Donald Trump is already bragging about how his tariff led economy will return jobs to Americans. The brutal truth is that Americans will be paying for Trump’s tariffs out of their own purses and wallets. High tariffs on international goods and services will mean that what used to be cheaperContinue Reading
Dear Australia, I don’t want to be negative but fear you are in the grip of vested interests. A letter to Australia to warn you about stuff. Ever since the days of the squattocracy some hard white men have been having their way with your resources. Never minding about the Indigenous blood they carelessly spilt upon your red earth. These determined settlers disregarded British instruction about allowing Aboriginal people to access their waterways and hunting grounds, preferring to slaughter them expediently instead. The British overlords were piss weak in this regard, it must be said.Continue Reading
America and Australia share similar symptoms in their economies right now with high inflation sticking around. The central banks have been raising interest rates in a traditional monetary policy approach to combatting high inflation. However, it isn’t working that great. Supply side inflation not solved by raising interest rates. Both nations are suffering with housing shortages pushing up rents and this is contributing to the high inflation. Putting up interest rates is not going to help with this; indeed, it is making the situation worse. Making building houses more expensive via higher costs of doing business is not going to increase the supply of housing.Continue Reading
Australia is in the midst of a severe housing crisis and there are no solutions currently on the table at government level. The rental stocks have fallen to an all time low for residential accommodation. Meanwhile, the nation remains in the grip of a cost of living/high inflationary period. This is what the federal government needs to do about housing.Continue Reading
Globally, we all went through a pandemic, which cost some their lives and most of us economically. Here in Australia we copped a big whack of inflation and a steeply rising cost of living on essentials. You and I paid the price and continue to pay the price. Corporate Australia is screwing us, however, big business in this country didn’t pay the price of the pandemic. If they did they have made sure they have recouped that money and then some. Qantas got a couple of billion dollars from the Australian government and have just declared a $2.6 billion record profit for the year. Are they paying that money back? No way, according to Alan Joyce the departing CEO.Continue Reading
We are living at a time of rapidly rising costs of living driven by spiking inflation and its consequent interest rate increases. The economy is like a dog chasing its own tail right now. Those many Australians who live on the wrong side of the poverty line are sinking further into dire financial trouble. It is in light of these circumstances that it is important to have an understanding of the Wellbeing Budget. Conservatives have derided the concept as branded by hippy yippy fringe concerns and un-Budget like. The Budget, in their eyes, should be about cold, hard economic facts with no room for sentiment. The woman that the hard right despises most, Jacinta Ardern the NZ prime minister, has had a wellbeing Budget and that is proof of its unsuitability for them. Continue Reading