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Which is a higher priority for the federal government? (1 Viewer)

Which is a higher priority for the federal government?

  • A)

    Votes: 11 64.7%
  • B)

    Votes: 6 35.3%

  • Total voters
    17

Sathius005

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Which is a higher priority for the federal government budget

A) welfare
B) defence?
 

alekovic

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The defense portfolio already suffered deep cuts to funding in the 2012 budget, while welfare expenditure is forecast to increase dramatically with the imposition of the NDIS. So it would seem reasonable to address Australia's growing welfare state before searching for cuts in the defense budget. However, the Government should prioritise cuts to foreign aid/dismantling renewable energy schemes/subsidies.
 

wannaspoon

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Defence has to be one of the most pointless portfolios for a country like Australia...

I find it hard to believe that the federal government is having a whinge about how much money they don't have... but yet, they have the nerve to buy more submarines which are, quite frankly speaking, complete arse compared to some other submarines on the market... there is also the issue of crewing these submarines, Australia can barely crew their present fleet of defective submarines but yet they seem to be spending a shit load more to build more... don't even get me started on the Joint Strike Fighter hahaha!

of course, there has to be some concessions when it comes to defence spending... However, I'm just saying; what they are presently spending money on is complete and utter bullshit... This is then sapping money from other, more vital services back home... for instance, instead of spending billions of dollars on inferior technologies which are built mostly offshore; they can rectify a shortage in manufacturing jobs by making an Australian stealth fighter which will probably be better than the JSF anyway... either that or they can just provide services like universal dental care, a healthcare system that actually works and tend to the issue of an ageing population by upping super to 15%...

I don't know, I stopped playing with toy soldiers and toy guns when I was six... nice to see that the government isn't as mature as I am...
 
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isildurrrr1

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Defence has to be one of the most pointless portfolios for a country like Australia...

I find it hard to believe that the federal government is having a whinge about how much money they don't have... but yet, they have the nerve to buy more submarines which are, quite frankly speaking, complete arse compared to some other submarines on the market... there is also the issue of crewing these submarines, Australia can barely crew their present fleet of defective submarines but yet they seem to be spending a shit load more to build more... don't even get me started on the Joint Strike Fighter hahaha!

of course, there has to be some concessions when it comes to defence spending... However, I'm just saying; what they are presently spending money on is complete and utter bullshit... This is then sapping money from other, more vital services back home... for instance, instead of spending billions of dollars on inferior technologies which are built mostly offshore; they can rectify a shortage in manufacturing jobs by making an Australian stealth fighter which will probably be better than the JSF anyway... either that or they can just provide services like universal dental care, a healthcare system that actually works and tend to the issue of an ageing population by upping super to 15%...

I don't know, I stopped playing with toy soldiers and toy guns when I was six... nice to see that the government isn't as mature as I am...
We built our own submarines and they suck and you want us to build our own stealth fighter when we have 0 capability on developing anything on our own? We do not have the economy of scale to commit to such large research projects anyway.

Our defence spending is NOTHING, it's 1.8% of the GDP which is MINISCULE compared to what our neighbors are spending, of course we can't properly crew our submarines if we don't open up recruitment to the adequate levels. If Australia wants to be the middle power it wants to be, you need a military force that can convert will into action. We conduct a lot of our own operations such as Timor and RAMSI. We need to keep the region stabilize because if shit goes tits up in our borders, have fun dealing with having an export economy with nobody to export to.

So what is your solution in dealing with global terrorism? You realize there are people out there that want to commit acts of terror in Australia right? It's not a matter of if, it's a matter of when. Our citizens, business' and interests have already been attacked overseas.
 

wannaspoon

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You really think the JSF is that good where you think Australia can't build a better one... I reckon the wright brothers could have built an aircraft that's better than the JSF... the JSF is also crazy expensive for the plane you're getting

I fail to see how $26 Billion AUD annually is quote "NOTHING" unquote... you can do a lot with $26 Billion... like build a broadband network, etc... GDP is different to government revenue also just bare that in mind... the burden is a lot more than 1.8%...

sorry but I fail to see how: going into a country, blowing their shit into the stone age, pissing off a few million people is actually solving the problem of there being terrorism... If anything, it's probably reinforcing many of the convictions that a certain class of people have in relation to western powers...

as for East Timor, never knew that exploiting a country for their natural gas resources is "promoting regional stability"

I did say, there has to be some concessions and there are certain instances where defence spending is necessary... However, I fail to see how Australia's global interventions with the US, et al, are really necessary for a country like Australia...
 
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SylviaB

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I fail to see how $26 Billion AUD annually is quote "NOTHING" unquote... you can do a lot with $26 Billion... like build a broadband network, etc... GDP is different to government revenue also just bare that in mind... the burden is a lot more than 1.8%...
If a politician said they were going to cut a fraction of that $26bil they would be out on their arse

you cant have a country without borders
yep
 

isildurrrr1

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You really think the JSF is that good where you think Australia can't build a better one... I reckon the wright brothers could have built an aircraft that's better than the JSF... the JSF is also crazy expensive for the plane you're getting

I fail to see how $26 Billion AUD annually is quote "NOTHING" unquote... you can do a lot with $26 Billion... like build a broadband network, etc... GDP is different to government revenue also just bare that in mind... the burden is a lot more than 1.8%...

sorry but I fail to see how: going into a country, blowing their shit into the stone age, pissing off a few million people is actually solving the problem of there being terrorism... If anything, it's probably reinforcing many of the convictions that a certain class of people have in relation to western powers...

as for East Timor, never knew that exploiting a country for their natural gas resources is "promoting regional stability"

I did say, there has to be some concessions and there are certain instances where defence spending is necessary... However, I fail to see how Australia's global interventions with the US, et al, are really necessary for a country like Australia...
Yeah because our intervention in East Timor had nothing to do with the Indonesian militia practically commit ethnic genocide.

Name one military equipment that we are able to build, let alone a stealth fighter. Hell it took the major NATO powers to build the Eurofighter including the Brits, Germans and French WHO KNOW how to build air superiority fighters. the JSF is NOT supposed to be an air superiority fighter, it's heavily multirole which fits into our airforce's portfolio.

26 Billion dollars is quite little when you consider that the F22 program cost $186 billion. Our military is extremely small and highly specialized. People in a-stan don't give a shit about global jihad, but you can bet your ass that the global AQ network and affiliates would want to bomb our asses. Yeah because Australian's never been killed or targeted right? Even before we got involved in Afghanistan we were the targets of extremist groups.

Every country has a defence spending even the kiwis. There was a huge fear in the 90s that Aus military got too comfortable in peace time and our operational capabilities were at risk. Investing in defence is a LONG term process, especially for a country that has a small population like ours, especially when our Asian neighbors are gearing up their military we definitely need to follow suit in case some shit kicks off. You don't really want Australia to be unable to defend itself in the future do you?
 

wannaspoon

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I stick by my words about East Timor...

Piece of military hardware that we have build... Bushmasters, we do well at it too... so well other countries buy them too... also developing the next generation of combat jeeps the Hawkei... We are also building a number of components for the JSF, they are being built in Sydney... I'd liken the JSF as having a radar signature of a skid mark on a newly cleaned, white toilet bowl...

We face such a threat where we need to arm ourselves to protect ourselves from our Asian neighbours... after all most of them have allegiances with us... that's beside the point... we need more guns, planes, boats, etc to defend us from our allies...

your argument is invalid... this dog is twerking...

 
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isildurrrr1

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Yeah because you know how to build something also equals to you definitely know how to research and design your own product right?

Of course the countries near us have a good relationship with us. Same when all the countries north of us were colonies. Guess they didn't do so well when the japs came knocking did they? No shit a possibility of a conventional military fight against Australia is highly unlikely but that doesn't mean shit won't kick off. I guess you forgotten that Indonesia was fairly close in firing some shots at us during the East Timor affair. Shit can always go sideways and you can never predict what might happen that's why we need to spend money on national defence. why does Japan have a large military? Nobody is going to invade them. why does anyone anyway? Because we can't predict the future. I'd rather prepare for the worst and hope for the best.
 

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nah indonesia will never attack considering we have a full military protection agreement with the U.S from our ANZUS treaty. also nuclear deterrent.
 

funkshen

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nah indonesia will never attack considering we have a full military protection agreement with the U.S from our ANZUS treaty. also nuclear deterrent.
have you even READ tomorrow when the war began? open your eyes
 

isildurrrr1

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nah indonesia will never attack considering we have a full military protection agreement with the U.S from our ANZUS treaty. also nuclear deterrent.
Not just that, we also have a extremely good relationship with their government as well. Historically our interests and theirs completely align, everything from anti-communist purges under Suharto to the counter-terror work they do too. We pretty much just need a bigger navy so we can adequately defend our borders as well. Threats against our national security won't stem from our neighbors but from people abroad.

Priority wise, government will always spend more on welfare. Look at the US as well, all the money they spend on Social Security, Housing, Medicaid, Medicare etc trumps military by far. Bread and circuses.
 

someth1ng

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The defense portfolio already suffered deep cuts to funding in the 2012 budget, while welfare expenditure is forecast to increase dramatically with the imposition of the NDIS. So it would seem reasonable to address Australia's growing welfare state before searching for cuts in the defense budget. However, the Government should prioritise cuts to foreign aid/dismantling renewable energy schemes/subsidies.
Are you fucking stupid?
 

wannaspoon

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have to kind of agree cutting renewable energy subsidies... not because of those annoying solar panel ads; but because of revenue... with the carbon tax looking like its heading for the graveyard it, ironically, is not looking sustainable to have such a scheme in place without a revenue stream...

don't agree with the foreign aid part... that should actually get increased considering Australia's new temporary UN Security Council appointment... as isildurrrr1 said, we have obligations that any other middle power would (that includes foreign aid)... given that Australia has found itself to be in an elevated position (of being in the security council), I believe it has an obligation to help developing countries and honour human rights obligations that the UN sets out...

Not just that, we also have a extremely good relationship with their government as well. Historically our interests and theirs completely align, everything from anti-communist purges under Suharto to the counter-terror work they do too. We pretty much just need a bigger navy so we can adequately defend our borders as well. Threats against our national security won't stem from our neighbors but from people abroad.

Priority wise, government will always spend more on welfare. Look at the US as well, all the money they spend on Social Security, Housing, Medicaid, Medicare etc trumps military by far. Bread and circuses.
that the same relationship that helped train Indonesian intelligence in the art of forced disappearances of government dissenters???
 
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nerdasdasd

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The government should add "getting rid of debt" to that list..... News is in that australia is raising the debt ceiling.

Nek Minnit ... Turns out like the same path as the USA... Borrow money, raising the ceiling .... Borrow more money and repeat.
 

isildurrrr1

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have to kind of agree cutting renewable energy subsidies... not because of those annoying solar panel ads; but because of revenue... with the carbon tax looking like its heading for the graveyard it, ironically, is not looking sustainable to have such a scheme in place without a revenue stream...

don't agree with the foreign aid part... that should actually get increased considering Australia's new temporary UN Security Council appointment... as isildurrrr1 said, we have obligations that any other middle power would (that includes foreign aid)... given that Australia has found itself to be in an elevated position (of being in the security council), I believe it has an obligation to help developing countries and honour human rights obligations that the UN sets out...



that the same relationship that helped train Indonesian intelligence in the art of forced disappearances of government dissenters???
Yep same relationship. We taught their secret police in how to make people "disappear" and helped them run torture workshops and what not. You know, fighting communism and what not back in the day was more important than human rights. CIA does their fucked up shit in Latin America, we pull the same in SE Asia.

If the government actually cares that much about global warming they'd build a nuclear powerplant.
 

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