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24.01.2022 Who Are The True Owners Of Our Common Wealth? If you believe that the economy should serve the people rather than the people being servants to the economy. If you believe that as the owners of our Common Wealth we are entitled to have meaningful full time jobs. If you believe that the REAL natural rate of unemployment should be targeted around 2%. If you believe - that the 25% of our workforce that are underemployed - and the 5% who are hidden unemployment - is a national dis...grace - that is truly harming our society and our economy. if you believe that climate change is a massive problem and that we urgently need to transition to a carbon neutral nation. If you believe that when the recession hits us between the eyes because of the incompetence of successive Common Wealth governments ... Don't make the same mistake and vote in another neoliberal political party! Join the fastest growing political movement in Australia right now and support Independent Community Representatives who are not beholden to vested interests. https://representus.com.au/members/sign-up/ It is free to join RepresentUs Australia and there are three types of membership: General Members - who only need to supply a name, an email and a postcode. Volunteers - who only need to supply a phone number , name, address, email and postcode. Prospective Independent Community Representatives - who need to provide enough information to be appropriately vetted as authentic individuals who are committed to a sustainable national vision. All Australians can and should have free health, dental and education. All Australians can and should have a plan to transition our nation to carbon neutral nation within seven to ten years. All Australians can and should have the right to work full-time reasonably paying jobs. The only thing that is lacking is the political will and economic understanding about how to make it happen. If you want to check out what a policy road map for a sustainable nation looks like then go to: https://representus.com.au/policy/
23.01.2022 An Interesting Editorial From The Daily Mirror - United Kingdom - And A Damning Indictment For Right Wing Populists - That Should Be Setting Off Alarm Bells For... Australian Voters - Although It Clearly Isn't ... "Perhaps it is a coincidence that the countries with the highest number of Covid deaths are all led by right-wing populists. In the United States there have been 3,130,504 cases and 134,444 deaths, Brazil 1,623,284 cases and 65,487 deaths and the UK 286,979 cases and 44,602 deaths. The UK also has the unwelcome record for the second highest number of deaths per million people (656) after Belgium (843), according to the World Health Organisation. And the UK figure is much higher if you include excess deaths where corona-virus is cited as a contributing factor. There are all sorts of caveats here as reporting methods differ from nation to nation. Figures for other countries may not include deaths in care homes, for instance, and it is not certain the data from places such as China is reliable. But it is certainly worth exploring why the US, UK and Brazil all have such high death tolls. One reason may be the lack of state infrastructure to deal with a pandemic. Britain has struggled to match Germany's localised response primarily because the Conservative government scrapped regional health authorities and replaced them with the centralised Public Health England. The flaws in the US health and social security systems - there 32 million Americans without sick pay and 27 million without health insurance have been shamefully exposed. It may also be that right-wing populists, whose main currency is nationalism, have an overinflated faith in their country's exceptionalism and their own infallibility. Donald Trump has discovered that his usual political weapons of screaming on social media, self-congratulation and a willingness to spread disinformation are inadequate when combating a virus. His refusal to confront reality and his aversion to detail have only compounded the problem. This was something Angela Merkel highlighted on in a speech to the European Parliament yesterday. You cannot fight the pandemic with lies and disinformation any more than you can fight it with hate or incitement to hatred. The limits of populism and the denial of basic truths are being laid bare here. Democracies need truth and transparency, she said."
21.01.2022 Every now and then I repost Gideon's first video for those new to Modern Monetary Theory. There are around twelve videos in this blokes intro to MMT and they are excellent. Enjoy. Briefly, Gideon Cordova is a young bloke from Tasmania who has a really accessible way of discussing the big issues. His series of videos provide a great way of considering these conundrums by looking at them through the lens of Modern Monetary Theory: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p-47r0cpGlI
12.01.2022 NAIRU Means Waging A War On The Poor Instead Of Poverty ... The attached article is about the US, however, it is just as relevant to Australia. One of the corne...rstone notions within the increasingly discredited public policy settings of the Liberal / National Party and the Australian Labor Party is their dogmatic belief in what is widely called the Natural Accelerating Inflation Rate of Unemployment. As long as these two neoliberal political parties adhere to notions such as NAIRU they will become increasingly disenfranchised from ordinary Aussies ... However, all this begs a couple of questions: 1. What Is NAIRU? Put simply, the idea of NAIRU is that the non-accelerating inflation rate of unemployment (NAIRU) is the specific level of unemployment that is evident in an economy that does not cause inflation to increase. In other words, if unemployment is at the NAIRU level, inflation is constant. In the neoliberal economic NAIRU represents the equilibrium between the state of the economy and the labor market. There is only one problem. It is all completely constructed on 'bs' argumentation and ultimately ideological dogma. + 2. What is the REAL target for the natural rate of unemployment? Why Does It Matter? Why this question is important is because if you know what the REAL Natural Rate of Unemployment is you can align all your public policy settings to that target. In this way, (economically and socially speaking) you can maximise the labour component of the productive capacity of the economy, whilst also avoiding avoiding all the very considerable downsides of having too much unemployment. There is a massive social and economic cost to having any more unemployment than is absolutely necessary. Indeed, you could say precisely the same thing about underemployment and hidden unemployment. Consumer Spending & Confidence: 1. As this article about the US points out, (and it is generally true to Australia) there is a very direct link between the money paid to workers and the money spent into our economy. Put simply, the lions share of, 'income spent in Australia is paid to workers and most of the money spent in Australia, (like America) goes to personal consumption'. So, if you are wondering why consumer confidence in Australia has crashed recently it is directly related to the reality that we are now a nation where unemployment, underemployment and hidden unemployment is helping very significantly to crash our economy. And yes, clearly this has a severe impact on the private indebtedness of workers as well. The answer to what should be the REAL targeted rate of unemployment is determined by what is the Natural Rate of Unemployment. A common definition of natural rate of unemployment would describe it as: Frictional Unemployment - 1. the normal turnover in the job market, (frictional unemployment), which could and should include people who are sick, dying or on holiday. + Structural Unemployment - 2. Workers who have outdated skills, been replaced by cheaper labour, (ie 457 visas or the 'gig economy', which successive LNP and ALP have been completely impotent to respond to) or technology. This is commonly called 'structural unemployment'. And frankly, there is really no plausible social or economic reason for any government to justify this type of unemployment. It is poor public policy - and / or ideological motivated ignorance - that informs any type of structural unemployment in any nation. + Cyclical Unemployment - 3. The third type of unemployment that can happen in any nation is called 'cyclical unemployment' and this occurs when and economy slows down, (like right now), which results in considerable lay offs and / or shifts in the structure of unemployment as has happened for much of the turn of the century. THE SOLUTIONS & ANSWERS: Around A 2% Target For The REAL Natural Rate Of Unemployment: The REAL Natural Rate of Unemployment should be targeted around 2%, which is defined as people between jobs, just starting their career, sick, dying or on holiday + points one to three above. This can be readily achieved by our Common Wealth government committing to the following solutions: A: Investing the necessary amount of our Common Wealth into a national Guaranteed Job initiative that aims to get all unemployed, underemployed and hidden unemployed people - who want to work - into a guaranteed job. A Guaranteed Job which is defined by them receiving the minimum hourly rate + all other terms and conditions of employment of any other full-time employee + any relevant training or development activities and courses - that they may need to bring to make their skills and competencies more current - and / or relevant to future labour market needs. B: Because this national initiative makes our Common Wealth government the employer of last resort this means that all three types of natural unemployment are responded to with a credible and economically and socially responsible national strategy. C: However economically, what this approach means is that we have created an inflation anchor by using the minimum hourly rate for all these Common Wealth employed workers, which will not drive up the inflation rate, because it is pegged at the minimum hourly rate. What it will do though is make sure that the scourge of unemployment, underemployment and hidden employment will NEVER again be the plaything of politicians to deceive, misrepresent and ignore the needs of the owners of our Common Wealth. D: Another key thing about a national Job Guarantee is that our Common Wealth investment in it goes up and down - depending upon the peaks and troughs of the labour market - based on the demand in the private sector. E: A Guaranteed Job initiative DOES NOT compete with labour in the private sector because it does not need to. There is plenty of work to be done in our Common Wealth to avoid this. For example, by supporting a credible climate change reaction to the national threats of bushfires, floods, other natural disasters and making our communities carbon neutral. It can link into a whole raft of urgently needed national initiatives to drive our nation towards a sustainable future. Why isn't it being done? Stubborn adherence to fallacious economic and social reasoning driven by a conscious or unconscious commitment to neoliberalism .. the commodification of everything and everyone and treating everything and everyone like a commodity to be traded. If your interested to see what a public policy roadmap - to develop a sustainable Australian community looks like - check out: https://representus.com.au/policy/
09.01.2022 A Blueprint For Smashing Neoliberal Spin ... If you want to see what Modern Monetary Theory can contribute to a post Covid 19 recovery. If you want to see what a public policy road map for a sustainable Australia looks like, which includes transitioning to a carbon neutral nation within seven to ten years - and leaving on one behind - you can see it at:... https://representus.com.au/policy/ If you want to see how the economics of it stakes up then go to: https://representus.com.au/policy/economy/ + https://youtu.be/vd5Omy5OFVY
09.01.2022 A Conversation About The Future Of Our Nation & MMT From Two Important Australian Thinkers. Professor Bill Mitchell and Noel Pearson are two important contemporary thought leaders. This conversation is a valuable contribution to the contemporary narrative about Modern Monetary Theory as well as the future of our nation. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IGdBprM_cCQ
09.01.2022 A really interesting bloke who is worth the time to listen to.
08.01.2022 https://youtu.be/vd5Omy5OFVY
04.01.2022 What Separates An Open & Democratic Society - like Australia - From A Closed & Authoritarian Society Like The People's Republic of China? Firstly, unbeknown to ...many Aussies there is one part of China that is democratic and open. It calls itself the Republic of China, but most people know it as Taiwan. Up until 1990 it was a closed authoritarian society, but then it had a democratic contest and democracy was born in China. This of course was the dream first articulated by Sun Yat Sen, (interestingly, both the Chinese Communist Party and Chinese Nationalists recognise Sun Yat Sen as the father of modern China). Of course, Hong Kong also had a brief period of democracy in the transition from the ninety nine year lease, (that the United Kingdom imposed on the Chinese with their gunship diplomacy), after the reclaiming of Hong Kong by the People's Republic of China. The above is a necessary qualifier, because not all of China is or was closed and authoritarian in its modern history. In answering this question though, the one thing that I would define - as being absolutely fundamental to an open and democratic society - is the rule of law. In this context, with the disgraceful statutes that the LNP has pushed through from 2013 till December, 2018, there is absolutely no doubt that Australia has become less open. If you doubt the veracity of my words herein simply ask yourself how many of these indicators align with the behaviour of Herr Potato Head Dutton and Forrest Slo Mo's government ... Accountability The government as well as private actors are accountable under the law. Just Laws The laws are clear, publicized, and stable; are applied evenly; and protect fundamental rights, including the security of persons and contract, property, and human rights. Open Government The processes by which the laws are enacted, administered, and enforced are accessible, fair, and efficient. Accessible & Impartial Dispute Resolution Justice is delivered timely by competent, ethical, and independent representatives and neutrals who are accessible, have adequate resources, and reflect the makeup of the communities they serve. Source: https://worldjusticeproject.org/abou/overview/what-rule-law It is no coincidence, that since 2013 Australia has slid down the corruption index and that most of this corruption has occurred in the public arena. Check out how satisfied Aussies are with their democracy at: Source: https://www.theguardian.com//australians-no-longer-trust-t Transparency International has some alarming trends about Australia that should be concerning for all thinking Aussies: Source: http://transparency.org.au/2018-corruption-perceptions-ind/ Is the latest round of attacks on our democracy by our LNP government really just political positioning by Herr Potato Head Dutto to warn Forrest Slo Mo PM if he dips in the polls his head will fall to Herr Potato Head? It is not entirely inconceivable that these attacks on press freedom recently were deliberately used as a political device by Potato Head as a calculated broadside against Slo Mo. After all, we know that Potato Head has real form in political coups and these stupid raids by the AFP were timed to cause Slo the maximum amount of embarrassment. And, after Captain Under Pants was ignobly dumped by his electorate Herr Potato Head now rules the roost in the anti-democratic alt right faction within the LNP. Maybe I'm overthinking it and it is just simply more of the same incompetent behaviour we have come to accept from the LNP. Either way, what I am sure of is that if not enough Aussies step up and start fighting for the open and democratic society we have enjoyed, it will slowly wither and die ... Does the following sound familiar: "Many government efforts to subvert democracy are legal, in the sense that they are approved by the legislature or accepted by the courts. They may even be portrayed as efforts to improve democracy making the judiciary more efficient, combating corruption or cleaning up the electoral process. Newspapers still publish but are bought off or bullied into self-censorship." Source: https://www.theguardian.com//21/this-is-how-democracies-die If you don't know what real democracy should look like, check out the policy roadmap for it at: https://realdemocracyparty.net.au/Policy/ If you don't understand the real economics of how to achieve real democracy check out: https://realdemocracyparty.net.au/Policy/Economy/ If you want to become a part of the people powered tsunami of change, which will sweep away the swindlers of our Common Wealth at the next election, get involved and join up for free at: https://realdemocracyparty.net.au/SignUp/ If you don't want to get involved directly, but are happy to contribute a couple of dollars to those that do want to contribute to positive and sustainable change you can donate at: https://realdemocracyparty.net.au/Donate/
03.01.2022 A useful resource for anyone interested in MMT: https://theueconomy.com/mmt-media-library
02.01.2022 Highly recommended.
