<<Seriously, Labor MUST address the issues/ the values that formed them in the first place, ...NOT try playing the dirty game's of the rich and corporate juggernauts. 
Thats a whole OTHER game>>
......................................................................

The Gillard government is not really a labor government, in name only. The labor governments of the 60's, 70's and 80's would not recognise any of the values this lot has of being remotely labor or left wing.

Andrei.Hicks wrote on May 2^nd, 2011 at 8:50am:



It will be back after the next great depression. We'll start all over again....I can't wait to see the capitalist system crash woohoo!!! how's America's debt clock going? still ticking away I see lol

Do I remember you and your yankie friend baha saying something about gold and precious metals a couple of years ago....real estate is a better bet, was it lol

Andrei.Hicks wrote on May 2^nd, 2011 at 9:26am:



And here we have the typical conservative attitude...

""Up you, Jack! I'm OK!""

Andrei.Hicks wrote on May 2^nd, 2011 at 9:26am:


IF? did you say if? I thought you were over there.

You're not the captain that goes down with the ship type? thought not. I'm sure you would take food out of the mouths of your own children if it meant your own survival.

Some sobering facts....


""The peak body for the community and social services sector today expressed concern that the twice annual indexation increases to pensions is leading to a widening gap between people on aged, disability and carers pensions and those on Newstart and Single Parents allowances.

"Whilst we welcome the indexation increases as crucial in helping people on pensions stay afloat, it is extremely distressing to see well over half a million people currently on Newstart falling further below the poverty line as a result of receiving insufficient indexation increases," said ACOSS CEO Dr Cassandra Goldie.

"Because the government indexes pensions differently, people on Newstart are only receiving $5.20 increase fortnightly compared to $13.20 for those on pensions."This raises the already staggering gap between these payments to $127 per week, with people on Newstart to receive $238 per week from March 20 compared to $365 per week for those on the pension.
"ACOSS has consistently called on the Government to index all pensions and allowances in the same way - cost of living index and wages - so all people on income support are treated fairly and given the same level of lifeline support to meet the growing costs of essentials like rent, utilities and food.""


Read more here...


http://www.acoss.org.au/media/release/more_than_600000_unemployed_australians_risk_falling_further_into_poverty

SpaceyOne wrote on May 4^th, 2011 at 11:02am:



I think you have just answered the original post, that would be the ones they want to get back to work.

But otherwise excellent rant. 

I was on a sole parent pension, and working part time. I got sick a couple of years before that pension was due to end, and was having to put in sickness certificates so that my payments would not be suspended for not complying with the work for welfare laws that applied.

I joined a disability employment agency, in an attempt to find a job which I could hold down. The only work I could get as a single mum in my 40's was cleaning. I developed RSI in both of my shoulder muscles, as well as issues caused by what was later found to be Osteoarthritis and degenerative disc disease. I had a solid background in secretarial work prior to having children.

The only jobs the disability employment service could offer me, were as a cleaner. When I tried to get off their program and listed with another job provider, to give myself a chance of finding a different job, the disability agency forged documents to keep me on their program, and later lied to me, pretending that they would help me apply for DSP if I stayed with them.

Their help consisted of taking my completed DSP forms off me for three months, and holding onto them while I was evicted and too sick to look for work. Once I had found myself a new rental property, and a new job, I was fired after three weeks for phoning in sick. I finally demanded my DSP forms back, and the disability employment agency then corrupted my claim for DSP and made an arrangement to have me put on Newstart instead, so they could keep getting paid by Centrelink for 'managing my case'.

When I rang them up and asked for a copy of my the records they kept on me, they tried to deny me my rights under the FOI laws. It took 7 months of hassling before the Privacy Commissioner was able to get the file for me.

In it, I found the two forms on which they had forged my signature, plus the admission that they had rigged my Job Capacity Assessment before I had even attended the interview for it.

I have complained to every department responsible for keeping these places honest, and not one will do anything about it. At the moment, I am trying to have them charged for forgery, but again am being given the run around.

When I would not stop making legal requests for my file, the disability employment agency went to court and made false allegations that I was phoning in death threats to their staff, and applied for and were granted an AVO against me.

I complained to their minders and ministers about that, and yet they were allowed to go ahead with it. Their lawyer played games with that process as well. I was unable to attend the hearing, and asked for 7 weeks to obtain legal representation. He responded that he would advise the court that their side agreed to a 4 week adjournment, but instead asked for the AVO in my absence.

To prevent me for suing the disability employment agency, for the two discs I slipped in my back when forced to work once again to try to keep a roof over my families head while they did nothing for me, Centrelink then discounted or 'lost' all medical evidence to declare that I was not sick at all.

The levels of corruption I encountered within Centrelink was just astounding.