China's trade war against us continues in earnest: in addition to the punitive tariffs on barley they have now banned export beef from selected producers in direct contravention of the China/Australia Free-Trade Agreement (ChAFTA). From News.com.au:

Trade Minister Simon Birmingham said it is a “very important market for Australia”.
“But I would emphasise, there are many other meat processing facilities that will continue under their approved permits to send product to China as they do, indeed, around the rest of the world,” he said in a press conference today. “But we will work as hard as we can with this industry, just as we are with the barley industry, to get the right outcome for them.”

Frankly Birmingham is being as weak as water in letting the Chinese Communist Party get away with this.  Work to get the right outcome for them? Why not just take China straight to the WTO for being in breach of their obligations?

Our government are communist-appeasers, weak as water. And you'll never appease China, they'll just keep demanding more and more.

Here we go again - it's just been announced that the Queensland government is buying a large stake in Virgin Airlines (if not the whole thing). ABC:

The state-owned Queensland Investment Corporation (QIC) is set to make an official bid for a stake in Virgin Australia after the airline went into voluntary administration last month.
Queensland Treasurer Cameron Dick released a statement confirming the move to save the airline and retain its headquarters in Brisbane.
Mr Dick said it could take the form of a direct equity stake, a loan, a guarantee or other financial incentives.[/font][/size][/color]
"We have been very clear — two sustainable, national airlines are critical to Australia's economy," Mr Dick said in a statement.
"We have an opportunity to retain not only head office and crew staff in Queensland, but also to grow jobs in the repairs, maintenance and overhaul sector and support both direct and indirect jobs in our tourism sector.
"We saw the punishing increase to the cost of flights after the Ansett collapse, and this Government will not stand by and let that happen again."

State governments (again) blowing taxpayer money on things they should NEVER invest in, just like the 1980's with the VIC and SA governments throwing money at all sorts of stupid investments via their investment banking arms/state banks.

And who does the Queensland Treasurer think he is - the savior of the national airline industry? It's not the responsibility of the Queensland government to ensure a viable second national airline.

And who does the Queensland Treasurer think he is - the savior of the national airline industry?

At least his name is appropriate.

And who does the Queensland Treasurer think he is - the savior of the national airline industry?

At least his name is appropriate.

The complete idiocy of state governments though - I can't find the link right now but the NSW government has also been operating an agency with some of the proceeds of their power privatisations called T-Corp (Investment Corporation of the Treasury of NSW) and some of their investments across NSW have been really questionable to say the least. They've been buying boutique mushroom farms, high end beef producers etc. There just isn't the transparency or calculation of risk that there should be with commercial banking investment and frankly its got Tim Marcus-Clarke type problems written all over it. Cain-Kirner, Bannon et al.

And now Virgin Australia. Some of the bigger creditors will get money but not the small guys and in the meantime the Queensland government has an airline with an unprofitable network that was bleeding money for years. Yay, what's not to like...

I suppose the QLD government wants to prop up the tourism industry in QLD as travel restrictions are lifted.

I can't see this working because covid19 has decimated travel and tourism and it won't recover for a long time.

Peter Dutton wastes no time in condemning the Queensland government's proposed purchase of Virgin Australia -



I nearly wee'd myself, THEY have a corrupt and chaotic government, Peter? Pot, kettle!

China moves it up a notch and is now threatening our iron ore exports - News.com.au;

The Global Times newspaper, a mouthpiece for the communist government, suggested China did not need Australian exports and could easily turn to Brazil for iron ore and other commodities.
“The latest meat import suspension and the possible imposition of major tariffs on Australia’s barley exports don’t necessarily represent China’s economic punishment for Australia, though they may serve as a wake-up call for Australia to reflect on its economic links with China,” the newspaper said.
“While China is the only choice for Australia’s massive commodity exports, Australia is not necessarily the only option for China. There are also other countries like Brazil that can supply huge amounts of iron ore, coal or LNG to China.”

Really we can't rely on them as a trade partner because they're prepared to use their power to influence politics in Australia. And China really don't want an independent investigation into the source and handling of COVID19 - why?

There's a $70 million class action been launched against South Australia's largest private employer, On The Run (Peregrine Corporation) on account of systematic wage theft. ABC;

A class action on behalf of 1,050 workers against Shahin Enterprises, owner of the chain also known as On The Run, has been lodged with the Federal Court on Wednesday.
Adero Law, representing the workers, accuses the company of failing to pay overtime, underpaying staff and misusing its traineeship program as a method to reduce workers' pay.
It estimates more than 8,000 current or former employees of the chain are eligible to join the class action and claims Shahin Enterprises could be liable to pay back between $50 million and $70 million in unpaid wages and entitlements.
The allegations, which date back to 2014 and span across all 145 OTR stores in South Australia, involve eight different wage minimisation tactics that allegedly enabled Shahin Enterprises to underpay its staff.

Most of the alleged underpayment occurred when employees were put on trainee wages when they weren't trainees; can't say I'm surprised as that's been a rort used by employers for decades. Employ someone as a 'trainee' for a year and when that's finished sack them and get another one.

Don, I totally agree.

Further, we need food security here, and perhaps we need to nationalise food production wherever it is threatened like this, instead of buying a stake in Virgin Airlines.

CCP's weakness is that it rules a large population and military that must not go hungry.



https://youtu.be/GXWwCe6bS6A

If our iron ore supply is being knocked back it is probably symbolic. They are not manufacturing much except a Pacific fleet.

I would cut the gas.

Ford came up with the Territory which relied on lots of imported components and never resonated with the public.

Except that there were over 178,000 of them made and sold. Hardly a dud:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ford_Territory_(Australia)

You will have to convince me that they relied on 'lots of imported components' too. Exactly what was their % local content?

Still waiting for your reply, Don.

Ford came up with the Territory which relied on lots of imported components and never resonated with the public.

Except that there were over 178,000 of them made and sold. Hardly a dud:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ford_Territory_(Australia)

You will have to convince me that they relied on 'lots of imported components' too. Exactly what was their % local content?

Still waiting for your reply, Don.

Awright -

178,000 could have been a shed load more if we had been more persuasive about getting the product(s) into international markets - which did actually work to some extent. 178,000 is still just a drop in the ocean when you're talking about car plants and the economics of; if it was really successful it should have been in the millions over the same time-span. Those are the sorts of numbers we needed to aim for with a sustainable domestic/export local manufacturing industry.

But nobody cared so it's all a moot point now. I see that Universities Australia is whinging about the savage job cuts coming to the 130,000 odd permanent staff that universities employ nationally. The car industry was double-to-triple that figure and nobody gave a damn - so why should anyone give a flying fig about universities and their lack of Chinese and Nepalese students?

Anyway, number two, a lot of the car tech and the components were indeed being imported in the end and local manufacturing and engineering wasn't being supported by either the government nor the manufacturers themselves. Ford gave up on all the continued R&D on things like the locally produced transmission (from recollection Borg-Warner in regional VIC) and engine plant (Geelong) well before they announced an official withdrawal. The power plant and transmission in particular were critical to sustained local production; once they stopped spending on local engineering the rest was pre-determined by the Button report (ie no local manufacturing at all).

If our iron ore supply is being knocked back it is probably symbolic. They are not manufacturing much except a Pacific fleet.

I would cut the gas.

This nation is a communist dictatorship - by its very nature it's crazy, irrational, unpredictable, paranoid and repressive.

It's also corrupt and will probably fall over given the first really strong gust of wind... so get ready...

If our iron ore supply is being knocked back it is probably symbolic. They are not manufacturing much except a Pacific fleet.

I would cut the gas.

This nation is a communist dictatorship - by its very nature it's crazy, irrational, unpredictable, paranoid and repressive.

It's also corrupt and will probably fall over given the first really strong gust of wind... so get ready...

'by its very nature it's crazy, irrational, unpredictable, paranoid'

Sound a-lot like you at times.

'It's also corrupt and will probably fall over given the first really strong gust of wind.'

Seems to be standing pretty firm and not falling into anarchy with this crisis, handling it better than your BFF by at minim 1000 miles.

'by its very nature it's crazy, irrational, unpredictable, paranoid'

Sound a-lot like you at times.

Child.

'It's also corrupt and will probably fall over given the first really strong gust of wind.' Seems to be standing pretty firm and not falling into anarchy with this crisis, handling it better than your BFF by at minim 1000 miles.

Yeah because communist dictatorships are by far the most successful model of government out. History isn't littered with failed communist states like it is social democratic ones... right?

The Soviet Union collapsed virtually overnight, you think the same thing won't happen in China?

Read up on world history, you obviously don't have a grasp on it.

Child

Is that how respond to allegations of McCarthyism? Petty insults? I do say I'm disappointed.

Yeah because communist dictatorships are by far the most successful model of government out.

History isn't littered with failed communist states like it is social democratic ones... right?

The Soviet Union collapsed virtually overnight, you think the same thing won't happen in China? Read up on world history, you obviously don't have a grasp on it.

Who may I remind you has the worlds largest economy and who is loosing their grip of their dominance of global affairs? Seems to be doing Ok if you ignore all the human rights violations, especially in the current pandemic.

Calling us social democratic is a bit generous, after all we embraced neoliberalism and the welfare state has been eroded for decades, could say we've been headed in the direction of a 'failed state' in a while...

Brush up on your history, the USSR collapse has a variety of factors in it. One being letting people speak there minds... I think the CCP figured to avoid letting that a very long time ago with the Hundred flowers campaign.  Still, I'm disappointed you can't seem to comprehend civilised debate.

Child

Is that how respond to allegations of McCarthyism? Petty insults? I do say I'm disappointed.

This is just childish point-scoring and I'm calling it out.

Who may I remind you has the worlds largest economy and who is loosing their grip of their dominance of global affairs? Seems to be doing Ok if you ignore all the human rights violations, especially in the current pandemic.

You don't have a clue what's actually going on there - and the Chinese people themselves probably don't know either. There could be millions dead from COVID19 and the rest of the world would have no idea - just like the tens of millions systematically starved to death under the Great Leap Forward.

They get away with it because they're a repressive, closed society where information isn't allowed unless it's vetted by the CCP first. It isn't a free society - get it? No, perhaps you don't.

Still, I'm disappointed you can't seem to comprehend civilised debate.

You called me emotionally unhinged like the Chinese Communist Party - and now you're claiming the mature, moral high-ground? Please.

This is just childish point-scoring and I'm calling it out.

Calling out hysteria is childish point scoring? Cant Say I'm surprised with that one. Must praise trump and bash China line your've been running to 'trigger them libs'

You don't have a clue what's actually going on there - and the Chinese people themselves probably don't know either. There could be millions dead from COVID19 and the rest of the world would have no idea - just like the tens of millions systematically starved to death under the Great Leap Forward.

They get away with it because they're a repressive, closed society where information isn't allowed unless it's vetted by the CCP first. It isn't a free society - get it? No, perhaps you don't.

Oh are we re-opening this kettle of fish now? I have a feeling we've done that topic to death. Anyway, they all know about the '3 terrible years' and don't try to hide it. They even admitted it their fault in 1981. They know all about it and don't try to hide it.

That crap your referring to is the cover ups done by some provincial party cadres to make it not look bad. It seems to have backfired massively in that regard. They have had significantly less deaths then the United States and that is a fact, Handling it significantly better than trump. (waits for claims of fake news).

You called me emotionally unhinged like the Chinese Communist Party - and now you're claiming the mature, moral high-ground? Please.

No, not quite. I called you 'Crazy, Irrational, unpredictable and paranoid'. All elements of your hysteria towards the new overlords of the planet.

Any yes Anakin I very much do have the high ground.

Oh are we re-opening this kettle of fish now? I have a feeling we've done that topic to death. Anyway, they all know about the '3 terrible years' and don't try to hide it. They even admitted it their fault in 1981. They know all about it and don't try to hide it.

They're allowed to talk about the Great Leap Forward and the Cultural Revolution? News to them I'm sure - the last time I looked it was on the list of things official not allowed to be discussed; in fact President Xi has clamped down even harder than his predecessors making sure there's no mention of 1989 or any other divergent view of Communist Party History.

That crap your referring to is the cover ups done by some provincial party cadres to make it not look bad. It seems to have backfired massively in that regard. They have had significantly less deaths then the United States and that is a fact, Handling it significantly better than trump. (waits for claims of fake news).

Kudos to you for believing the official CCP version of events - because nobody else does.

Oh are we re-opening this kettle of fish now? I have a feeling we've done that topic to death. Anyway, they all know about the '3 terrible years' and don't try to hide it. They even admitted it their fault in 1981. They know all about it and don't try to hide it.

They're allowed to talk about the Great Leap Forward and the Cultural Revolution? News to them I'm sure - the last time I looked it was on the list of things official not allowed to be discussed; in fact President Xi has clamped down even harder than his predecessors making sure there's no mention of 1989 or any other divergent view of Communist Party History.

That crap your referring to is the cover ups done by some provincial party cadres to make it not look bad. It seems to have backfired massively in that regard. They have had significantly less deaths then the United States and that is a fact, Handling it significantly better than trump. (waits for claims of fake news).

Kudos to you for believing the official CCP version of events - because nobody else does.

They are allowed to talk about and lol they condemn it as pretty much Maos egoistic vanity projects. You should read up on both sides of history to make up your own mind on the matter. The Great leap backwards and Cultural revolution are allowed to be discussed under that context and It is also Very Common knowledge there about the events of 1989. Also if Xi is 'clamping down harder then his predecessors' on that event then why did He last year Acknowledge that it happened? It's treated as a 'why does it matter' event by the government and the population are taught its for the benefit of a 'stable and harmonious society' if you believe that.


Your just a different side of the same coin on buying into state sanitised narratives Don,  your've blindly believed whatever trump has said and I haven't seen otherwise, all just to 'trigger them libtards'.