i’m not an expert in politics, but a $1Trillion debt cant be good…? 🙏 🙏

  • joelfromaus@aussie.zone
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    5 days ago

    Without concrete plans to cut government spending or privatise assets to reduce the reliance on borrowing, politicians at the Federal and State level are putting even more spending on the credit card and leaving Australian taxpayers to pay the soaring interest bill.

    Emphasis mine.

    No matter the size of the debt, mentioning privatisation instantly makes me wish you get an incorrect bill from your electricity retailer that you fight for 3 months to only get a $50 credit. Shit idea.

  • stylusmobilus@aussie.zone
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    3 days ago

    Yep

    Can’t tax gas, but can kick down on our most disadvantaged.

    I see a few in here have bought the Labor lines on sustainability.

    We’re discovering how much it actually costs to give dignity and quality of life to the disabled. How much us unpaid carers bear for the rest of society.

    Something it looks like a few of us struggle to understand, however I suspect they’d want understanding real fast if it happened to them.

    We’re judged on how well we look after our most disadvantaged. Looks like ‘pragmatic arsehole’ is one a few of us want to choose.

    • Cypher@aussie.zone
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      5 days ago

      NDIS and AUKUS have really dug us into a hole.

      Just another thing Millennials will be stuck footing the bill for.

      • ikt@aussie.zone
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        4 days ago

        True but we are helping millions of Australians with disabilities and we might get a submarine or 2 out of it, so not all is lost :P

        • Cypher@aussie.zone
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          4 days ago

          Well, there are 782k registered users of the NDIS at a cost of $52.3 billion.

          Call me crazy but that seems high.

          At least they’re not paying for blowjobs anymore.

          • budget_biochemist@slrpnk.net
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            4 days ago

            there are 782k registered users of the NDIS at a cost of $52.3 billion

            Works out to $66,879 per person per year, which doesn’t seem like much at all to care for the most severely disabled people in the country. Especially when you take into account that it costs $392,375 to $803,000 per year to keep someone in a standard (not ICU) hospital bed.

            • Cypher@aussie.zone
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              4 days ago

              Not everyone on the NDIS falls into that category, but don’t worry the cuts are coming and will continue as NDIS has become extremely unpopular.

              • budget_biochemist@slrpnk.net
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                4 days ago

                Yes, the cuts are starting in October with 10% to all funding for skills for independent living. Do you think that cutting programs that teach disabled people to do things themselves is going to reduce overall costs, or make them rely on support workers more?

                All budgets for social and community participation will also be cut by 50% from then, so get ready for a corresponding increase in anti-social behaviour from people out in public without support. Plus an increase in hospital costs and waiting times for all the disabled people who are stuck at home alone and get themselves into hospital just to have some company.

          • ikt@aussie.zone
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            4 days ago

            you should read about some of the people it’s helping…

            i read about one person who needs 24x7 care, cannot eat without assistance, can’t talk, can’t walk, needs help going to the bathroom…

            that sounds like hell to me

            • Cypher@aussie.zone
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              4 days ago

              Sure, never said it isn’t helping people, but I’ve seen the receipts for a diabetic who requested assistance purchasing orthopaedic shoes and they gave him $32k.

              He was limited to spending $500 on the shoes he’d asked for and the rest of the funds were for housing modifications for accessibility… that he didn’t need.

              So he didn’t get his shoes and they spent way too much.

              There is waste, it is costing too much, it isn’t sustainable without taxing the mining companies and Labor won’t touch that after losing multiple elections over it.

              • shads@leminal.space
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                4 days ago

                When I was last looking for work one of my contacts told me she could get me a job in a couple of days, pretty much guaranteed and good money. The job was admin in relation to an NDIS provider. I asked why they were paying so well and she told me they have ridiculous staff turn over so they pay high to try to retain the people they can.

                The causes of the staff turn over were apparently almost entirely externalities. People getting abused for the work they do, primarily but mixed with a fair degree of uncertainty about long term career prospects.

                It seems to me this is one of the primary ways that this can be kept front and center. Make sure everyone who uncritically watches Sky News (or whatever they call that slop these days) is angry about it, make sure there is uncertainty at every potential point of failure, keep the money scared. I’m not saying the program deserves unwavering support, but having it as this constantly demonised and criticised topic feels a lot like setting it up to fail.

                AUKUS on the other hand can fuck right off, that shit was a horrific deal from day dot, pissed off our more stable allies and painted a target on our coastlines in the event we ever actually needed to use the program.

                Fully agree about taxing the mining companies though, if the owners can afford to buy both politicians and the media they are not paying anywhere near enough tax.