Anyone else concerned about the way our country is headed?

[aussie girl]

I am afraid I have become very disillusioned with our political system and the people who are "running" our country. We are supposed to have a democratic society, but isn't that supposed to mean "one man one vote". Unfortunately, that is not how it works. If you look at how the electorates are carved up, you can have a very small electorate with a few thousand people and that is one seat and you can have another huge electorate with many thousands of people and that is also one seat. If I vote for Joe Bloggs of the Whatsit party then I expect my vote to be for that person and that party, but that is not what happens. If Joe Bloggs doesn't get enough votes to be elected, then all those votes for him get given to another candidate and so on and so forth until an eventual "winner" gets lots of votes (with a lot of help from the preferences he/she has been given from those not elected) so my vote for the Whatsit party can end up going to the opposition party without my knowledge because somewhere along the line my vote was handed to another candidate in another entirely different party. I think the preferences should be done away with. If you don't get elected then that's it and that vote becomes null and void.

I am sick of my tax dollars going to politicians who are in parliament for a few years and then retire on fat pensions for the REST OF THEIR LIVES!!!!! whilst I will have to scrape an existence with whatever I have put away in super, less tax, less what ever has been lost (due to it being gambled by the super company on the stock exchange) and I will have my tax dollars paying for all the lurks and perks of each and every politician's wives and children once those politicians have carked it!
I would love some of the independent candidates to be given a go at sitting in the top seats, but their chances of ever getting in are pretty remote due to the way the votes are divvied up.
Much of the media is very one eyed towards one particular party, and no wonder, when that particular party is pro business. No wonder most of the news reports and nearly all the polls are tending to lean towards the party that is not currently in government. What nasty little deals are being done under the table to poison the average voters minds into thinking that the other party is a lost cause?
There is such a lot that we can learn from what has been happening overseas, and Greece is a prime example. Are we really that different? Look at all the fat cats with their heads in the trough in our own government departments. The novel/movie Animal Farm by George Orwell comes to mind. Look at all the corruption that is going on overseas, and is beginning to happen here, with big businesses and corporations destroying our resources and the natural environment in the search for huge profits for their shareholders. The companies involved in fracking in the United States continue to be protected by the government whilst they contaminate ground water and ruin peoples lives and livelihoods, and large food companies who fill their foods with genetically modified crops are also protected by the government despite the known risks that these genetically modified foods can pose.
As a little fish in a big pond it is very easy to just sink to the bottom and stay out of sight for fear of being gobbled up and spat out by the bigger fish who are circling above, cutting off any chance of the little fish coming up for air. "Evil prevails because good people do nothing" is a very apt saying, but not many good people are willing to put themselves in the firing line when so many bigger and more powerful people/companies are in control.

It will take a heck of a lot of education of the general population to bring about significant change to out political system. The average person doesn't seem to understand the significance of some of the decisions being made by our pollies, and many people have some sort of memory loss when it comes to some of the stuff that both parties have sprung on us in the past, and this memory loss also has spread over to the news media companies as well.

what hope is there???

[bobt]

I can understand your frustrations. We are each of us just one small voice in a largely apathetic political universe. This was brought home to me last year when my wife (retired, but an active political lobbyist) spent several years heading a lobby group which tried to prevent our Government from sabotaging an international treaty. My understanding of how politicians work was greatly enhanced by this experience as it became obvious that both of our major political parties are ultimately beholden to the US Government rather than to the Australian electorate.

Individual politicians will often privately agree that they support various ethical and moral decisions yet are bound by our political system to adhere to the party line. At the end of the day, our political representatives do not represent our views or those of the electorate - they vote and act in accordance with political imperatives rather than moral ones; and we are effectively disenfranchised.

This is not helped by the Australian people themselves who are so often willing to have their votes "purchased" by promises from both parties, few of which ever eventuate. When the Australian public becomes a little more discerning, a little better educated and a lot less gullible, perhaps we will have a better chance of electing truly effective leaders. Recent innovations such as Election Fact Check (https://theconversation.com/au/factcheck/articles) and Politifact Australia (http://www.politifact.com.au/) are a useful step forward in making our politicians justify their sometimes outrageous claims.

[aussie girl]

The "Wheat Board Scandal" is a prime example of corruption at it's worst. Our government was involved in supplying arms to the country that we were supposed to be sanctioning, which in my book is nothing short of treason. But Johnny Howard was in control of the Senate, and a ruling was voted in that would prevent him or his cronies from being charged with any crime (if and when they got found out) The British prime minister did not get off so lightly, but no criminal charges were ever brought about for any of those involved in that act of treason.

[Mark L]

I like living in Oz, and wouldn't live anywhere else.
I have the right to vote (and assign my preferences, no one else can do that if you vote below the line), I have the right to post my views here (as do you), I have the right to go and join organisations that I think can advance what I think is right. I have the right to complain and do nothing, or write a letter to an editor as part of doing something. I can talk to people and freely tell them what I think (though I'm a little sick of hearing what they think).
We can go on about pollies, but what makes a difference is people doing things for others (and each other) in the communities we live in.
I could go on, but I'm also thankful that no one will send a bomb my way if I do.

[Cage]

Unfortunately, for we, the voters, there are not too many who enter political life with any real deep-seated convictions to improve the lot of their fellow man.

Ego, and the advantageous opportunities being in a position of trust offers, is probably the motivation for most. And any who dare step over the party line are soon slapped, severely, on the wrist.

Wouldn't it be nice to see a party, of whatever political persuasion, actually 'governing', and not spending 95% of their time and energy 'politicking'.

Yeah, in ya' dreams Kev!

[old4570]

Well , another issue , we are over governed !
We have 3 levels of government , and more politicians per ca-pita than almost any other country in the world ...
As well as the largest public sector just about anywhere ...

Almost 50% of the working population have a vested interest in the status quot ..
The private sector is shrinking , manufacturing is shrinking , exports are shrinking

And on the other end of the stick

Imports are on the rise , the public sector is growing , and more money is going over seas ...

It does not take an Einstein to see this can not keep going this way , sure its good news for multi nationals , but its very bad news for the Average joe six pack !

This country is seriously top heavy , and I dont think politicians are going to didle themselves out of a job ! or a big fat pay check for doing sweet F all !

We need far fewer politicians , maybe 2 levels of government , we need to bring back manufacturing ..

This country used to ride on a sheep's back , then we had recession , now we ride on the back of mining - for how long ?

How long will the next recession last ?

When will the Gooberment get of its fat lard butt , and actually do something ?

All the talk / BS - coming from Canbera ? For how long have they talked ? 20+ years and no actual positive action to bring manufacturing back to this country ...

How long can we survive when we dont make stuff ? or dont have a strong manufacturing base ?

We simply cant afford to import everything , its a road to certain destruction .

I personally would call it a National emergency , alarm bells should be sounding , the media should be screaming , and the Sheeple , well what can I say about the sheeple ..

There is an old saying , People get the government they deserve !

I dont blame the criminals in Canbera , I blame the idiots that put them there , decade after decade !

If it wasnt so sad , it would be the greatest joke ever .

[Mathy]

Hi Kaiser, thank you for raising a most interesting topic. You are right, we live in a complicated democracy as far as understanding the preferential voting system, and yes, it should be taught at school, so that young voters are prepared when it comes their time to enrol.

There is so much to take on board and so many political undercurrents to be wary of.

For example, in QLD, there currently is a move to enforce the production of ID before voting. This historically disadvantages those who may not have a driver's license e.g.:, the young, the elderly and the indigenous. A good method of removing a chunk of potential voters.

I'm 56yo and have the good fortune to live in South Australia, where we had a Liberal Premier of great political vision for many years - Sir Thomas Playford, who was followed by Don Dunstan, a Labor Premier, who did equally many great things - we were extremely fortunate.

However, at a State level, all that good, by those 2 leaders from opposite sides has been undone in the following years of reign by each political party.

I have no idea as to what age group you belong to, but I can suggest the following ideas as potential sources of education and a chance to contribute towards change.

1. Understand the voting system and how it works. Making a wise choice in the Senate can often bring about better representation for you than your 'local' member. For example, SA got Nick Xenophon into the Senate at the Federal level, he had previously been an Upper House member at the State level, got voted in on a 'No Pokies' campaign. He's hard working, and takes up the issues that people are concerned about.

2. Don't give up on Triple J, the ABC (despite what the Murdoch Press and the Liberal Party say), is a neutral observer, they will alway try to present both points of view, sometimes one side doesn't want to be interviewed, not much they can do about that.

3. Try having a read of www.getup.org.au They are a Not for Profit, people driven lobby group - this is a place where you can raise your issues and it's free to join, and very satisfying when they achieve change. They're not aligned to a political party, they're aligned with the people of this country. And they have a lot of people behind them.

Lastly, this week, Gough Whitlam turned 97yo - wow! It made me think that there are no 'Statesmen' left in politics (and I use this term in the generic sense that would include women). I don't feel proud of the way that our politicians represent our country, the way that Gough W, Malcolm Fraser et al did. We no longer have leaders who are prepared to have the big vision and lead, we are stuck with poll driven worms who can't be trusted with anything. Even John Howard (and I'm not a fan of his) was recycled 3 times before he got the gig, and he then benefited from a huge government income based on the mining boom.

So, do all that you can to educate yourself, and then pass your learning onto your friends. But, above all, believe that there are places that you can participate and make a difference. The internet promotes freedom of speech, you don't have to listen to the monopoly of the Murdoch/Fairfax Press or the 10s grabs that constitute the news on commercial TV/Radio, there's the ABC and SBS - TV, Radio and internet.

Thank you, once again, cheers Deb

[old4570]

Here is one !

Did the Labor Gooberment pass the legislation to make Bank Robbery Legal for the Feds ? ( I dont remember as there was very little id any noise from the sheeple )

I f mem serves , any bank account that remains dormant ( untouched for 7 years ? ) can be confiscated by the feds ,

Now call me old fashioned , but if you know something does not belong to you , and you know it belongs to some one else , and you take it , thats stealing ! And if I understand it correctly , the Labor government has legalized theft for itself ... Or in this case Bank robbery .

Now call me PINK on this one , but to me , that is a seriously dangerous precedent . Because the sheeple made very little if any noise about it at all , not even a ( Baaa )
I wonder if 50 years ago that would have been the case ?

Now how about the Prime minister that thought War crimes was a good idea , or treason , or Lying
Basically over 70% or was it 80% of Australians said No to attacking a sovereign nation that had done nothing to us ..
Prime minister say's stuff U , Lies to us about the need to go there , and basically aids and abets in the unlawful killing of over 300,000 people , and the complete destruction of a country .
And they called the tsunami in Japan a disaster ....

So I call Australians Sheeple now , politically speaking I have little to no respect for the Australian voter , because the voter is not holding elected officials responsible for their actions , not even for bank robbery or war crimes .
How pathetic have voters in this country become , I dont blame young people for not wanting to be Voters or registering to vote .. Honestly , who wants to be associated with such a pathetic hopeless group of people that let politicians do anything they want , even when they know its wrong , criminal , stupid , treasonous to use a few choice words ..

I used to think of myself as an Australian , hell I was born here , but now , Im not so sure anymore . My fellow voters are so hopeless , so hell bent on self destruction , so politically correct , they make me sick to the pit of my stomach . ( politically speaking )

The average voter is a political moron , and I look forward to the day the politicians decide that we are no longer intelligent enough to vote ( they know that already ) .
And I dont say this as an opinion , but rather fact that can be backed up with over 30 years of evidence ..

Australians need to wake up from their political slumber , take notice of what the criminals are doing in Canbera , and do whats right !
Politicians have no allegiance to the people , so why do people align themselves with the political parties no matter what ? Because they are stupid !
If you are a member of the Lib or Lab parties and I have offended you , then GOOD , you should be offended , you should be outraged , angry , and come the election , vengeful ...

Vote out Labor Vote out the Liberals Vote independent

And this is what I say and do every election ...

And the sheeple do what the sheeple do , and the government knows this ...

Which is why we have the government , we have !

And thats why voting is a waste of time .

Choosing between two criminal ( in my opinion ) organizations , is not really a choice at all ...

And now thats 10c from me , and enough !

[kaiser]

Glad to see people contributing their thoughts into this. If you look at it as a worldwide problem is really is quite a massive and daunting topic to bring up. Daunting enough that it is easier to not talk about and just roll with the punches. Alarm bells should indeed be ringing. Instead we have a lot of talk from the Pollies and not a lot of action.

I believe I am a part of that problem- as of yet I haven't physically done anything (apart from starting this discussion) to make my voice heard. I guess its up to us as the voters to see how much power we actually hold.
After seeing issues such as the massive pay increase dished out to MPs in a matter of days, while I have to go into arbitration for 2 years just to secure a 2.2% rise as well as a loss of conditions- just a joke. To have the hide to call it an "indepndent" tribunal that made that decision....

The media can't even get their facts right on the issues that matter most of the time. Even when they do bring up a really good point, it ends up being drowned out by the rest of the irrelevant crap (Justin Bieber's latest haircut, the royal birth etc etc).

Now I'm not a Greens supporter for various reasons, but I do very much care about this planet. How much screen time / print space is being given to the rapidly accelerating death of the Barrier Reef- compared to the trashy gossip stories. You might see a 60 second story outlining the devastation, and promises of more "talks" "negotiations" and "review panels"- and then the story vanishes as quickly as it appeared. Some time down the track the issue may resurface- only for us to discover that all the "review panels" couldnt agree on a decision that wouldnt threaten profits- and so the status quo remains or some watered down, half baked measures are put in places to give the appearance of action.

I realise that for our own well being and sanity that we need to maintain some positivity as ameerat pointed out. However if things keep going the way they are, I can't help but see our problems only getting worse. It's easy enough to be jovial when you only have to consider what years you have left here- but what about our future generations?

Am I being way too naive? Has the earth been deteriorating since we first populated- and is what I'm seeing in my miniscule amount of time here just way things always have been and will be?

Perhaps there is some sense in what MattNQ posted- and that civilisation as we know it has an expiration date.

[Allie]

You certainly will get heard if you make enough noise, it is a matter of picking your battles and diving in! Unfortunately there are a lot of issues that do need fixing and, while some are being attended to, they often do not get reported as the media chooses what to print and sensationalism wins out as we are told the "audience" need shock, drama and seeing the most cut-throat individual winning. Why else do we get footballers or politicians poor behaviour reported in multiple pages at the front of newspapers or as leading news stories elsewhere while real issues (if reported at all) are tucked away in the later pages or as fillers.

There is more to life than this or politics and I don't let it rule my life .... amazing things get done by people every day who want to change things for others or their community or in aid of particular issues and these things get done by people getting out and doing them. Just because there is an uneven sharing of the community pie and a constant barrage of negativity from politicians in government, it does not mean you need to accept it and watch things whither away. The world has changed a lot even in the last 20 years and is quite disheartening to see the apathy of so many people but that does not mean you have to be one of them! If you need to know more then educate yourself, otherwise pick an issue and get involved - it truly is wonderful what one individual can do if they try and you will find that that one individual has a lot of companions who feel the same way and are willing to help make things happen.

Be informed, vote or not as you see fit but get involved - even do as little as use social media if necessary to get issues out there because if things concern you, then only you can make the choice to do something about it - some politician sitting on a bench in parliament also has to pick his/her issues and if you can make those issue one of yours then fantastic, but if not ..... do it yourself!

[ricktas]

I am more concerned about the direction our mainstream media is heading. They create news these days, rather than report it. They use the slightest small glance or remark and turn it into frontpage news.

More people died each year in the years before the 'pink batt scandal', whilst installing insulation than died during the insulation scheme, yet our media hype up the situation and blame Kevin Rudd for the deaths. What next we blame Julia Gillard for all the car related deaths cause she was leader when they gave hundreds of $M to the car industry?

They take a 10 second sound bite out of a 15 minute speech and put it on the tv news and with their own reporters dialogue completely misdirect the viewer as to what the intent of the 15 minute speech was about.

Illegal immigration, we have a problem, yes, but we do not have the worlds biggest one. Greece (that country that is basically bankrupt) has a population of around 11M people. And it gets around 100,000 illegal immigrants every quarter. They come into the EU via Greece cause it neighbours Turkey, and they come through Northern Africa and round the Mediterranean sea and enter the EU through Greece. The EU policy is that if an illegal is found they are not sent back to country of origin, they are sent back to the country through which they entered the EU. At one point Greece had over 1M people in detention centres. It asked the UN for help, and was refused.

Yet our media looks at our illegal immigration issues as being huge, massive and the worst thing ever. Yes it is an issue, but put it in perspective rather than splash it on the front page week after week like it will be the complete downfall of this country if not stopped completely and immediately. We have more important issues, like providing decent healthcare to our elderly, but when was the last time healthcare for the elderly got as much media attention?


Misinformation, misdirection! Heck, even our government does it too. What is the REAL unemployment rate? We are all being kept in the dark, fed bullshit and we are expected to use that and know what is best for our country.

I don't think Australia is going to shit, but I think our media did so, long ago, and has a lot to answer for. The media sways peoples views and politicians react to that, cause they want to get voted back in. If the media reported the facts, then politicians could react to what is important, not what Mr Murdoch etc want them to. We are being manipulated en-masse, and not necessarily by the politicians as they are caught in this whirlpool too!

[ameerat42]

Agreed. Media has become the paragon of public perception. Ironically, it was probably not intended, and I guess may have come about from
the rise in available information in the "modern age". I suspect it was a slow drift from information handlers to information arbiters. Now that it's
the status quo - and has power attached - who could dislodge it? Maybe nobody as such, but to be ever vigilant and discriminating is a great help.

The repercussions of this state leave a lot to desire. Politics has increasingly tended towards a reaction to public perception, itself held hostage to
the perception of the latest trends. There's "kudos" (apologies for debasing this word) to be gained by parading as a guru of the immediate - take
the rise of Twitter as an instance. There is so much energy expended for such little worth.

Now, back to the direction of the country and the world. So, after a period of universal bombardment with at best useless information from all corners of society,
people begin to react to some growing perception, and, unable to manage it all, begin to believe in the worse. Politics and politicians is one of the first things grasped on
to blame, and so political change is called for only on that basis. Of course, they could be to "blame", but discerning just how is usually out of the question. And soon
there is no time to even try. The bandwagon has started rolling and we must all rush out to jump on it. So another political episode begins. We call it a "revolution" and
ascribe lots of significant changes to it. These eventually get whittled away by policy reversals/failures/non-starters, and seeds of discontent are watered...

And (excuse me but) back to MY theme: what's to change?

A possible answer: large notes, I mean, what if someone asks, "Brother, can you spare a dime?"
And nothing much else really, except maybe less loud lamenting and less howling out of "conventional" wisdon.

[arthurking83]

Errr... I dunno, if it's not climate change, then it's continental drift. Either way us Melbournians are going to be screwed because we're headed north(by 7cm/year) and I don't like it one bit at all to be honest.

I just hope that I don't live to the ripe old age of 25 million years old, as at this point in time, Melbourne will(theoretically at least) be positioned close to where the Gold Coast is right now.

So we either have to live with the prospect that our weather is about to go all humid and crappy due to climate change soon .. or that it'll get all humid and cruddy due to us pushing our way up to the Goldie(as just about every elderly Greek person has tried to do over the past 50 odd years anyhow!)

That means that William is basically about to lose all sense of reasons to get up(early) in the morning .. we'll need to allocate someone as his replacement from here in Melbourne(or Bill will need to asses the need to move 'down south').. I ain't such an early type, nor one that sees pleasure at the seaside(much).

No rush tho .. remember we have about 25 million years to plan for this eventuality.


But I still donlikeit
(the way our country is headed!)

As our country is a continent, I hoping that no one is offended by my referral to country and continent as one?

I'd prefer if it were more like 7cm/year to the south. My folks abandoned the north to come to Australia because it wasn't as nice a place as it was here in the south ... and I fully concur, and had hoped for a long and fruitful life here in the south.
And so it seems that I'm being forced back northwards(under duress I must admit) .. and there is only a limited distance that one could be expected to travel by foot, and I've forgotten my Jesus sandals to boot!(so expect very little in the way of aquatic bipodal endeavours)
So it seems there is currently no option other than to accept the direction of travel of the landmass ... unless you like boats and/or rocky featureless plains and latitudes south of Hobart .... Antarctica sounds politically quite ATM

Nup! don't like it, never have(ever since I became aware of it all) .. and usually we just have to live with it, until the next round of movements are made. Expect no change beyond that as well!

[mpb]

You prefer south? We will end up in Antarctica and freeze to death.

I am all for north.

With respect to some of the other comments on our Country, which do not seem to have anything to do which way it is headed, I will just say that the grass is pretty green here compared to most other places.

In fact the grass is way over saturated compared to the black and white qualities of the grass in other places.

[Kym]

I am afraid I have become very disillusioned with our political system and the people who are "running" our country. We are supposed to have a democratic society, but isn't that supposed to mean "one man one vote". Unfortunately, that is not how it works. If you look at how the electorates are carved up, you can have a very small electorate with a few thousand people and that is one seat and you can have another huge electorate with many thousands of people and that is also one seat.

Not true! The AEC redistributes boundaries so that each seat has approximately the same number of electors. This is also true for state elections.

The only difference is the senate, where Tasmania has the same number of senators as NSW.
This is due to how Australia was formed from the colonies.

[jerrab]

Thank you Kaiser for raising really important issues. They're just as important to photographers as anyone else, since we expose the world we reflect. It was Cartier-Bresson who said his pictures were an interface between the world and what he thought about it. While it's easy to say that things have never been different because fundamentally people's behaviour is the same, things have changed quite a lot. Society has changed heaps, and we're now confronted with huge global issues such as climate change, energy and water problems, millions of people being fleeing their countries, etc. At the same time, the system is much more monopolised (like the media), controlled and manipulated so that we're encouraged to view these problems through a narrower prism than ever before, a prism that is entirely in hock to powerful vested interests. Our problems require a new global approach, but instead countries are spending more than ever before on 'defence', which is not a preparation to resolve these issues peacefully. The planet will survive, but we may have real difficulties unless things change. If we leave it up to the politicians, they won't. So we need to get involved some how - at any level - because if we don't, our lack of action leaves the floor open to the people who are protecting their 'interests'.

[kaiser]

Errr... I dunno, if it's not climate change, then it's continental drift. Either way us Melbournians are going to be screwed because we're headed north(by 7cm/year) and I don't like it one bit at all to be honest.

I just hope that I don't live to the ripe old age of 25 million years old, as at this point in time, Melbourne will(theoretically at least) be positioned close to where the Gold Coast is right now.

So we either have to live with the prospect that our weather is about to go all humid and crappy due to climate change soon .. or that it'll get all humid and cruddy due to us pushing our way up to the Goldie(as just about every elderly Greek person has tried to do over the past 50 odd years anyhow!)

That means that William is basically about to lose all sense of reasons to get up(early) in the morning .. we'll need to allocate someone as his replacement from here in Melbourne(or Bill will need to asses the need to move 'down south').. I ain't such an early type, nor one that sees pleasure at the seaside(much).

No rush tho .. remember we have about 25 million years to plan for this eventuality.


But I still donlikeit
(the way our country is headed!)

As our country is a continent, I hoping that no one is offended by my referral to country and continent as one?

I'd prefer if it were more like 7cm/year to the south. My folks abandoned the north to come to Australia because it wasn't as nice a place as it was here in the south ... and I fully concur, and had hoped for a long and fruitful life here in the south.
And so it seems that I'm being forced back northwards(under duress I must admit) .. and there is only a limited distance that one could be expected to travel by foot, and I've forgotten my Jesus sandals to boot!(so expect very little in the way of aquatic bipodal endeavours)
So it seems there is currently no option other than to accept the direction of travel of the landmass ... unless you like boats and/or rocky featureless plains and latitudes south of Hobart .... Antarctica sounds politically quite ATM

Nup! don't like it, never have(ever since I became aware of it all) .. and usually we just have to live with it, until the next round of movements are made. Expect no change beyond that as well!

I don't mind if Melbourne finds its way into Queensland. Atleast then we will have some decent baristas who know how to make a real coffee

[geoffsta]

Personally I'm thinking if Rudd gets back in. I'll hire a boat in Darwin. Go out about 20 miles or so. Then ring the Indonesian navy to come and pick me up.

Greed, greed, greed. And after that they want to suck more money out of us. With many businesses now, production costs are outweighing income, forcing them broke.
Minority are winning over majority. And those who bust a foofer valve to get somewhere in life are getting shafted, and those sitting around bludging on the rest of us are living well.

Words are words, and that's all they are.... Action is what we need.

[ricktas]

Personally I'm thinking if Rudd gets back in. I'll hire a boat in Darwin. Go out about 20 miles or so. Then ring the Indonesian navy to come and pick me up.

I could be picking you up. I might move to Indonesia and start a shonky boat building business. good money to be made right there.

[MattNQ]

It's funny. I was chatting to a work colleague today & he put forward a few ideas- why don't we allow the boat people to stay...under the condition that they are bound to work for x years ..eg. labouring - roads, rail, footpaths, weed management etc - working on essential community infrastructure in exchange for a basic (ie liveable) wage and accommodation provided for them and their family. Preferably in regional areas where the communities are doing it tough. At the end of x years, they are offered a block of land for a minimal sum in the regional area where they have been working.....

Now I'm not saying that this idea is the perfect solution, but why aren't we seeing more constructive and creative ideas like that from our esteemed leaders???