Society/Culture Gina Rinehart says "jealous" poor should have less fun/wants minimum wage cut

[Hill2Pav]

Nobody is actually suggesting that she wants us to work for literally $2 a day either.

Just that she wants generally lower minimum wages, lower tax and less regulation, otherwise herself and some other mining companies might choose to invest in West Africa for their next project rather than Australia.

Who in the mining industry works on minimum wages?

 

[Docker Clint]

If Gina thinks the Africans are happy to work for $2 a day, perhaps she'd like to visit them and discuss the issue, sans a heavily armed private security contingent of course.

The word 'jealous' gets thrown around a lot by people like this. I think 'envious' is a better definition for what she means.

I'm envious that I cant earn billions while trolling people on the internet.

 

[Admiral Byng]

Who in the mining industry works on minimum wages?

Well nobody at the moment. But prior to signing off on the EMA with the Federal Government she was calling for bringing in guest workers from Indonesia or The Philippines for about USD 1500 a month to work on her Roy Hill project. This figure being approximately what they could earn in Dubai or Qatar for similar work. She has attempted to justify this as a humanitarian guesture of providing employment for the region's poor - and alludes to this in her (in)famous poem. She seems oblivious to the fact that the rest of us see this as ripping off Australian workers in order to maximise profit, rather than some form of humanitarianism.

Unfortunately she has it in her head that Australian workers are somehow not worthy of the wages they are paid. And that's what's causing the reaction against her views.

 

[John]

Perhaps her and her fellow plutocrats could have headed of with Angry Anderson and Peter Reith and that shock jock bloke I had never heard of and discovered the real Africa. I doubt she would have had the courage though.

Seeing as Campbell Newman personally holds the present day ALP responsible for the Vietnam protests I feel that I have a right to hold Gina personally responsible for her fathers poisoning and death of thousands by Asbestos related disease.

 

[Monniehawk]

Who in the mining industry works on minimum wages?

Probably very few.............
........ but then Gina isn't in Parliament, yet.

 

[Unstable]

"We need to be more like West Africa"
.

MEND in Nigeria

Oh, how I wait for the day

 

[medusala]

Perhaps her and her fellow plutocrats could have headed of with Angry Anderson and Peter Reith and that shock jock bloke I had never heard of and discovered the real Africa. I doubt she would have had the courage though.

Africa is chock full of Australian mining types. People in the mining industry would in general have far, far more idea than your outraged comment poster on the Age website.

 

[Monniehawk]

Africa is chock full of Australian mining types. People in the mining industry would in general have far, far more idea than your outraged comment poster on the Age website.

....meaning?
Gina's lofty position as head of a mining conglomerate gives her incontrovertible insight as a social commentator on African and Australian life?
Like, she has no vested interest in presenting a distorted perception to the Australian public?
...and your own insight into the comparisons of the ideas of the average social media poster and African-based miners is based on an in-depth study by whom?
Are mining workers now the new intellectual elite?
- or maybe this is just another of your fanboy cheers for the right wing?

Really, Meds.

 

[John]

Africa is chock full of Australian mining types. People in the mining industry would in general have far, far more idea than your outraged comment poster on the Age website.

The Age hey hey! Keep up the defence of the Plutocracy Meds. Where would they be without you.

 

[DivideandMultiply]

Africa is chock full of Australian mining types. People in the mining industry would in general have far, far more idea than your outraged comment poster on the Age website.

Is this some kind of joke?

If only we had wages that were as competitive as say those "earnt" at the Nevsun mines in Eritrea, then we would truly have the makings of a capitalist utopia free of the tyranny of worker protections.

I am sure Gina has Australian workers best interests at heart when she makes comments on the favourable state of labour relations in Africa.

 

[Seeds]

Right now I know a guy who has been tearing his hair out trying to get an extension on a loan over a commercial property. It was stalled because the bank wanted interest cover of 1.5 - basically the income need to be 1.5 times the interest payments before they would give the extension (I'm no banker but that's how I understand it).

He's got a bit of money and is also buying a Ferrari 458.

The bank officer on the phone finally asked about the car, and immediately offered finance for it.

So, from that funder, he can get money for a $600,000 Ferrari which drops $50k as soon as he drives it off the lot, but not an income producing property.

This is the sort of ideas some banks consider "good", if only because of their current lending strategies.

I didn't say Banks didn't give money for some bad ideas. Far too many people are getting loans that they can't afford to pay off and it will cause problems in the future.

 

[Seeds]

Nobody is actually suggesting that she wants us to work for literally $2 a day either.

Just that she wants generally lower minimum wages, lower tax and less regulation, otherwise herself and some other mining companies might choose to invest in West Africa for their next project rather than Australia.

Gillard suggested it in her interview yesterday. A poster on this board also suggested it.

 

[Seeds]

You sure you're not a Liberal voter?

The super rich, telling people that they should compete in a race to the bottom with the super poor, has never ever gone down well in any electorate on the planet. Abbott would be secretly wishing she'd STFU.

If the Liberal party was actually a liberal party I would probably vote for them. The Liberal party is really the Conservative party however. I would never ever vote for Abbott or Howard. I completely disagree with their social policies. I feel dirty for even thinking of voting for them.

 

[the_interloper]

Could anyone bring themselves to go out with Gina Rinehart? Yes you'll live in a kick arse house and do whatever the **** you want, but you'll have to root her (and probably go the growl).

 

[Clay Davis]

If the Liberal party was actually a liberal party I would probably vote for them. The Liberal party is really the Conservative party however. I would never ever vote for Abbott or Howard. I completely disagree with their social policies. I feel dirty for even thinking of voting for them.

Fair enough.

 

[holy diver]

 

[Monniehawk]

Gillard suggested it in her interview yesterday. A poster on this board also suggested it.

The $2 bizzo is just a distraction. She was speaking metaphorically. Everyone knew that. Everyone responded with that in mind and it is used to illustrate the key points in her rant: welfare is for bludgers and should be drastically reduced or discarded, Australians are paid too much and we need to measure ourselves against opportunistic, unrealistic and inappropriate criteria.

What seems to be overlooked is that Gina is speaking from a position of great influence. You and I have equally outrageous things to say hidden away in the BF forum and it offers no consequence. No-one is really impacted. We can't set an agenda. Gina is fully aware of what advantage she has; the influence her voice carries and what she is likely to achieve. She is exercising the power she has inherited, for gratuitous reasons, and with telling effect. Basically, her wealth and hunger for power is not really an exercise in democracy, it is actually usurping the democratic process. She is quite open about this.
Moderates and the Left rightfully see her as a huge threat to many honoured democratic principles.

As for elevating her to some sort of guru status because she is a mining magnate: it is a fallacy to conclude that because she is a mining magnate, she is best qualified to pontificate on broader policy. She has an opinion, the same as the rest of us. She is not elected and can't directly dictate. But, she has a far better chance of influencing policy that impacts on many other Australians than the 'average Age poster'. Just still not enough for her as the foray into the media indicates.

But, if we were to extend that concept to other areas of society. The law could be framed only by the police. After all, they know more about the law than the average poster on an Age poll.
Then, education policy should fall into the hands of the teachers; industrial law for the Unions and commercial law by the retail sector.
Maybe now you can see the difficulties.

 

[John]

But, she has a far better chance of influencing policy that impacts on many other Australians than the 'average Age poster'.

No! No, I won't have that! There's a place called Crikey.​

 

[Empire_Persian]

Really? I am not a Liberal party voter but the childish responses from Labour in recent days to Rineharts comments have just made themselves look stupid. How dumb does Labour think the Australian people are?

Whilst there is plenty of stupid people out there, that would politely nod at Waynes interpretation of Gina's remarks, I think it's more a case of confirmation bias - we think that Gina is a greedy thief, so whatever she says somehow confirms this - the example being peoples outrage that Gina wants us to work for $2 a day!

She does, doesn't she?

 

[medusala]

.....and your own insight into the comparisons of the ideas of the average social media poster and African-based miners is based on an in-depth study by whom?

Look at AIM and ASXmining companies and where their assets are and who comprises their boards. It isnt rocket science. Head to Indaba one year and you may understand.

It is a bit like the bleeding heart set in the inner suburbs who have never met an aborigine in their lives banging on about injustice and genocide.

The Age hey hey! Keep up the defence of the Plutocracy Meds.

Plutocracy? Hardly. Putin's Russia is hardly the answer to free market economics.

 

[Monniehawk]

Look at AIM and ASXmining companies and where their assets are and who comprises their boards. It isnt rocket science. Head to Indaba one year and you may understand.

Precisely! Neither is it anthropology, political science or sociology. It is mining and has a mining imperative.
Them telling governments and societies how to act is somewhat akin to the local florist telling them where to dig a mine.

It is a bit like the bleeding heart set in the inner suburbs who have never met an aborigine in their lives banging on about injustice and genocide.

...or (and I'll reciprocate your thematic use of emotional, subjective language) of the cosseted mining magnate who has never spent time amongst the community, telling the community how it should operate.

 

[medusala]

...or (and I'll reciprocate your thematic use of emotional, subjective language) of the cosseted mining magnate who has never spent time amongst the community, telling the community how it should operate.

Gina is a recluse who doesnt leave her house? Sure.

In any event there would likely be far more people who take Gina's views on the economy over someone like Bob Brown.

Them telling governments and societies how to act is somewhat akin to the local florist telling them where to dig a mine.

Miners create wealth. They are in a far, far better position to make policy suggestions than wealth destroyers like unions, environnmentalists and public servants. Where is your outrage about the ACTU trying to dictate policy?

I assume you have started a thread in anger re the huge donation to the greens by some rich chap.

 

[Monniehawk]

Gina is a recluse who doesnt leave her house? Sure.
In any event there would likely be far more people who take Gina's views on the economy over someone like Bob Brown

. I assume you have some statistics to back this up. Or is it just a hopeful fantasy? I would like to conduct a poll to debunk that piece of partisan nonsense.

Miners create wealth. They are in a far, far better position to make policy suggestions than wealth destroyers like unions, environnmentalists and public servants.

When you carry baggage, you certainly haul a lot of it, don't you?
Miners may have valuable contributions for mining policy, but remember; they have a mining profit imperative, not social, political or cultural ones. Because they may know how to dig holes and sell the sullage, it is not a qualification to design and administer e.g. a nation's health program, foreign policy or education. Horses for courses.
Miners don't create wealth, the market does. Think about it.
Do accountants, economists, brokers or statisticians create the same sort of wealth as mining, or do they just divide the pie and keep some for themselves?

Now, explain the emotive language re 'Wealth destroyers!" How do they destroy wealth?
Drug dealers produce wealth, don't they? Is wealth production the only criterion for 'value'?

Where is your outrage about the ACTU trying to dictate policy?

The ACTU tries to dictate policy about its constituency, industrial issues. The ACTU is governed by democratically elected representatives, not hereditary rule.

I assume you have started a thread in anger re the huge donation to the greens by some rich chap.

Ummm... No. Why would I? Relevance? Which rich chap? Is this another fabrication or is there substance to this 'rich chap'?
Truly, Meds. That is so desperate it is just lame.

Could you kindly try to employ logic more than fallacy; argument with less hubris and content which limits excessive subjectivity. It might help your case.

 

[romeoh]

Gina is a recluse who doesnt leave her house? Sure.

In any event there would likely be far more people who take Gina's views on the economy over someone like Bob Brown.



Miners create wealth. They are in a far, far better position to make policy suggestions than wealth destroyers like unions, environnmentalists and public servants. Where is your outrage about the ACTU trying to dictate policy?

I assume you have started a thread in anger re the huge donation to the greens by some rich chap.

Yep I'd defs take the mining magnates' policy suggestions because I am pretty sure they have the interests of the nation at heart and the advice of Gina and Twiggy would have nothing to do with increasing their already obscene wealth and everything to do with improving the lives of those layabouts who are at the pub having a smoke.( and probably daydreaming about the good life in Africa as they draw on that ciggie)

 

[medusala]

.
I assume you have some statistics to back this up. Or is it just a hopeful fantasy?

How popular is the carbon tax? The greens poll what?

Miners may have valuable contributions for mining policy, but remember; they have a mining profit imperative, not social, political or developmental ones.

So what? By making profit they invest, pay tax, create jobs etc.

Now, explain the emotive language re 'Wealth destroyers!" How do they destroy wealth?

Very simple. They are a burden that must be born by the economy.

The ACTU tries to dictate policy about its constituency, industrial issues.

Yet you have an issue with miners arguing re IR, mining tax, carbon tax etc.

The ACTU is governed by democratically elected representatives, not hereditary rule.

Very amusing.

Ummm... No. Why would I?

Biggest ever donation to a party by an individual. Ok for some but not others?

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2011-01-08/greens-expect-backlash-after-record-donation/1898436

Which rich chap? Relevance?

If you cant grasp that pointless engaging with you.