All I can see is that next Thursday is a re-run of the Oz elections and to some degree the US.

The same tired old policies are being rolled out by a bunch of clueless politicians bereft of any vision.

A good piece here about the pathetic 'welfare crackdowns'- a repeat of the US and Australian policies that mean little and just result in further mindless hardship for those on the bottom rung and a direct result of endless tablod sensationalism.

www.ekklesia.co.uk/node/11987

You get nothing free in this life (unless you steal it) and that includes the poor. Poor people turn to crime. Society pays a far bigger price in crime control than in feeding or housing the poor. Even Caesar knew this-hence the origins of the "dole".

For 10 years now I've watched these 3 countries practiclly merge in their thinking-not unusual given their origins and all suffering from a Puritan hardline work ethic.

Even Kevin Rudd who lived for a few months in a car as a child with his family ditched these policies but is now under permanent attack from Rupert Murdoch's right wing machine as is Obama. Britons should vote for whoever News Corp tells them not to.