Dumb DuckGreat minds think alike, but fools seldom differ…

An article published a few days ago mentions the Coalition plans to provide strugglers on public housing waiting lists with rent certificates. It means they will get some cash to go and rent in the private sector. Read the article here.

Sounds good, isn’t it? The Coalition is very caring. However, this has the effect of increasing demand for rental places, which are already too expensive, and will become even more expensive as the increased demand will drive up rents. The state governments would provide the funds, the equivalent amount they spend on public housing. So instead of the state governments using the funds to build new premises for tenants on the public housing waiting list, the funds are going to be used to drive these people out into the private sector which they cannot afford – without building a single new dwelling.

The very fact that the representatives of tenants were not consulted, but the Real Estate Institute was reveals that something is wrong. Why is that? Knowing that the Real Estate Institute’s call to increase rent has been followed by landlords all over the country year after year and renters have been ripped off big time, we might wonder if the Coalition is in the business of sanctioning further ripping-off the poor John Howard, our beloved former Liberal Prime Minister was so good at.

People often think that  Coalition governments are good for business and the country, but all I can see is their heavy interference with free market and the further transfer of wealth from the poor to th rich.

Free market is like a religion. There is a lot of talk about it, but hardly anyone follows it. Instead, we have a manipulated market, more like a sanctioned robbery. Read the rest of this entry »

If you read economic news you notice that the Great Depression of the 1930′s is often mentioned, for example, that the GFC (ie the Global Financial Crisis) is “the greatest financial crisis since the Great Depression”. What if what we are heading towards is not just the greatest crisis since that time, but a greater crisis than that? What caused this crisis and what causes economic catastrophes like this?

One says it was the sub-prime mortgage meltdown. Others point to other reasons. I think very few sources really get the right idea. If I was to give a concise definition of the underlying reason for all depressions I would state this:

Economic depressions are caused by GREED running amok, unchecked, when governments remove the regulations that control it, and even assist in its wild ride.

Read the rest of this entry »

I have just come across the news today (05 June 2010) that ING Direct is going to offer no fixed term interest only home loans. And this should be great news for all those who cannot afford to by their own home. Or maybe it is not such a great news after all.

Another article has just revealed that US hedge funds have been offloading their Australian bank shares because they think the Australian property market will take a dive. Of course, the RBA tries to convince us that there is no property bubble, but if you consider the following chart that shows the REAL house price index, you will wonder what the RBA is talking about. Read the rest of this entry »