When we observe the antics of our political parties with a Federal election coming up it makes one wonder what has happened to the concept of a Democracy based on the wishes of the majority. What do the residents of countries . . . → Read More: Who is running this country?]]> Our elected politicians?
Political factions?
Media bosses?
Civil servants?
Marginal Seats?
Minority Parties?

 When we observe the antics of our political parties with a Federal election coming up it makes one wonder what has happened to the concept of a Democracy based on the wishes of the majority. What do the residents of countries with a different political system think about what we say in the name of Democracy and what we practise under the heading of political expediency? Just what has happened and what will happen after we have voted?

Our elected politicians:           Make so many statements and claims the majority of which they abandon after they have been elected and we allow them to get away with it election after election. So many of us are attached at the hip to one political party or another that less than 10 to 15% change the government. It is almost like belonging to a football club where we can only see the bad in the opposing team and allow our team to get away with bloody murder. No wonder the statement that “we get the government we deserve”

Political factions: Very often decide the quality of the candidate that our preferred party offers and the criteria is based on their membership of that faction rather than being the best possible candidate for both that electorate or as government member. How come we still get monkeys although we pay a hell of a lot more than peanuts?

Media Bosses:     Are fawned over by all political parties because they know the power of the media with regards to influencing people. Rupert Murdock built his United States Media Empire by championing the party frowned on by the established media. When you probe a little further into some of the polls used as a basis for powerful articles in our major media you have to question their validity.        Any executive who has had to make expensive commercial decisions based on consumer research would not give some of these polls any credence what so ever. Particularly phone polls where dedicated party hacks spend all day ringing the appropriate number.

Civil servants:      Senior members of the civil service most probably know more about running the country that the great majority of elected representatives.  Sometime they continue to do so despite which ever government is elected due to the fact that some ministers are not qualified for the positions they are allocated and become totally reliant on their advisors.

Marginal Seats:   The real political power base and if you need this confirmed just look at the time the party leaders spend in these electorates and amount of money spent on projects within their boundaries. If we all acted as these electorates do we would have a more accountable government? The politicians know that the majority vote as their parents did and their parents before them so they just don’t have to try in the majority of electorates. They don’t have to offer bribes via local investments, they don’t have to spend time addressing our local issues and the only ones to blame are us.

Minority parties:           The true power brokers after an election have been decided.           Democracy is no longer about the wishes of the majority but rather the demands of a well organised minority. So if a minority party can decide what legislation is passed and what is not where is the difference between us and other political systems which are decided by a minority group?

 KME

WE/US       

THEY/OTHERS

We communicate and relate to each other via a common spoken language as well as non verbal sign or body language.

Individuals who wish to communicate with a larger group of people will often learn additional languages, and or the accepted sign language of their country as well as body language. . . . → Read More: Interaction With Others]]> ME/I 

WE/US       

THEY/OTHERS

We communicate and relate to each other via a common spoken language as well as non verbal sign or body language.

Individuals who wish to communicate with a larger group of people will often learn additional languages, and or the accepted sign language of their country as well as body language. Sometimes you learn more about your own language when you attempt a second or third one. Many languages are structured around gender and personal relationships hence the use in English of

ME-I

WE-US

THEY-OTHERS.

This is not an attempt to judge ones personality by how they speak but rather an attempt to assist in learning how to relate to different personality types. These types contain a certain amount of all three traits but usually have a predominance of one of the three that gives you a clue on how best to relate.

ME-I We all start in this group because all that we are aware of initially is am I hungry, do I need liquids or I don’t like a wet diaper. We train these giants (usually referred to as adults) around us on how to respond to our personal needs. If we yell hard enough usually one of the three things will happen. A drink, some food or a change of diaper takes place. Sometimes the service is very good and sometimes it is very slow.

As we grow in some families the instant attention continues much to our pleasure for we know we have trained these giants well while in other families the services are provided on a more structured basis and not just when we want it. This is a little disappointing but teaches us early that something or somebody else has to be considered also and we may just have to wait our turn. This often happens in larger families where the parents are trying to service the requirements of three or more dependents.

As we grow we discover there are smaller versions of the giants and they are also demanding to be serviced just like us. Now we have a challenge because on one hand we thought we were the only person that mattered and on the other these small giants look like they could be fun to play with.  How am I going to relate to these new members of my universe do I accept that I may not always be first any more and have to learn to share the service providers. Big decisions and this new group are also teaching me that if I yell at them they just yell back, if I hit them they usually hit me back and if I bite them they do the same to me. Now this is different the big ones have let me get away with these traits but the smaller versions are different. Maybe it is easier to no longer yell, hit or bite if I don’t want pay back. Early lessons in having to take into account what others than myself might want to do or have happen. I much preferred to be the centre of the universe however I also want to be a part of what is happening. My first struggle with exchanging ME/I so that I can be a part of a WE/US. This transition to sharing evolves at different times with different people. We start to have a great friendship with one or more other young people. We exchange many things we learn from each other and we feel we will always be together. However every now and again the ME/I take over and puts strains on these new friendships and even ends them completely. Learning how to subdue your wants for a period to allow another to enjoy theirs is a difficult learning curve. Until you have learned this lesson it will almost impossible to have long term friendships.

Some people never get fully out of the ME/I period until they have reached a very mature age and at last accept they are not they are not the most important person in the roo, the house, the neighbourhood the country

The ME/I type as they mature are okay in small doses as they can be stimulating, entertaining, funny but just having the majority of conversations or exchanges based on them and their wants is very boring for most of us.

To recognise a ME/I personality that has not matured observe how many  conversations they start with I and My and relate only to their opinions, their achievements, their goals and they rarely allow another speaker  time to finish what they are saying before replacing them, with a story about themselves. These people are very poor listeners because while somebody else is speaking they are not listening only preparing their thoughts so that they can talk about themselves as soon as they can break back into the conversation.

Many of these people can make great celebrities as they want to be the centre of everything happening and will do almost anything to achieve this objective. They usually have problems getting to the next stage WE-US and that is why very few of these people can maintain a long term marriage or total commitment to another person. Just follow the biographies of film stars, top athletes and other Celebes. Long term relationships are the exception not the norm.

All you have to do to get on with these people is talk mainly about them.

WE-US Comes into focus for most people due to the chemicals racing around their bodies encouraging them to make the next generation. The selection of partners is not easy when physical attraction can override any other criteria that should be considered when selecting a long term partner. This explains why in many cultures and only a few hundred years ago in ours the parents made the decisions on behalf of their children. Now we have the absolute freedom to make as many mistakes as we feel inclined to and it is the children who many times suffer the consequences.

Many people still want to have the freedom of the ME-I stage even after entering into a full time relationship. Where would the gossip publications are without the ME-I group. This group tends to perform well in team sports and get as much pleasure out of their  team winning as they would winning themselves in an individual sport. Many of these sports people form long lasting relationships including marriage. They are often more concerned about their partners happiness than their own but just as in the ME-I period where when you hit someone they hit back ( Kama what you give out will come back) so if you are nice to somebody they will be nice to you and you have created a win-win situation which is normally the basis of any long time relationship whether in your personal or business life. These people can be identified by the fact that they are great listeners to other people’s opinions and experiences and will rarely talk about themselves unless strongly pressed to do so.

This type respond to those they perceive as genuine and not artificial. They respond to modesty of achievement and loyalty to friends

THEY-OTHERS This group normally includes a high percentage of people who belong to services groups (like Rotary/Lions etc) charities and certain religious organisations. These people spend a disproportionate amount of time thinking about and helping others. Our nation could not operate as it does without the contribution of these people. Others are drawn to the medical profession where they feel their lives can have an importance greater than just to themselves and immediate family. Many people move to this stage later in their life when they are coming to grips with their mortality and the fact that possessions are of little importance when health and longevity are their major challenges. Many are also grand parents and recognise that their progeny are their only immortality.

The qualities of this group are easily recognised because they are motivated by a strong desire to help others. They in turn relate to issues that are to the benefit of everybody not a selective few.

Business is in favour of population increases by any method because our GDP is so heavily reliant on retail sales. More people equal more sales. This allows a local business to grow without the same degree of effort that it would need if the population growth was next to nil.

The original concept of financing businesses via share capital from non associated people who in return for the risk they undertook would receive dividends on an annual basis (if they were lucky)  and would share in the increasing value of the company . . . → Read More: Stock Market versus Casino]]> It would appear that our Stock Market exchanges have morphed into Casinos.

The original concept of financing businesses via share capital from non associated people who in return for the risk they undertook would receive dividends on an annual basis (if they were lucky)  and would share in the increasing value of the company ( if that is what happened ). Original investors took into account the product made or service offered relative to what else was available in the general market place at that time. They also rated the qualities of the management team and their performance history.

Fairly basic stuff and easy to understand. If the company performed well then you rewards came via dividends or when you sold your shares. The lucky ones enjoyed both.

From this humble beginning we now have today people who really don’t give a dam whether the company goes forwards or backwards as long as the shares move one way or the other. Through the use of sophisticated computers and financial instruments these people are capable of making or breaking a company in the short term and what’s more they don’t care as long as they make money. The companies are only vehicles for their exploitation so perhaps it is time for companies to find a more secure way of obtaining the necessary finance to run and expand their enterprises then this other group can go to a casino and apply their skills. It would not surprise me if they were fitted with concrete boots in a very quick time and launched into some part of a deep liquid. Casinos would not put up with these tactics but our governments do though lack of knowledge and reliance on contributions to election budgets. The only mugs in this game are the small investors who have been informed this is the best way to invest their savings by another group of money gouges who quote them the return before their fees come out. This group are squealing like stuck pigs as the government tries to make it clear for all to see just how much and how often they feed off this gravy train without any great effort or guarantee of success. Many struggle to match the index particularly after their fees have been removed.

If we are capable of accommodating Islamic monetary restrictions surely we could devise a system where company shares could only be traded through government agencies in each country and where all these new instruments were banned. Then the only people interested in investing would once again be those who wanted the companies to prosper, create jobs and grow. Their rewards would once again be via dividends and/or the increasing value of the company and its ability to generate income.

The big investors would ultimately return to this new market because where else can they place their billions surely not in the back garden in a tine can. We had 1929 and we now have had 2007/8 and still the regulators appear to just play with the fringes. Maybe Europe led by Germany will at least try to direct the funds back to the basics of supporting industries rather than just use them as some giant markers at a world wide Casino.

KME

The first stage is that period where we absorb and retain information at an amazing rate most probably not . . . → Read More: Stages Of Life]]> It is only when you have that wonderful hindsight that age brings can you see clearly how the life of an individual goes through a number of stages on its journey from birth to death.

The first stage is that period where we absorb and retain information at an amazing rate most probably not matched in any later stage. Children can learn two or three languages at the same time purely by association and with little formal input. We go from thoroughly dependent on our parents to where we start to challenge their rules and regulations.

During this period it is interesting to observe how some children mentally get on top of their parents and soon have them falling over themselves to please this relatively new arrival. In other ways it is sad because the parent’s ability to influence the development of that child is diluted and as a role model is soon replaced by peer groups.

While most parents strive to be loved by their offspring it is equally important that the child respects them and what the stand for within a community. A number of religious sects claim that if they can have easy access to a child until it is five or six they will have them as a devotee for life.

The next stage starts about when they become a teenager ( some earlier some later) and new chemicals enter their blood stream causing them to react in ways that they have difficulties in understanding and their emotions can swing from one extreme to another. This we call maturing and can be a difficult period for both the child and their parents. The greatest degree of participation in sport takes place during this stage and can serve as an outlet for increased physical activity and a better alternative to just hanging out with friends. The peer group pressure is also very strong during this period but some of these teenagers will already start displaying an ability to stand alone from the group and adhere closely to the guidelines given to them from their parents and other adults which they respect. A majority of these will go onto be leaders rather than followers and can use their power to influence for either good or bad.

Stage Three which follows being a teenager involves a degree of partner selection and career formulation. Already those who will most likely end up in their own business enterprise have started on this path either through higher education or involvement in a training process that will allow them to use the skills gained to start their own enterprise. The followers are starting to attach themselves to institutions that will provide them with a good income and degree of safety but won’t challenge them to much personally. These people have already made the decision to use work as the method of producing income which they can spend on a pursuit that gives them greater satisfaction than their work.

Stage Four for most is where they have chosen their lifestyle set their ambitions chosen a partner and are facing providing a nest for the next generation. This period tends to be dominated by acquiring possessions which are seen as a measure of their success or lack of.

Young families can place a great strain on parents with limited financial support because they have to fund not only their own wants and needs but also those of the new generation. Many families split during this period as the bread winner starts to realise earlier decisions have placed them on a path of continuous struggle and they tend to resent this although it was the decisions that they made in an earlier stage which created the present situation. Also at this stage one can also start to feel responsible for aging parents.

The last stage can start from 60 years of age or later depending on the individual. At this stage one is faced with being a grandparent who for many brings great joy and pleasure while for others either through distance or relationship challenges this is a non event.

This is a time where the rewards of previous efforts or career decisions bears fruit and allows one to plan a retirement where you are financially independent with both time and money to use as you please. While for others they are committed to working as long as physically and mentally capable if they wish to maintain a reasonable standard of living. Many who have blamed everybody and everything except themselves for their lack of financial success over the past 30 to 40 years start to realise it is in the majority the decisions they made at different times that has led to their present situation. This is hard to accept but if they don’t come to grips with this fact they will spend their remaining years on this planet bitter, twisted and unable to enjoy that which is still available to them.

Normally your want list decreases considerably and a greater price is placed on relationships many of which you have taken for granted in earlier times. If you can accept your present financial situation and concentrate on human relationships this period can be as personally rewarding as any earlier stage of life.

These same politicians rave on about the necessary qualifications required by others with the latest target being financial planners. They are concerned about financial planners loosing our money and how the financial . . . → Read More: Politician’s qualifications]]> What other occupation offers such attractive salaries, generous pensions, unbelievable tax free perks without requiring any qualifications whether tertiary or trade based.         

These same politicians rave on about the necessary qualifications required by others with the latest target being financial planners. They are concerned about financial planners loosing our money and how the financial planners should be held accountable with potential large fines, removal of ability to practice and jail terms

At the very same time these same politicians are themselves loosing billions of our money in projects like buildings for school or insulation for our homes. How accountable are they did any loose their life, job or get goaled from either of these debacles? Not likely after all they are smarter than the rest us they are politicians.

Should we not demand that all politicians after they have completed their formal education if any go though the following training program?

1                    Spend the next 5 years in the workforce either as an employer or employee.

2                    Spend the next four years serving as a City Councillor where we can examine their performance with regards to keeping their promises, getting their designated task completed on time, to specifications and with no budget blowouts.

3                    Having met the qualifications for a City councillor they then spend two terms in a State government or equivalent where we can not only examine their performance based on the same criteria as got local council but also add refusing unnecessary trips both local and international, resisting developers donations to their election funds, or putting party solidarity above the interests of their constituents. NB A very famous politician ( Ted Mack) from North Sydney NSW was detested by many of his fellow politicians for practising just what I listed above.

4                    After passing these tests a politician should be ready for our Federal Parliament and a possible Ministers position.  Only then could they make the claim that if you pay peanuts you get monkeys but what a change from where we are now and attracting some parasites who only want to feed off the system and not contribute.

FOOD  FOR  THOUGHT.

          Media as such has under gone considerable changes over the past twenty years both in form and participating numbers. Its life blood which is advertising has also reflected these changes and both have contributed to the growth in Public Relations/Spin Doctoring.