Election Result

[Nathan S]

The only people who had to fear "Workchoices" were the the disgraceful, lying, manipulative team of pricks that bludge on their bosses without the slightest worry of any kind of repecussions.[/color]

I work in a heavily unionised work-place, and that shit simply doesn't happen.
This is 2007, not 1978 (hmm, who was in Govt back then? Oh, yeah...) - the unions are not the boogey man (anymore).

The whole Howard "Unions are evil" thing shows just how out of touch he is/was, and why he had to go. He was still trying to 'get back' at them for shit that happened nearly 30 years ago. Hawke/Keating sorted out the bullshit, and his WorkChoices bullshit was just heavy handed, retalitory, unneccassary shit.
Personally, I just hope that it is a sign that the majority of Australians have had enough of the 'greedy, walk-over everyone else' mentality that Howard fostered.

The little c$%t even lost his seat: I can't think of a less dignified way for him to depart, which fills my heart with an unusually vindictive joy.

In years to come, history will remember Howard's reign poorly. Keating and Hawke will be remembered as being good/great leaders, Howard for being  a good politician. Hopefully now that Rudd is in, he'll be more like a less-arrogant Keating.

[firko]

Here I was sitting trying to figure out an cool and articulate reply to Mr 'All Things 414s' post when along comes my old mate Nathan with the right words. So right Nathan.
I'm retired these days but in my 44 year work life I have owned my own businesses, worked for  bosses in private industry and worked for three government departments, both Federal and State. I proudly carried a Union card for that entire career and while I admit that back in the sixties and seventies the unions were pushing the system to extremes, the situation these days is, as Nathan suggests much,much better. These days you'll find a much better line of communication between staff, management and the unions and in my experience haven't seen the pilfering, bludging, sickie mentality that '414' seems so frightened of for many years.
That's one of the main reasons the Howard government lost. By sprouting the "evil unions are going to destroy the economy" message with those disgraceful TV ads they showed the average Aussie worker just how out of touch they really were. The workers knew the real situation and voted accordingly.

[Lozza]

Well it's about as Aussie as running a previously profitable company into the ground, skimming millions off shareholders into your own offshore bank account, paying zero tax, cooking the books and receiving huge bonuses for it then when the whole thing implodes, workers find out their wages and or entitlements haven't been paid in years, shareholders have some worthless paper, but it's all fine because the 'enterpenur' declares himself bankrupt and after a couple of years starts up again borrows millions,buys a profitable business........   

[All Things 414]

Well Messers "Firko", Messers "Nathan" and that other bloke I guess we'll just have to wait and see.
Enough of this. I'm going to have another look at that photo sent to me of Messers "Hartwell" passing a 490 Maico on his 414 in The States. Bleu!!

[All Things 414]

Sorry. Hijacked another thread. I appologise!!

[VMX Andrew]

i just hope interest rates dont go up to 18% like they did in the mid 80s when hawke was in charge......ohh and wasnt unemployment up around 15% too compared with 5% today,but it was the "recession we had to have"that finally done in mr keating and put liberal in....anyway one slip up with our economy in the next year or two and liberal will be back in the next election....

[090]

I might sell my house now and use the money to buy stuff from the US before we go back to 50 cents in the dollar. I do hope he's/labour is fair dinkum! Fingers crossed.

[mx250]

Well it's about as Aussie as running a previously profitable company into the ground, skimming millions off shareholders into your own offshore bank account, paying zero tax, cooking the books and receiving huge bonuses for it then when the whole thing implodes, workers find out their wages and or entitlements haven't been paid in years, shareholders have some worthless paper, but it's all fine because the 'enterpenur' declares himself bankrupt and after a couple of years starts up again borrows millions,buys a profitable business........   

touche and 10 points 

An unscrupulous immoral a***hole is an unscrupulous immoral a***hole if he is a boss or a worker. It then becomes argumentative which group, bosses or workers have the greater number or who have the greater impact. 

[Tim754]

Confession .... I do proudly wear my AMWU patch sown just under my employers logo and on my sleeve. Yes I get harassed in the street at times BY PEOPLE THAT HAVE ALL THE BENEFITS OF UNION STRUGGLES , HAVE YOUR GRIZZLES it is allowed WE LIVE IN A REASONABLY FREE COUNTRY. BUT  STILL I FIGHT FOR FAIR AND JUST WORKPLACES!!!!     AMWU Australian Manufacturing Workers Union .  Don't say we cannot compete with other countries shocking wages and slave conditions !! Help and teach them how to fight right up to our hard fought for ideals. Tim 754  still pollies are pollies.......

[Rosco400]

Opinions shared or not of which government does good and bad for the country is a foregone conclusion ending on Saturday which only seems to be antogonising the ranks of VMX community, politicians in most instances are concerned with there own goals and desires and don't care about you or me, nor the two wheel community as a whole. In general terms, what will be different when we roll out of bed in the morning when we wake up, nothing if we don't want it to happen as we have that freedom of choice and probably should end there, why have an opinion in this website at all about politics when all it seems to do is cause friction between members who couldn't really care about politics but get drawn into slanging matches who's right and wrong, there is no correct answers, hindsight is a great quality we all possess. To have the foresight to see where this is going is an excellent quality, Last post for me on this bullshit

[All Things 414]

Sorry. I want the last word.
Word

[DJRacing]

And I thought VMX and politics didnt mix Wake up and smell the coffee, dont we come in here to get away from boring, bullshitting bastards like politians Who ever gets in will piss you off, put their hands in your pockets, lie to your face and generally do nothing and get paid alot of money for it. And then the worse of all..... in few years time they get to do it all over again. Get back to the real pleasures in life, VMX, beer and good mates.

I say it again

[Yamaboy]

Godspeed Bernie Banton, a good union man.

[maicomc490t]

As a firefighter I know that at least in my industry we would be in deep shit without a strong union and in fact it has only been in very recent times that firies in the US have actually set about setting up a country wide association (union) to at last protect their interests.

If it wasn't for the union and dare I say it successive Labor NSW state governments I would still be polishing the brass buttons on my old wool tunic and driving around in shitty old Inter's (ok ok - the current govt sucks but we can't have everything).

As a firey we couldn't get any personal insurance because our job is supposedly so dangerous (even though roofers for example are forever taking a dive, and people from other industries are constantly dying or getting seriously injured etc etc) so it was our union that pushed for Death and Disability allowance to cover the insurance shortfall

I say give Rudd a chance - if he turns out to be Rudd the dud then we'll sort it - Howard just DID NOT have any mandate to do what he did with our workplaces and he has paid a high price !!!

Vale Bernie Banton 

Dave Mac

[mx250]

And I thought VMX and politics didnt mix Wake up and smell the coffee, dont we come in here to get away from boring, bullshitting bastards like politians Who ever gets in will piss you off, put their hands in your pockets, lie to your face and generally do nothing and get paid alot of money for it. And then the worse of all..... in few years time they get to do it all over again. Get back to the real pleasures in life, VMX, beer and good mates.I say it again

Sorry, democracy and forum rules in cohoots.

"GENERAL DISCUSSION.
Feel free to talk about anything and everything - c'mon in."

And after 6 pages in 4 days I think VMX forum members are happy to talk politics - at least for the short period around a General Election.

I find it interesting and even enjoy/respect contray strong views, held strongly and expressed strongly.

There's been a few tears but not too much blood on the floor  .