http://www.thepunch.com.au/tags/spending/ Politics, political opinion, world news, sports news and the latest news and views updated live, daily on The Punch - Australia's best conversation. en Copyright 2012 The Punch penberthyd@newsltd.com.au penberthyd@newsltd.com.au Sat, 26 May 2012 20:00:40 +0000 Sat, 26 May 2012 20:00:40 +0000 Politics, opinion, world news, sports news, latest news, views, Barack Obama, Kevin Rudd, Julia Gillard, Nathan Rees, Malcolm Turnbull, Peter Garrett, Barnaby Joyce, Australian, federal politics, opinion polls, election, The Punch, thepunch, punch ExpressionEngine 1.6.7 http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/tech/rss 15 http://www.thepunch.com.au/images/punch-logo-rss.png http://www.thepunch.com.au/ 144 70 Politics, political opinion, world news, sports news and the latest news and views updated live, daily on The Punch - Australia's best conversation. Search The Punch keywords http://www.thepunch.com.au/search/ http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/Government-brushes-holey-molars-for-holy-rollers/ With the Federal Budget adjusted this week in an attempt to drag us back into the black, it’s time to go through government spending with a fine-toothed comb and pull back wherever we can. I’d like to help with this process if I can. Wading through the bits of the 2011-2012 Budget that actually say actual things in actual English (that is, the bits that don’t say things like “continuing benefits to the bottom-line beyond the forward estimates”, which I assume means “um”) I was struck by some comparative numbers. One of the numbers was $222 million, which has been earmarked to extend the National School Chaplaincy Program. penberthyd@newsltd.com.au (David Penberthy) Article http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/Government-brushes-holey-molars-for-holy-rollers/#comments http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/Government-brushes-holey-molars-for-holy-rollers/#item7281 Sat, 26 May 2012 20:00:40 +0000 In 1983, money came out of the closet. Up until then any discussion about money was taboo and considered uncouth. No-one ever talked about how much their house was worth, or what shares to buy, or whether to buy Aussie dollars now to get the best rate before they went on holidays. Term deposits were considered financially sexy. No-one had heard about managed funds, superannuation or property syndicates unless you were among the rich and famous. At that time treasurer Paul Keating floated the Australian dollar and deregulated the financial system. http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/Stop-talking-about-your-money-spend-it/ In 1983, money came out of the closet. Up until then any discussion about money was taboo and considered uncouth. No-one ever talked about how much their house was worth, or what shares to buy, or whether to buy Aussie dollars now to get the best rate before they went on holidays. Term deposits were considered financially sexy. No-one had heard about managed funds, superannuation or property syndicates unless you were among the rich and famous. At that time treasurer Paul Keating floated the Australian dollar and deregulated the financial system. penberthyd@newsltd.com.au (David Penberthy) Article http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/Stop-talking-about-your-money-spend-it/#comments http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/Stop-talking-about-your-money-spend-it/#item5128 Sat, 26 May 2012 20:00:40 +0000 In 1983, money came out of the closet. Up until then any discussion about money was taboo and considered uncouth. No-one ever talked about how much their house was worth, or what shares to buy, or whether to buy Aussie dollars now to get the best rate before they went on holidays. Term deposits were considered financially sexy. No-one had heard about managed funds, superannuation or property syndicates unless you were among the rich and famous. At that time treasurer Paul Keating floated the Australian dollar and deregulated the financial system. http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/putting-australian-culture-under-the-microscope/ This is the fourth in a series of essays adapted from the Centre for Policy Development book, More Than Luck: Ideas Australia needs now. Australian culture is rich, deep and diverse and our new federal cultural policy should recognise this, writes Ben Eltham. Australia has been promised a new cultural policy by the Gillard Government, due sometime in 2011. What is a cultural policy and why do we need one? Cultural policy is not often treated as an important public affairs issue. But culture touches on many of the things that Australians do, see, hear and engage with everyday. Watching television, reading a newspaper, playing a computer game, updating your Facebook status, sending a tweet, going to a bar to see comedy, even things like gardening and cooking: all of these activities are explicitly cultural. penberthyd@newsltd.com.au (David Penberthy) Article http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/putting-australian-culture-under-the-microscope/#comments http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/putting-australian-culture-under-the-microscope/#item4895 Sat, 26 May 2012 20:00:40 +0000 In 1983, money came out of the closet. Up until then any discussion about money was taboo and considered uncouth. No-one ever talked about how much their house was worth, or what shares to buy, or whether to buy Aussie dollars now to get the best rate before they went on holidays. Term deposits were considered financially sexy. No-one had heard about managed funds, superannuation or property syndicates unless you were among the rich and famous. At that time treasurer Paul Keating floated the Australian dollar and deregulated the financial system. http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/Boomers-are-back-in-fashion-but-kids-still-rule-the-cash/ Last month, Woodstock Festival – the event that’s come to represent Baby Boomer youth culture in our collective consciousness – turned 40. Given the Boomers spawned the crazy consumer consumption habits that sent us crashing towards the GFC, it was only fitting for promoters to get the talent off the couch, jab them with Botox and organise the requisite merchandising and exorbitant ticket pricing. Ka-ching! Meanwhile, the media and marketers have been celebrating ageing while concurrently exploring ways to delay its visible signs in order to appeal to the cash-cow that is the Boomers’ retirement fund (albeit one reduced by the GFC). penberthyd@newsltd.com.au (David Penberthy) Article http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/Boomers-are-back-in-fashion-but-kids-still-rule-the-cash/#comments http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/Boomers-are-back-in-fashion-but-kids-still-rule-the-cash/#item1095 Sat, 26 May 2012 20:00:40 +0000 In 1983, money came out of the closet. Up until then any discussion about money was taboo and considered uncouth. No-one ever talked about how much their house was worth, or what shares to buy, or whether to buy Aussie dollars now to get the best rate before they went on holidays. Term deposits were considered financially sexy. No-one had heard about managed funds, superannuation or property syndicates unless you were among the rich and famous. At that time treasurer Paul Keating floated the Australian dollar and deregulated the financial system.