Tony Abbott says food importers deserve help denied to telcos

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Because food sellers in Australia is have such low margins! </sarc>

Somebody bought the right person a rather nice dinner.

I've written before that Australia's technology industries are routinely humiliated by government.

All Australian's are routinely humiliated by government.

there fixed that for you

Instead, the government's line has been that as the implementation costs of metadata retention “is less than 1 per cent of the $43 billion in revenue generated by the telecommunications industry annually” it can easily carry the burden after an initial cash grant.

Revenue is not the same as profit. If that's a low margin business, which is likely, then that 1% cost might be nearer 20, 30, 40 etc.

Glaring error of logic

<<If there's a modest increase in regulatory costs in one area, it's got to be more than compensated by a reduction in regulatory costs in another area.>>

No.

An increase in regulatory costs in one area needs to be balanced by a benefit of equal or greater value. So, for example, the additional costs of regulating berry importers might have the benefit of fewer people in hospital with Hep. A. Regulation should always be looked at from a system perspective, not a point perspective. Abbott's quote above serves to try and make people look just at the cost side of the ledger, and the only reason he'd want to do so is to appease & please interested parties (read: industry/rich mates)

The problem in the case of telco metadata would seem that there is no substantial benefit to anyone except the government and MPAA etc for mandating metadata regulation. If the payback was a country safe from terrorists then maybe you could make an argument.

Squeeky wheel gets oiled - OR - You get what you paid for

Two possibilities:

1. The squeaky wheel gets oiled. Maybe the berry industry would run a huge PR campaign and say that prices are going to go up or whatever, the PM is against nutritious frozen foods, etc.

Maybe that includes the farmers unions threatening to block vote for the other party.

2. The wheel that oils the political machine gets favoritism. Maybe the berry industry buys its politicians and the politicians are merely delivering the favours that have been bought and paid for in campaign donations.

Most likely I figure #1 because Australia is going to be more like Canada and the UK than the USA.

Storing comms data will make Australia more like Russia

The main effect of storing comms data is going to be that spy agencies and police become more powerful and politicians become weaker.

Comms data will give spy agencies and police data ("embarrassing stuff") to bend politicians to its will.

In the end Australia, Canada, the UK and USA will become like Russia, where the leaders are chosen from the ranks of spy agency alumni.