Looking for explanations…

Lifelong learner, leftie, AuADHD, Bunurong country, Australia. She/her. Social justice, environment, climate change etc. Too old to pretend to be “woke”; it’s just the way I am. Won’t boost photos without alt txt (unless I forget!).

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Last Notes

2026-08-14 23:37:04 UTC

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I’m not sure where you get that idea. Not the case here in Australia. Temporary migrants on work visas, working in agriculture, are certainly dealing with slave like conditions.
We have a much higher minimum wage here in Australia than the US, & attempts to get around that through the gig economy are being undermined.
The public housing issue is about privatisation of government services. The myth that private industry can & will do things better. And general wealth inequality aggravated by the privileging of property investors over home owners.

2026-08-13 00:36:13 UTC

Yep!
And we have to change our ideas about rental and public housing. Not “social housing”, public housing owned by the state.
It’s common in many places in Europe, and people don’t have to be desperately poor & vulnerable to qualify. And many people choose to live in public housing lifelong. That’s not considered a rip off or bludging, because (truly) decent affordable housing is considered a human right.
That’s not to say that all public housing in Europe is “truly decent”, and that there aren’t social problems associated with large public housing estates. Getting public housing right is a challenge, but given how long it is since Australian governments have invested heavily in public housing and how small our public housing stock is, we have a chance to plan better types of public housing.
Mixed housing types to accommodate all sorts of needs. Family sizes, couples, singles, large extended family or multi-generational groups, share houses for people who like share housing (think neurodivergent singles, older single people etc.) Large homes where bedrooms have an ensuite, kitchenette & small lounge area for when people want/need privacy, and access to a larger shared living room & kitchen for socialising, and a shared laundry.
As long as people’s needs for privacy are factored in and construction is of a good quality, real communities could be built, instead of awful projects that increase people’s sense of deprivation and seem to pit them against one another.
https://www.theguardian.com/business/grogonomics/2026/aug/12/isnt-it-amazing-what-a-policy-that-actually-tackles-the-cause-of-outrageous-house-prices-can-do?CMP=Share_iOSApp_Other