General News Is Australia falling into tyranny?

Yeah, sounds like. My condolences.

 

I think it is. I guess that sign you're referring to is THE SIGN of tyranny.

 

Australia seems to have gone to the dogs.

 

The same ones who claim to oppose red tape.

I'm almost ashamed of my life being aimed at public service, but then again, the politicians are the ones doing it. I'd almost be happy with the public service managing the country without the politicians; they'd do it better, and with far less (if any) corruption.

 

Bjelke-Petersen, anyone?

 

US far-right crazies are considered "liberals" in Australia? What?

On a side note, I just took a "What Political Party Am I" test based on Australian politics, and I don't fit into any party at all. But I'm considered a more moderate Democratic Socialist.

 

As much as I weep for the cessspool that was once my wonderful country, I've realized that they should suffer because they fell for Rupert Murdoch's propaganda and voted those shitheads in.

When that party was formed, they were considered "classical liberals" (very similar to neoliberals actually). They've never been on the left (apart from our gun control laws which were brought in by John Howard, the last shithead tyrant we voted in).

 

When the Australian political system was very young, the economic nature of the party tended to be in the name. The Protectionists, the Free Trade party, Labor (with the original platform of economic equality), etc., so when the Liberal Party was formed, it used its platform of economic liberalism as its name.

Historically, Labor has been economically conservative and socially liberal (but the Catholic Irish influence made it quite conservative at times), whereas the Liberals and their predecessors have been economically liberal and socially conservative (though the occasional minister would have a conscience). Now, however, Labor and Liberal are both economically liberal (Labor is far better, though), and both are socially divided, with Labor leaning to the left, and Liberal to the right, with the Liberals now controlled by the far-right faction.

Labor is also controlled by its own right faction. But Labor's right is more concerned with removing red tape, while the Liberal's right is concerned with putting red tape all over Aboriginals, women, the poor, and LGBT people's rights, then blaming Labor that the bureaucracy is strangling everyone (even though the APS is actually one of the best things in the country).

---------- Post added 4th Nov 2013 at 04:21 PM ----------

Also, the Queensland Liberals/Nationals (the junior party in the permanent coalition, which we just call "the Coalition) are strong in Queensland, and have a history of corruption, murder, bribes, and electoral bullying/gerrymandering. New South Wales also has a history of corruption, but the NSW Liberals are better. Victoria's is better, but still not quite that good, and South Australia has a strong centre-left population, making their government a bit better. The ACT and NT are almost irrelevant, and I'm not really that well educated on Western Australia and Tasmania.

 

Well, seeing how they censor my precious Adventure Time over on that big island, yeah, it seems pretty tyrannical. There is absolutely nothing wrong with exposing kids to "puncha' yo' buns" and I stand by that! "Which one of you mortals wants to mate with all of this"... a bit more understandable but still...

So this is pretty much the extent of my exposure to Australian politics... in addition to what the thread says but cartoons are more fun.

 

"Now in Queensland, they have laws that gives the Police Commissioner and maybe the State's Attorney-General the power to list any group as a criminal organisation without having to show any evidence. No Court. No evidence. Nothing."

Unabashed tyranny. I'm afraid the US might have led the way in imprisoning/torturing/executing people with no due process of law in recent years, but that passage I quoted is ominous as hell. I hope Australia doesn't fall into corruption the same way we are currently.