The American choice

I purposely intend to make minimal comments on the US elections, however a friend just sent me this and I just have to share it:

“We in Denmark cannot figure out why you are even bothering to hold an
election.

On one side, you have a bitch who is a lawyer, married to a lawyer, she
opposes a lawyer who is married to a bitch who is a lawyer.

On the other side, you have a true war hero married to a woman with a huge
chest who owns a beer distributorship.

Is there a contest here?”

Gay marriage

The government is removing a bunch of discriminations against gays. Good move, about time. I support removing discriminations against homosexuals. However the government won’t be supporting gay marriage, again good move.

Gays already have equal rights when it comes to marriage, a gay person can marry someone of the opposite sex just like a heterosexual person can. However what I don’t support is to call a homosexual union “marriage”. That term is for the union between a man and a woman. It’s a social institution that has evolved over thousands of years and just about all cultures recognize it. Marriage is not dependent on government, the state just gives it legal recognition to clarify such family matters as inheritance and child custody. Those who want to call gay unions marriage want to completely change the meaning of the word and social institution. Plain social engineering, nothing libertarian about it.

Having said that a type of civil union perhaps with no sexual necessary connotations as the Archbishop suggests , sounds like a good idea to me and would properly have popular support.

Ballistic Missile Defence for Australia

Will Australia need a Ballistic Missile Defence? Abraham Gubler thinks we may might:

Quite simply the success of BMD and that its being fielded elsewhere has propelled Australia to the top of the target list because it is conceivable that the American leadership would not sacrifice a Australian city in order to use military force against North Korea or Iran. Or at least it would be worth testing for a desperate regime; Darwin as a warning, Brisbane as the punishment?

Thats something I haven’t thought of, we may end up a proxy nuclear target. I think this just improves the case for the ADF to lead the Australian Space industry. Ballistic Missiles are rockets and we don’t have many skilled rocketeers in Australia. We wouldn’t be able to develop our own systems and would have to rely on American help. Now, using US systems would probably be the way to go but it would be sensible to have a core group of skilled people just in case we found ourselves alone. Same reason we keep Lucas Heights going, just in case we need to build the bomb.

Rest in Peace Lance Corporal

Thank you for your service to Australia Lance Corporal Jason Marks.

Twenty-seven-year-old commando Lance Corporal Jason Marks died overnight in a battle between his patrol and Taliban insurgents in southern Afghanistan, as melting snow heralded the start of the annual “fighting season”.

He was the fourth Australian soldier, and second commando, killed in Afghanistan in just over six months.

Four other commandos were wounded in the same action, but it’s believed none suffered life-threatening injuries.

Prime Minister Kevin Rudd today warned there would be more casualties to come.

“We are facing a change of season, as the winter snows melt and the spring thaw begins, which usually indicates a heightening in military activity on the part of the Taliban and al-Qaeda,” Mr Rudd said.

“Therefore, 2008 will be difficult and dangerous and bloody, and the Australian nation needs to prepare itself for further losses in the year ahead.”……

Rudd Taxes

Well, the Rudd governments first new tax arrives and not unexpectedly its a nanny state tax, a tax on alcohol to stop binge drinking.

FEDERAL Health Minister Nicola Roxon has blamed the former Howard Government for the rise in teenage binge drinking.

Ms Roxon said the decision to cut taxes on premixed alcoholic drinks eight years ago helped fuel the surge in excessive drinking by young people, particularly teenage girls.

The Rudd Government overnight reversed the change, virtually doubling the excise on alcopops from midnight, pushing the cost of the drinks up by between 30 cents and $1.30 a bottle.

“We can track the change in the way that young women have been drinking these products from the time that the Howard Government changed the excise in 2000,” Ms Roxon said to the Nine Network.

Now remember you have to be at least 18 to purchase booze so the teenagers Nicola Roxon is concerned about aren’t that young. If she is concerned about underage drinking then I think she needs to ask who gave it to them in the first place.

I doubt a 30 cents a drink tax will have much effect on consumption but it will raise $2 billion. Its just a money raising sin tax.

Dingo to the rescue

I’m not surprised by this. Ernie Dingo has always striked me as a man of real character not just is one. Had he decided to build himself up and taken martial arts lessons he would have made a good movie action hero.

In a scene reminiscent of Dundee’s, “That’s not a knife” brush with New York bandits, Dingo saved the day after confronting the bullies attempting to steal a young boy’s mobile phone.

….On location in London’s famous Carnaby St for Channel 7’s The Great Outdoors, the TV favourite stepped in to help the crying youngster, who was pleading for the return of his phone.

A Confidential reader on the scene said that shoppers watched as the boy followed the petty thieves while they “strutted arrogantly through the stunned crowd”.”

To a man, they did nothing,” the witness said. “Right when one of the bullies was about to belt the boy to stop him following them, they walked straight into the clutches of a fierce Ernie Dingo.”

The dramatic scene was described as “straight out of High Noon”…….

Carnival of Space is in town

Carnival of Space 51 is up and running at Astroengine. Theres lots of posts so grab a coffee and enjoy a good read.

Regulation Impact Statement

Piers Akerman today writes about the strangulation of business by government regulations in New South Wales while Andrew Bolt sees stifling government bureaucracy under Rudd. Heres a suggestion, Have a requirement for a regulation impact statement before the introduction of any new government regulation. Similar to environment impact statements, government departments would need to show the full impact of the new restrictions on business, the environment, families and anything else they may effect. They should be very detailed, hopefully take months to do, with cost borne by the government.

I can’t see why we can’t fight fire with fire.

More tax

First we have calls for new PC sin taxes, such as “junk” food (whats junky about a salad, meat pattie and a bread bun ?) and carbon, now we get a tax review:

PRIME Minister Kevin Rudd has signalled a major shake-up of the Australian tax system.

Just one day after the 2020 Summit to gather ideas for the future of Australia, Mr Rudd put the taxation reform in the spotlight.

“I think it’s time we actually looked at a root and branch reform of the Australian taxation system,” Mr Rudd told ABC Television’s 7.30 Report tonight.

Mr Rudd said the current system was too complex and criticised the former Howard government for not making changes.

A comprehensive review of federal and state taxes within two years was one of the ideas to emerge from the summit.

I somehow doubt this will lead to less tax, despite any claims of increased efficiencies. Just a couple of points:

We already have a junk food tax, the GST, fresh food is except. The whole idea is inherently elitist, its a tax on cheap family favorites.

I fear “tax reform” will just remove tax raising power from the states. They will be become even more dependent on Commonwealth funds and continue to blame their incompetence on the federal government.

I don’t like the sound of this at all.

2020 summit a great sucesss !

The Prime Minister’s 2020 summit will conclude today and its clear its been a great success. The summiteers propose we ban smoking, increase tax on alcohol, make fitness compulsory and of course more money for the arts. Thats just for starters because we are going to become a republic, have a bill of rights and sign a treaty with the Aboriginals. I think its been a very worthwhile summit and its good we managed to hear the great minds of Australia. All the government need to do now is implement the complete opposite of what has been proposed and its bound to win the next election.

From time to time we’ve been tempted to believe that society has become too complex to be managed by self-rule, that government by an elite group is superior to government for, by, and of the people. Well, if no one among us is capable of governing himself, then who among us has the capacity to govern someone else?

Ronald Reagan