I'm really glad I live in.....

[Slytovhand]

I thought, due to the various different debates going on about how our goverenments 'rule' us, and some of the negatives that has implied, that I'd start this here thread about what's good about the various laws etc that we live with. So I'm not talking about the great beaches, or mountains, or weather... etc.

Oh.. and it's not supposed to be a place to debate stuff... that would go against the purpose of this thread. Any issues arising, please start a new post (eg..guns)

I'm in Oz, and there are a couple of standouts (given some comments on other threads...)

1. Free healthcare. That means all hospital work is free! yay!!! You can even get to see a doctor in general (non-emergency) for free!! Double Yay! And.. if you're in Queensland, they've instituted a policy of having all ambulance cover automatically attached to electricity bills...so no need to get seperate ambulance cover! Triple Yay!!


2. Third party insurance as part of vehicle registration. So...If I 'happen' to 'accidentally' take out that pushbike that just ran through that red light in front of me, any specialist cover and damages etc is also automatically taken care of by the government!!

3. Pretty much the same laws throughout the entire land..so no worrying about whether I can carry a gun or not crossing the NSW/Vic border...

4. A political system that means that what the people want has far more power than I've seen in some other countries. Also, our head of gov't does not have absolute power, and can easily be kicked out by his/her party members. And we are basically guaranteed the most overall preferred political party takes power (maybe only 30% primary preferences, but then add another, say, 12% as 2nd preference, etc etc).

5. A senate that can over-rule bad government decisions, and is more liable to popular vote (mostly because there are more independants and smaller parties in the Senate than the House of Reps).


Seshat?? Anything else you can think of??


Slyt

[the_std]

Sounds quite a bit like Canada, the country I'm glad I live in!

[Slytovhand]

Sounds quite a bit like Canada, the country I'm glad I live in!

Shall we be in the Axis of Really Cool Places to Live?

What did Boozy call it?

[the_std]

The Axis of Awesome!

[BlaqueKatt]

2. Third party insurance as part of vehicle registration. So...If I 'happen' to 'accidentally' take out that pushbike that just ran through that red light in front of me, any specialist cover and damages etc is also automatically taken care of by the government!!

3. Pretty much the same laws throughout the entire land..so no worrying about whether I can carry a gun or not crossing the NSW/Vic border...

you know I really like these two......especially with the number of uninsured motorists in the US-and the massively varying laws between states

[Slytovhand]

6. Automatic superannuation built into the pay system, government supported.

7. Tight weapons laws, so I don't feel particularly threatened because the chances of someone actually packing are actually pretty small. Also, if I or others do happen to see a gun, high chance that a) they are either legally allowed to and have the permits for them, or b) will have the cops down on them real quick (after a stack of phone calls). (there was a time a con-goer who was going to dress as a Stormtrooper got very quickly pounced on, cos someone saw something very gun like in his backpack in a Macca's once.... it was his Blaster Rifle :P).

These laws require that any gunholder be licensed, and all guns be registered. They might even bring in mandatory ballistics testing to, so that gun's tracer marks are known as well!

8. Government supported Tertiary education. While we don't pay up-front, we do have a scheme that means the gov pays it all now, but you pay back the gov, through the tax system, and only once you meet the threshold...which means at the moment, I don't have to pay back my debt until I hit about $36K a year... and even then, they'll only take an extra 1% or so of my earnings...

9. Government has regulated that telcos must provide services to everywhere in the country...which means mobile signal coverage to about 99% of the continent. (too bad the quality can be pretty crap though... internet speeds are about 10% of Europes )

10. Free education up to year 12 (through the public system anyway - you can always go to a private school)

11. I thought I'd throw this one in... we have LPG as standard for our taxis, and you can get LPG conversions quite easily, and LPG is readily available at almost every petrol station (maybe not as easily out in the country...not sure). That's been in for about 20 years now. LPG costs about 40c/L, while petrol is now at $1.50/L

12. Tax-breaks, grants, cheaper loans etc on alternative energy systems - usually solar. You can also get a rebate on rainwater tanks.

[the_std]

8. Government supported Tertiary education. While we don't pay up-front, we do have a scheme that means the gov pays it all now, but you pay back the gov, through the tax system, and only once you meet the threshold...which means at the moment, I don't have to pay back my debt until I hit about $36K a year... and even then, they'll only take an extra 1% or so of my earnings...

... Really? How does that not get abused? Do you have a large number of professional students there?

And you're making me want to move to Oz. :P

[Slytovhand]

... Really? How does that not get abused? Do you have a large number of professional students there?

And you're making me want to move to Oz. :P

Possibly cos you still have to survive, and spending your life on under $36K isn't a great way to live. As I said, it comes out automatically through the tax system.

Yes - it does get a bit abused (I'm sort of one of them... what's a degree in philosophy going to do for me??), but it also means that a lot of courses are available that may otherwise not be... because they can get funding.

[Wicked_Lexi]

Yay another Australian!

13. Mandatory Sex ed in schools!!!

14. I'm not sure how to put this one...
I like our version of the "free speech law" meaning that you can say whatever you want as long as it doesn't incite hatred or is slanderous.

The fact that over here you cant protest at a funeral (Like those crazy baptist people in the states) without being arrested or at least moved on because it is considering to be inciting hatred or causing a public nuisance...

I also agree with the other points 2!

[the_std]

Does Oz have any gay marriage laws?

[Wicked_Lexi]

Does Oz have any gay marriage laws?

Not currently No. There is a move to have Gay couples be allowed to obtain "de facto" status... Which I don't think is enough but its a start!

[Boozy]

Interestingly, although gay marriage is legal in Canada, we do not have any gay marriage "laws". Basically, our supreme court ruled that same-sex couples are allowed to marry under our current marriage laws.

Marriage laws were very similar in the States, but their courts don't tend to be as progressive in their interpretation of the law.

[kamn]

Im glad to live in this, former Tito country becouse:

*FREE schooling till age 27. Small fees after age 27, or if you fail a class 3 times.

*automatic free health insurance1 if you are going to school, working or are retired. Unemployed need to pay themselves

*We have everything, from mountains to the sea. Also, a very "green" country, good air, good homemade food, good chances for woodhiking.

*People here are increadibly nice, or so we are told. Working as a surveyer, Id think Id get more cranky people than most people from CS, but nope, just a snarky comment here and there...

*Illegal firearms unless you were at one point in the army. I cannot say I have seen or heard of a place to buy guns or bullets (hunting excluded) freely.

*Mandatory sex-ed. Good, motivated teachers; at least for me.

Im sure there is more stuff that I should be gratefull for, but I just take it for granted now...



1 Actualy its a contribution, but (I think) its mandatory, so we dont notice it

[crazylegs]

Things I like about the UK

The wildlife won't kill you
The weather (normally) won't kill you
The police are (very, incredibly so) accountable
Free Healthcare
Automatic seizure of uninsured cars
Gorgeous Scenery
Gay Civil partnership laws (would like to see them bumped up to marriage though)
Abortion is legal

Thats all I can think of right now, I'll be back later though!

[Seshat]

9. Government has regulated that telcos must provide services to everywhere in the country...which means mobile signal coverage to about 99% of the continent. (too bad the quality can be pretty crap though... internet speeds are about 10% of Europes

Actually, it's 99% of the population. Which in Australia (as in Canada or Siberia) is very different from 99% of the land mass.

However, everyone who wants a landline or internet access, no matter how far into the Outback they live, must be able to get it at a reasonable price* - even if they only have one choice (usually Telstra).

* reasonable by the inflated pricing we have for telecommunications, anyway. Check Telstra or Optus; the Australian dollar is usually similar to the Canadian dollar. Compare our prices with yours!

... Really? How does that not get abused? Do you have a large number of professional students there?

They pay for your first degree (or your first degree of its class - they might pay postgrad as well, I don't know). You also only have the appropriate number of semesters for the degree: if a degree is supposed to take six semesters, they pay for six semesters.

You can appeal for extra time, but that's limited too.

This tertiary education system also covers apprenticeships and other forms of non-academia study.



Others things to be grateful for in Australia:

Our government/health care system is actively working to improve its management of mental illness.

Preferential voting system. This was a brilliant move by our ancestors, and I'm really glad we have it.