Rupert Murdoch Dispenses Advice

Nice Work If You Pay Us
Citizen Rupert Murdoch has written an article that appeared in the SMH of all places. He starts off coyly by admitting that he might no longer qualify as an Australian but quickly plays the "I don't care what you think, I've been called worse" card and proceeds to lambast Australia. It's his time and effort, so really, he's free to waste whatever is left of his life on this article, but I couldn't help but notice just how pedestrian his advice actually is:

The Australian economy is coming up against one of these challenges: a financial crisis whose origins are overseas. In recent weeks the Australian dollar has fluctuated as wildly as a whirling Dervish, and the impact is beginning to be felt in the real economy. There is no use bemoaning the problem. In this new century Australia is wedded to the world - mostly for richer, very occasionally for poorer, certainly for better, and only rarely for worse. I fear that many Australians will learn the hard way what it means to be unprepared for the challenges that a global economy can bring.

By most measures - the rule of law, economic performance, and the quality of life - Australians today live in one of the most ideal societies on Earth. Here's my worry. While Australia generally does well in international rankings, those rankings can blind us to a larger truth: Australia will not succeed in the future if it aims to be just a bit better than average. We need to revive the sense of Australia as a frontier country, and to cultivate Australia as a great centre of excellence. Unlike our parents and grandparents, this new frontier has little to do with the bush or the outback. Today the frontier that needs sorting is the wider world. Complacency is our chief enemy…

Oddly enough, what follows is a bunch of common sense advice.
- Globalisation is here, so work harder.
- Do something about welfare payments.
- Do something about education and schools.
- Do something abou Aborigines and Reconciliation.
- Do something about global warming.
Pretty darn obvious. It's not like the average Australian hasn't embraced globalistion for a start when a vast many of them have gone out and bought cheap big screen TVs made in China in the lst 2 years. Or when they've bought cheap shoes from Indonesia or cheap cars from Thailand (with Honda badges). Australians are more than happy to embrace globalisation, judging from consumer spending.

[We] need to reduce dependency on government … to reform our education system … to reconcile with Australia's Aboriginal population and to maintain a liberal immigration system. At a time when the world's most competitive nations are moving their people off government subsidy, Australians seem to be headed in the wrong direction. In a recent paper [the director of the Institute for Private Enterprise] Des Moore pointed out that while real incomes had increased since the end of the 1980s, about 20 per cent of the working aged population today received income support, compared with 15 per cent two decades ago. While a safety net is warranted for those in genuine need, we must avoid institutionalising idleness. The bludger should not be our national icon.

This above bit is interesting too. Australia's official unemployment rate dropped to the high 4.0% range during the Howard years and this was accomplished by tightening restrictions on the Welfare programs. At one point they were busily devising ways for mentally deficient patients (let's not put too fine a point people with IQ lower than 75) to get 16 hours per week of gainful employment, just to pump employment figures. It was almost comically cruel watching them put these policies into motion. Yet, the unemployment rate fell for better or worse.
Worse?
Yes, there is a scenario where low unemployment - maximum employment - can be bad.

Ross Gittins pointed out that at 4.5% a nation's work force is close to full capacity anyway, and that lower unemployment than that figure invites inflation - and it did so much that it forced a succession of interest rises until the credit crunch hit. In short, the Australia of the bludger as national icon is long gone. Who exactly is this mythical 'Joe the Bludger', Rupert? In turn, what has come to light is that the Howard Government was busily handing out welfare to middle classes that fit its vision of a typical Liberal Party voter. So you sort of wonder if Rupert Murdoch really does stay in touch beyond visiting his family once in a while.

I don't really know why Rupert Murdoch suddenly felt the urge to say this stuff. Maybe he did because he's Rupert Murdoch, he does as he wants; but it's a bit (pardon the pun) rich coming from a guy who was born with a silver spoon, and never was found wanting for money in his life to go wag his finger at the rest of us telling us to work harder.
For a start, your companies can pay your bills on time, Rupert!