Oxymoron

Have you seriously considered the Australian Defence Force?, no comparison when it comes to pay and conditions. Depending on your area of expertise you could be a shoe in.

Just out of interest, why?

More from Steve Keen, this time on Switzer and worth a look, for the first 12 minutes of the video talking about housing bubble, mortgage affordability, private/govt debt etc. http://www.switzer.com.au/business-news/news-stories/steve-keens-forecast-for-australia/ Steve Keen’s forecast for Australia So what is he forecasting now for the Australian economy? “We have got out of the crisis by getting back to what caused it in the first place – rising debt levels,” says Keen. “So the government spending combined with the encouragement for people to get in the mortgage debt meant that rather than deleveraging hitting our economy, we’ve continued having debt adding to demand, it’s adding about 3.5 per cent to aggregate demand on my figures.” Compared with America, he says aggregate private debt level here is not as bad. America’s aggregate private debt level reached around 300 per cent of GDP where as Australia got to 160 per cent. He says that’s flat lining – “Once it starts to flatline, you’re no longer adding to demand by additional debt and I think we’re starting to see a downturn”. The consumer price index rose 0.6 per cent in the June quarter – Keen says the less aggressive figures weren’t a surprise. Government spending cuts not a priority So, does he think Tony Abbott has the better policy of wanting to cut spending? Keen says a market economy is driven by cash flow and if the private sector is trying to reduce cash flow – “spending less than it earns by deleveraging”, the last thing that’s needed is the government deleveraging at the same time. This is what’s happening in Europe at the moment, Keen says, and is the reason it’s facing a serious downturn. “I’m not a fan of what’s called Chartalist economics that argues the government can run any size deficit it likes, “ he says. “I believe there are limits there, but nonetheless if you have private sector deleveraging, then the last thing you want to have there is the government doing exactly the same thing – it will just take cash flow out of the economy and push it down.” Reducing debt now is not a high priority for the government, he argues. “The crazy thing is both parties are rabbiting on about the level of government debt, when if you look at the level of government debt, it's slightly more than credit card debt, whereas compared to mortgage debt, mortgage debt is far higher, far more dangerous than government debt is,” he says. “We do have room in the government to run a deficit and fund it for some substantial time before we’re anything near the situation that applies in America or Europe or Japan in particular.”

Here's another perspective. TIPS for Aussies moving to UK http://forums.whirlpool.net.au/forum-replies.cfm?t=1631731

You'd know he didn't write it then. I wonder if he really believes what's in it.

Been there, great place, so friendly and well liked it doesn't need a Defence force.

Nothing to do with bulbs then? Ah well, it was worth asking the question as it's what the Dutch and burst bubbles are best known for. I'd better forward that link to Wayne Swann and his mates in Canberra.

According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics, September 2010 "Between 1998-99 and 2008-09, real net national disposable income per capita grew by 2.6% a year - appreciably faster than during the preceding ten years, when it grew by 1.5% per year." and Australians "National net saving as a proportion of GDP rose from just under 5% in 1999 to just under 8% in 2009". They may need it if the bears are right about a recession. The final word to our Honourable Treasurer Wayne Swann - The Australian Success Story: http://www.treasurer.gov.au/DisplayDocs.aspx?doc=speeches/2010/025.htm&pageID=005&min=wms&Year=&DocType=

I suppose all this does have something to do with the thread title in that it may help to explain why "Expats Put Off Returning To Austerity Britain". Anyway, a couple of links to carry on from the previous posts: Australia's trade with the world - http://www.dfat.gov.au/publications/trade/Australias-trade-with-the-world.html Goods exported from Australia: top 30 destination countries, 2009–10 - http://www.oesr.qld.gov.au/products/tables/goods-exported-aus-top30-destination/index.php

As I said you could be right. Does "Classic Dutch Disease" have anything to do with tulip bulbs?, if it does then I don't now how you compare the usefulness and need of a tulip bulb against the usefulness and need of essential commodities. Tulip bulbs are something I can quite easily live without.

It's not "highly likely that Australia would be in recession now if it wasn't for it's commodities exports" it's a certainty, but that's the whole point isn't it?, it does have the commodities, enough for the next hundreds/thousands of years. It's not just China that wants them or China that's going to stop wanting them because they're in slow down mode, just less, but who knows you could be right.

A slow down in China will cause a slow down in Australia not a recession, China and other countries will still need resources, just not as much. Australia is virtually/is a debt free country, BHP Billiton has a $10.5 billion half year profit is doesn't know what to do with and they're not the only ones, lets hope they've all learnt the lesson the farmers finally did and put money away for the lean times, if they come. The experts tell us Australia weathered the GFC better than any other country, but who knows you could be right.

Re holidays, UK gets 8 public holidays a year, NSW gets 13 which also gives opportunities to use less annual leave ie 9 days off for 3 or 4 days annual leave, 16 days off for 8 days annual leave etc. Plus there's always the great Australian sickie, 5 of those without a doctors certificate, plus 10/20(?)with. Food and general goods on Aussie wages don't seem too expensive to me. Re "house prices are relativly higher than those in the UK", don't quite understand this but I know I'd rather live in a $750,000 house in Australia than a $750,000 house in UK, no comparison. Re the good points, you need to get out more.

Nah, we're still crying over losing to England in the final, although the reason for that was we played our hard fought final against the Kiwi's in the semi and England had a soft semi against France and came up fresh for the final.

Yeah, he was one of the few who predicted the GFC though: "Sub-prime was a classic American scam and its now falling apart" Apart from CSL and Westpac shares I went 100% cash and fixed interest based on his figures and those of a couple of others. As far as shares in the four Australian major banks are concerned , well you just can't go wrong in the long term.