Weekly roundup Saturday 30 August
Australians make their own decisions
Weekly roundup of links to articles, reports, podcasts and other media on current political and economic issues in public policy.
Australian economics
Tax reform: Against the odds, tax reform has made it on to the reform agenda. The job is to keep it on the agenda.
Capital gains tax: We have a CGT system that rewards speculation and discourages patient investment. Some well-meaning proposals for reform could make it worse.
Qantas’ fall from grace: Management forgot that its job was to run an airline.
Poor productivity in housing construction: Small business is part of the problem.
Government moves on housing policy: The government has already announced some changes, but are they the right ones?
CPI inflation is up: Don’'t panic.
Politics
How our politics changes as we age: We become more conservative as we age, but that doesn’t attract us to the Coalition.
The Liberals’ gender problem: If only those bloody suffragettes hadn’t won the vote for women ….
The Liberals’ existential problem: Australians inclined to support a centre-right party have rejected the Liberals.
The Tasmanian election: Tasmania’s Liberals show a different way of doing politics, blindsiding state Labor.
A 50-year political history of Australia in 50 minutes: John Menadue on Australian politics since Whitlam.
Sovereign citizens: They’re not just bewildered twerps: they’re dangerous.
Public ideas
The voice of a mild-mannered conservative: David Brooks puts the case for Burkean conservatism.
Competition or trtust: Nicholas Gruen reminds us of the costs of unbridled competition, and suggests other ways to solve collective action problems.
Collapse: Societies and states collapse, but they don’t have to if they protect their institutions.
Spring
If you have comments, corrections, or links to other relevant sources, I’d like to hear from you. Please send them to Ian McAuley — ian, at the domain name ianmcauley.com
