EYE-BALL’s Harry’s Growl on – Election 2013 – Growl No: 39 – A Disguised New Tax – Political Party Membership by Default …

Latest ‘Harry’s Growl’ Posts: Larry Pickering Cartoons – Updated 17th May 2013 – click to view in a new window: To see more of Pickering’s Political cartoons – use this link … – 17th May – Election 2013 – Growl No: 38 – – Swan’s Rubbery Figures – – A “Waste of Space” Oddity … by Parody … – 2nd May – Election 2013 – Growl No: 37 – Police Investigation into Gillard – When will the Media do their job – – 22nd Apr – Election 2013 – Growl No: 36 – Minister Jenny Macklin – Delusional and in Complete Denial – – 19th Apr – Election 2013  – Growl No: 35 – – Deputy Treasurer David Bradbury – – ‘All In’ with no ‘Hand’ to play – – 8th Apr – Growl No: 34 – The S.S.S – Scumbag Slippery Slipper – 8th Apr – Election 2013 – Growl No: 33 – When the she cat is away – you’d think the other side would come out & play – – 7th Apr – Election 2013  – Growl No: 32 – Senator Wong gets the wobbles – steps up and proves she’s in over her head – – 6th Apr – Election 2013 – Growl No: 31 – Playing with Rubbery things – Wayne Swan and his Rubbery Numbers are about as honest as Gillard and her rubbery Caucus Numbers – – 5th Apr – Election 2013  – Growl No: 30 – A sequence of reasons why this Government should be ROASTED – – 4th Apr – Election 2013 – Growl No: 30 – Gillard – continues to Blame everybody else – – To see more EYE-BALL Harry’s Growl posts: click here …	Title: – Election 2013 – Growl No: 39 – – A Disguised New Tax – – Political Party Membership by Default … | Author: EYE-BALL’s Harry’s Growl | 29th May 2013|
	Latest Pickering images – 3 New Cartoons added 29th May 2013 – see image links to the left. Just when you thought the political landscape had settled – that the underhandedness was done – that the bar was already as low as it could go – something new comes forth and makes you realise why this Nation has gone to the dogs. With scumbags and fraudsters to the left, top hats and elitists to the right, disendorsed charlatans and criminals floating in the abyss, and Independents basking in the ‘pork-barrelling’ – how can you call this a Government for the people, of the people, and by the people. These are our worst days … and we have nothing to look forward to if the Coalition support this new ‘Political Party Administration Funding’ tax – not a formal tax, but a new and hubristic indirect tax none the less. As reported in the ‘EYE-BALL “None of the Above” campaign post yesterday – and  linked here – this new boost to AEC electoral funding is a ‘tax’ imposed on all 14+ million voters regardless of whether they want to support any political party. This new ‘tax’ was budgeted for in the 2012-13 Budget papers as a ‘contingency’, and as more information comes forward, now to be backdated to make sure the major parties get a big whack of new money to help with the Sept 2013 election campaign. If you voted formally in the last election – you ‘gifted’ $2.31 as an AEC electoral refund to the Political Party or Independent you voted for if they polled 4% or better. This year it will be in excess of $2.50 a vote.  And now the new legislation wants to increase this by another $1 per vote. As pointed out yesterday – this is a 40% increase it may be a single $dollar – but no business in Australia can increases prices by 40% and stay in business. The existing electoral payment is already inflation indexed every six months – why can’t these political Parties survive on their existing funding during these harsh times?  This is a pethetic message … and needs to be responded to in kind. The Legislation is aimed at making this an annual payment paid quarterly – it seems they have though of everything as any business does to improve cash flow. Where is the due diligence in how these new funds are to be disbursed? Is there anyone prepared to trust political parties or politicians with ‘slush-fund’ type payments to be spend under a discretionary arrangement on a headline expenditure item called – ‘Administration Costs’. The money involved is close to $60 million over three years – what business would not love to have that sort of cash injection? Do Party employees geta pay rise, do they get a bonus, do they upgrade their travel class, motel accommodation, their expense account … as the rest of Australia is forced to tighten the political Party’s believe they have entitlement to cover their membership cancellations. The existing $2.47 AEC payment is not subjected to any real scrutiny with 95% of payments made within 4 weeks of the election polling day.  You could spend a pittance to win your votes and get the refund if you poll 4% or more – Pauline Hanson runs every election because it gifts her $250k or so income for the next three years. It’s a rort …. see full AEC Election Funding guide here. The debate in the media is focused on the ‘donation thresholds’. Who cares about who donates money – I know its important to know who is donating to who and the threshold is about disclosure – it does nothing to stop the money.  If it becomes an issue than the donations will be made via other undeclared means. The real issue here is the new 40% ‘tap’ into the public purse.  Political Party’s chose to exist as do all business – it’s not a bad gig to get the taxpayers to fund your administration costs if you can get away with it. Why do we take this crap … the simple answer is because we don’t give a toss … we bitch for a few days and the news moves on and in the wake they do what they want … our apathy contributes to the ease at which our leaders raid the treasury. With Obeid and MacDonald still in the news the electorate have become immune to the shock and awe they felt in January/February when news first broke.  Is the crime any less shocking now? Hardly – and as the names of the politicians implicate – do any of them seemed harmed … former NSW Speaker Richard Torbay is gone – yet still gets to keep his State funded life pension … well at this stage anyway because he is still due to face the ongoing ICAC inquiry. The hubris to pull a ‘cash-grab’ like this astounds us all.  The ‘bubble’ they live in has never been more evident – nor more in need of a real shock to deflate their own sense of privilege and ego. Of the 100 or so MP’s EYE-BALL e-mail yesterday on this matter – only 25 or so acknowledged receipt – not one MP office responded directly, and quite a number of those who did acknowledged receipt – deleted the message without reading it… This is a new ‘fraud’ and cannot be allowed to pass. If the Coalition support this Legislation in the House then any credibility or higher moral ground they may have had as the alternative Government is gone. How dare the prposers of the Legislation claim that increased informal votes have weakened their electoral funding payments – give us better Government and win the votes with the excution of good governance. Mediocrity does not demand rewarding … Don’t forget to – – Register your Protest –
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