The Australian Democrats’ grab for a share of political power is a sellout of the majority of those who voted against the GST in the Senate.
Australian Politics
Meg says “Back to the kitchen” – fast food, feminism and the Goods and Services Tax
Australian Democrats leader Meg Lees clearly hasn’t a clue about the day-to-day pressures juggled by working women. The Democrats’ Goods and Services Tax deal ignores the fact that women are still responsible for the overwhelming majority of domestic work.
Kosovar Refugees: Howard Government’s Hypocritical “Hospitality”
Displaced Kosovars were expected to be grateful, passive beneficiaries of “Aussie generosity.” But having known society in Pristina, the capital of Kosovo and a typical European city, they would not tolerate being herded into military shacks.
6 November Republic Referendum: Vote NO to Capitalist Power Grab
The Australian electorate is not being asked to establish an “independent republic.” It is meant to rubber stamp a fundamentally anti-democratic shift in political power in favour of the Prime Minister — a proposal which must be defeated.
Rights for Queer Couples: A necessary fight, but there’s still a world to win!
Laws that offer equal rights and provide benefits and protections to same-sex couples mark major changes in social attitudes. But they leave queers who reject traditional models of domestic coupledom out in the cold.
John Howard: Robbing the poor to give to the rich. No GST!
The new tax regime transfers $10 billion in taxes from workers and pensioners to the wealthy.
Alert! Anti-woman zealots in action: National pro-choice movement needed now!
Around the world, the Church, the State, religious zealots and the bosses are lining up against women. They want to rein us in, particularly to get control of our bodies.
The deadly consequences of private neglect
Australians have experienced a number of infrastructure breakdowns in the last few years. The country has vast supplies of energy, but the infrastructure to distribute it is at the point of collapse. This is life in late capitalist Australia.
Unionists and the community fire up to fight Centrelink cuts
Centrelink is a corporatised agency, which in 1997 replaced the Department of Social Security. It currently has contracts to deliver services on behalf of seven government departments. As each expires, these contracts will be put out for private tender, forcing Centrelink to compete for the delivery of welfare services.
The Co-option Game: Enterprise Bargaining to Extend Bosses’ Plunder
The Federal ALP introduced enterprise bargaining in 1991 to replace the pre-existing centralised “wage fixing” system. No longer do workers get regular wage adjustments. Instead, the only way of getting so-called wage “increases” is by “bargaining” with the boss. With the deck stacked against us.
