Archive for September, 2007

Are The Libs and Nats Really Looking After The Bush?

September 17, 2007 at 11:46 am · Filed under Livestock issues, NLIS, election, farming, livestock, rural australia, rural issues

So, you always vote Nats & Libs and always will.

But are they really looking after the bush? With the exception of a pork barrell that may or may not be rolled-out in your electorate just before the election, do they just take us for granted?

Before you jump-in with the old knee-jerk chestnuts, here’s a few points off the top of my head to start some thinking:
1. John Anderson implemented MLA and Vaille and McGauran followed him up. This has resulted in a huge increase in livestock levies, NLIS and LPA QA.  Perhaps this is OK by you.
 

2. Howard, Costello and Co. have increased tertiary HECs fees. Does that make it easier or more difficult for your children to attend university?
 

3. Vaille, McGauran and Co. have welcomed USA meat at risk from foot and mouth sourced by US companies in Brazil. What’s their reason for NLIS and LPA then?

4. Vaille, McGauran and co.  have agreed that Japan and the US buy meat other than Australian that isn’t controlled by NLIS or LPA .

5. American producers are receiving much more for their meat than Australian producers.
6. Australia’s debt is the highest that it’s ever been by far, which affects us all.

7. Helen Coonan has blustered about pulling Telstra into line but coming up to the election has now passed this off to Ruddock as too hard.

8. Helen Coonan has given Elders and Optus nearly a Billion dollars of our money and apparently the word is that they’re still not going to connect the Bush!

9. The Libs & Nats have removed the right of all Australian children to receive an education. They have given Private schools multiples more in funding than tertiary education. (Don’t even think about our local state/public schools).

10. Malcolm Turnbull backed by Howard and Truss, are enabling non-farmers to trade in water to turn a profit while our farms dry-up!

That should do for now. Let’s not get into the debate on biodiesel subsidies, decimation of rail and health services, whether our money spent on Iraq would have been better spent on better water management than simply putting in more dams, etc etc.

Are these the sorts of issues to make you vote the ‘other’ way this time or have you faced-up to what the pollies seem to take for granted, that you’ll vote for them come what may?! Times have changed. Have you?

What do you think? (Please leave a comment below)

Comments (3)

Are Horse-Flue & Foot and Mouth Disease Related?

September 13, 2007 at 4:47 pm · Filed under NLIS, farming, high prices, livestock, rural australia, rural issues, supermarkets

These diseases may differ medically, but to AQIS and the Government they should be treated no differently.
We have hundreds of horses ‘down’ with this disasterous flu but still while Rome is burning Nero fiddles on. i.e. Minister McGauran has agreed to let foot and mouth disease at risk meat into Australia from the US.Isn’t this a classic case of letting the horse bolt and then trying to re-stable it?!You’d reckon McGauran et al, including AQIS, would want to learn as quickly as possible and shore-up our defences to prevent this sort of thing happening again to our precious livestock. And you’d think they’d be even more vigilant when it comes to our massive meat livestock market. We are 2nd only to Brazil in beef exports but are allowing meat at risk of foot and mouth into Australia from the US and Brazil. It will be a sad day if (when?) some exotic disease devestates our meat industry because some poilticians wanted to “Go All The Way With LBJ”!
What do you think?
(Please post a comment below).

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