atw: Re: National Broadband Network issue
- From: Rod Stuart <rod.stuart@xxxxxxxxx>
- To: austechwriter@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
- Date: Wed, 18 Aug 2010 15:22:20 +1000
If Australia were a bastion of free enterprise capitalism rather than a sort
of socialist quagmire, some entrepreneur no doubt would have conceived of
a fibre-optic network, completed a comprehensive market survey, created a
business plan, written a prospectus, and floated it as an IPO on the stock
exchange.
How many citizens just itching to download movies faster do you suppose
would have been willing to invest the required $10,000 per household in
shares?
If this ridiculous proposal put forward as a political gimmick is an
"investment", then it should follow that individuals have the freedom to
choose to invest or not to invest. At some future juncture then individuals
would also have the choice as when to sell.
As Margaret Thatcher is attributed with saying, "Eventually, Socialists run
out of other peoples' money to spend." That day of reckoning is not far
away.
Socialism is nothing if it is not a jackboot on the face of humanity.
On 18 August 2010 13:17, WongWord@xxxxxxxxx <wongword@xxxxxxxxx> wrote:
> In a few years time a govt can privatise the NBN for who knows what
> ...$430 million?
>
> I agree not everything needs to be privatised at all costs. But what I am
> saying is that the current NBN doesn't mean it needs to be a public
> enterprise for ever and ever if that is your economic/politcal bent.
>
> But let's give the whole of Australia a fair go. I feel the need and I'm
> only on the outskirts of Sydney.
>
> I am originally from Tasmania and let me tell you that if it wasn't for ABC
> radio my childhood would have been a far more isolated one. I would never
> have been exposed to the *information and entertainment* what was
> available by a truly national broadcaster.
>
> Irene Wong
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> *From:* Peter Johnson <peterjohnson.oz@xxxxxxxxx>
> *To:* austechwriter@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
> *Sent:* Wednesday, August 18, 2010 11:09 AM
> *Subject:* atw: Re: National Broadband Network issue
>
> Thanks for that Rhonda. I think your email sums it up pretty well. It's
> about time we as a society departed from the market "god" concept &
> "privatisation at all costs" attitude. There are some things that need a
> national unified approach & I think in this instance it is appropriate for
> government to at least initiate it. The NBN is an investment, just like
> education, roads, rail, public health etc.
>
> On Wed, Aug 18, 2010 at 08:24, Rhonda Bracey <
> rhonda.bracey@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
>
>> Hi all
>>
>> I've never been one discuss politics (or even been interested too much
>> in the 'issues' surrounding an election). And I have no intention of
>> starting a discussion about politics here.
>>
>> However, for many of you who work from home (whether in the city or
>> not), or who would like to work from home, the National Broadband
>> Network issue is one that affects you directly.
>>
>> I blogged about my stance on this critical issue to my ability to work
>> here:
>> http://cybertext.wordpress.com/2010/08/13/letter-to-local-member-of-parl
>> iament-re-the-nbn/<http://cybertext.wordpress.com/2010/08/13/letter-to-local-member-of-parl%0Aiament-re-the-nbn/>(or
>> http://bit.ly/aewMZq)
>>
>> The NBN is something I feel very passionate about, and even more so
>> since having an email discussion yesterday with Helen, a member of
>> another list I'm on. Helen has moved from Pemberton, WA to a property
>> about an hour south of Perth. She cannot even get phone, let alone
>> internet on her new property. As her internet access is severely
>> limited, I'll quote from an email she wrote to me today when she was
>> back in Pemberton:
>>
>> "We are fed up with them, whoever 'they' are. We have had to have
>> satellite internet here because we are 100m from a hub/rim, in spite of
>> campaigning to get internet here, which everyone else does have now,
>> except us. The phone line (180m) was laid and connected on Friday only
>> for them to 'discover' there is a fault on the town side of the line.
>> The fault is, just like your cake, there was one 'pair gain' whatever
>> left for us to have and it has a fault. You can't tell me they didn't
>> know that, and that is why it was left. So no phone and no internet."
>>
>> And this is an hour out of a major capital city, not woop-woop.
>>
>> Some 50+ years ago an Australian government had the vision to lay copper
>> lines throughout the country to provide us with an (almost) universal
>> telephone service. Now a government wants to do a similarly large
>> infrastructure project, this time with materials that should last a
>> further 50+ years, but the opposition wants to keep us in the dark ages
>> of a failing copper wire network (and boy, have I had experience of it
>> failing!), or build thousands more mobile phone towers to provide us
>> with a slow satellite service.
>>
>> I'll shut up now.
>>
>> Rhonda
>>
>> Rhonda Bracey
>> rhonda.bracey@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
>> http://www.cybertext.com.au
>> CyberText Newsletter/blog: http://cybertext.wordpress.com
>> Author-it Certified Consultant
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>
>
--
Rod Stuart
6 Brickhill Drive
Dilston, TAS 7252, Australia
<rod.stuart@xxxxxxxxx>
M((040) 184 6575 V(03) 6312 5399
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