis. A bacteria got into my heart and ate a valve. Before intervention my likelihood of survival was zero by a year. I was flown from a rural town to a major hospital, in the order of 20 scans and maybe 60 blood tests were done, and 1 heart valve was replaced with a mechanical one. I have been through pain at the upper 9 level (cannot make coherent words, sweating, shaking) and I have had some of the most intense experiences through this time. At one point at least 75% of the blood my heart was pumping was backflowing, meaning my heart had to do 3 or more times extra work to keep me alive.

You all, through taxation and policy, saved my life. Not an exaggeration or joke, I would be dead but for things that you as the Australian people have done. Being an Australian myself I am eligible for Medicare and have been in hospital for almost a month. I have not paid for my food, my bed, the room I am staying in, the 20 scans and 60 sets of blood tests, the titanium heart valve, the 11 staff in my surgical team who replaced my valve, the 20ish nurses who made sure I was given meds, fed, watered, lifted, turned, clothed. I paid nothing. I did nothing to manage this. It happened around me transparently and while there were hiccups and little things that could be improved I get to go home to my wife in the next couple of days. I get to spend more time with her, I see my cat again, and in a matter of weeks I will return to work. All of the stuff that was done to save my life cost money and political will and people here, other Australians, decided to do that.

I am immensely grateful to all of those people who worked on me. The nurses, the doctors, the specialist cardio thoracic surgeons, the infectious disease specialists, the pilot who flew me to the bigger hospital, the driver who drove the patient transport. But also the taxpayer, the person who works at a maccas and starts paying tax on a fairly low wage. The person who earns money being a lawyer and pays tax on it. The person who didn't avoid paying their fair share. They paid for it, they kept me alive, and j get to hug my wife and pet my cat.

There are problems with Medicare, Centrelink, aged care, and all other government systems. These problems are a privilege to have because they are the failings of a system that mostly works. Some money got wasted, some money could have been saved, but I am alive and I can go earn money and pay tax now. I can support my wife rather than the government doing so. I can pay rent and eventually a mortgage and keep the economy moving. I have that opportunity, and it is because of choices made, values held, by this country. Maybe we can do more of that in the future and help other people, keep this amazing system running, keep other peoples hearts working. Thanks

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.world/post/2948569

I'm a bit surprised that news.com.au let this little bit of truth slip through:

“They’re yet to come up with a plan with where the reactors can go and how much they will cost,” the spokesperson told news.com.au.

“Even if we started today, having nuclear power ready within 10 years is being generous. They’re very much against renewables, where we are backing it. Labor has implemented the $20b rewiring the nation policy, which has produced an actual change for the future.

“There are credible reports that nuclear is the most expensive source of energy in the world, so they really need to show people the plan.”

“Climate criminal Woodside gets value for money from its political donations
Via millions of donated dollars, Woodside ensures the political class stands ready to defend it when its huge role in global heating is targeted.”

Yep. Politicians vilifying the people trying to change this. #auspol #climate #climatechange #environment @australianpolitics

https://www.crikey.com.au/2023/08/09/woodside-political-donations-global-warming-climate-change/

cross-posted from: https://kbin.social/m/melbourne@aussie.zone/t/266986

The Victorian Labor and National parties have opposed a ban on donations from the property industry, as the state’s anti-corruption watchdog found a developer showered the major parties with cash to gain access and attempt to influence lucrative planning decisions.

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.letthewookiee.win/post/39275

Not my comments - just cross posting from Australia as it was off topic there

Cant help but think any govt trying to gain more and more power is not a good thing, even though i would trust Andrews over most premiers its not a good precedent to start setting.

Title: We gave the Voice to Parliament pamphlets to fact checkers. Here's what they said.

Key Points:

1. Background: The Yes and No pamphlets for the Voice to Parliament referendum are available. The AEC releases them without fact-checking.

2. Yes Pamphlet Claims and Fact-Checks:

   • Claim: The Voice originates from Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. FactCheck: Confirmed; it was proposed in the Uluru Statement from the Heart.
   • Claim: The Voice will advise on key Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander issues. FactCheck: True; it will make representations to Parliament on related matters.
   • Claim: Governments didn't listen to ground-level voices. FactCheck: Needs specifics on which initiatives failed and why.
   • Claim: Constitutional inclusion ensures the Voice's stability. FactCheck: True; it provides security and certainty.
   • Claim: The Voice is constitutionally sound and lacks veto power. FactCheck: Confirmed; it won't have a veto power.

3. No Pamphlet Claims and Fact-Checks:

   • Claim: The Voice might risk legal challenges. FactCheck: Incorrect; it can't make binding demands or veto legislation.
   • Claim: The Voice is untested elsewhere. FactCheck: Other countries have similar First Nations consultation approaches.
   • Claim: Many Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander representative bodies already exist. FactCheck: The Voice differs in independence and representation.
   • Claim: A centralized Voice might overlook regional needs. FactCheck: The design ensures focus on communities and regional representation.

Question is will this change much in how the RBA handles interest rates?

Will they fully implement the changes recommended?

If inflation still does not come under control and interest rates go up will this renew skepticism about the RBA inflation policy ?

More likely that office block owners are the upset ones.