We Are Fighting Back!

Synopsis: Australia has one of the greatest percentages of foreign ownership in the developed world. Our federal government allegedly gives preferred treatment to foreign owned companies! Is it in the national interest to have so much of our economy under foreign control? Do we need to buy back the farm? The Australian Owned Companies Association argues that if everyone did their shopping giving a preference to products made by Australian owned companies it would create jobs for our children because the profits would stay in Australia.
The Ausbuy Guide (v7.1) is now available (February 2003) from Coles & Woolworths Checkouts - still $2.20 (incl GST).

Green paper updated Aug 2003   

Links:

Ausbuy - Australian Owned Companies Association

Supporting Australian owned business and keeping our dollars at home. The home manager can be an activist in the local supermarket.
http://www.ausbuy.com.au/

Corporate Socialism

How multi-national corporations (in Australia usually foreign owned) are manipulating capitalism and avoiding accountability to the disadvantage of "small business" (usually locally owned). - American source
http://www.essential.org/features/corporatesocialism.htm

The Dinosaur War to Protect Corporate Profits

Thomas Hartmann relates how corporations have usurped the rights and identitiy of individuals in the US and infiltrated all levels of government to the disadvantage of the individual. Small business and individuals cannot match the big dollars that have bought policy makers in government. He says, "if we are to restore democracy to our American republic, we must first get corporations out of government, so our politicians can once again become statesmen." - ditto Australia.
http://www.commondreams.org/views02/1011-05.htm

HomeGrown

HomeGrown is a new initiative (June 8 2005) to help consumers know which products in their supermarkets are home grown. Current labelling laws are weak. Australian product is currently defined to allow only 51% of of the contents to be of Australian origin. The new logo identifies the contents to be 100% of Australian origin.

It is interesting that this initiative is arising as Free Trade agreements are being made which will essentially flood the Australian market with foreign derived goods. The original initiatives of Ausbuy are being realised here except that foreign companies producing here will essentially be able to use this label and still manage to ship most of their profits overseas.! Australian farmers could in the end become only tenants! Australia in the end can become completely foreign owned! Our current government really doesn't seem to think it matters?
http://www.australianhomegrown.com.au/trust_mark.html

Mugged!

Synopsis: Australian farmers have been battling the sytem of world trade for many years. The so called "level playing field" has never been level. Conned by the free marketeers we have been sold a pup by our mates in the US and Europe.
Our future however lies with the fortunes of our brothers and sisters in the third world who are really doing it tough. Tell this to our governments. Our people are still cushioned by a good social security system (for the moment - wait 'til it gets privatised!) so we don't feel the full effects. While our public education, health etc gets less and less money and teeters on privatisation, many in the third world see what education and health system they had disappear altogether. Why are we silent?

Green paper - coming

Links:

Make Trade Fair

Oxfam is proposing an identification system so shoppers will be able to choose supermarket produce that is "fairly traded" as a way Australians can respond to the coffee grower's crisis. The free market system depresses the income of Australian farmers as much as it does people in Africa or South America. How can trade be made fair? Oxfam attempts an answer.
http://www.maketradefair.com/

How did we get into this mess?

Thomas Frank describes the onslaught of free market economics and managerialism, the new God that bestrides the world. Almighty and growing more powerful he is insatiable, and he sucks!
http://www.thebaffler.com/gts.html      cache

GATS

What is GATS and why should we be concerned? Read this in the light of what is happening to Telstra and the bush. Not only are our farmers doing it tough, but other services in the bush are disappearing behind our backs. We have been mugged and this explains why. And when our governments roll over we should get real mad!
http://www.challengeglobalization.org/html/tools/GATS_privatization_agenda.shtml

Do As We Say, Not As We Do

George Monbiot argues there are two rules, one for rich countries (US and Europe) and the other for the poor. Australia as a resources producer is caught in the middle. But we rather see ourselves with the rich guys.
http://www.georgemonbiot.com/dsp_article.cfm?article_id=542

How the IMF steals nations'economies and why it doesn't worry about Australia

George Monbiot relates how the IMF medicine effectively removes the control of economy from governments. After reading this reflect on Australia's economy and ask the question why it doesn't need to happen here?
http://www.monbiot.com/dsp_article.cfm?article_id=600

AFTINET - Australian Fair Trade & Investment Network

Keep up to date with the issues on GATS and other WTO campaigns and the Australian Free Trade Agreement (AUSFTA) being negotiated with the US.
http://www.aftinet.org.au/

The Big Picture: Keating and Howard got it horribly wrong!

In Economics for Boomers Paul Hellyer succinctly explains how current economic thinking has proved to be a disaster and more nasty things are likely to happen unless we change quickly! It makes a lie to the Liberals claim to be good economic managers. The question is for whom when the gap between rich and poor is widening and real unemployment figures are hidden by the politicians playing statistical coverup.? (Source: Economic Reform Australia) See also COMER The Committee on Monetary and Economic Reform.
Click here

Big Business - State Beggars!

George Monbiot (December 2005 Guardian) relates how taxpayers in the UK and US subsidise business which actively campaigns for cuts to welfare, health and social services. Mean while these subsidied giants put our un-subsidized workers on the dole! Wake up Australia!
http://www.guardian.co.uk/Columnists/Column/0,,1665737,00.html