Ross Gittins: Legend

Bravo to Ross Gittins, as usual saying the truth, and as usual, a lone voice in one massive echo chamber of yes men. It's grim times when picking holes in someone's policy is redefined as `outspoken-ness' rather than `journalism'; even more so when said `outspoken-ness' sees you bullied into submission by the government you are attempting to criticise (as was detailed fairly extensively in Gittins' own columns, and in Crikey.

In today's Sydney Morning Herald, Gittins comprehensively demolishes (if you will excuse the pun) the glittering myth that props up Australian prosperity: property. A friend recently commented that in no other country do you wander in and comment about someone's fantastic floor space, frontage, water views or potential capital growth. It shits me to the back teeth. As does, as Gittins notes, the fact that property booms are inherently biased against the poor and the young. While he suggests that this means Baby Boomer parents end up paying for house deposits, in practice, it means an entire generation renting its housing from another.

I've heard a lot of Baby Boomers on talkback radio complaining about the NSW property taxes eating away at their `retirement investment'. To which I say - go buy shares, mate. Because I can't live in shares, but you can retire on them. The recent decision by the new NSW government to abolish the unpopular vendor's tax is - a cave in of the worst kind, to the worst sort of vocal, pushy, powerful lobby group. The `Australian Dream' of a modest house has long been a realistic aspiration of ordinary Australians. The distortion of this dream into just another way of making dosh shows something is deeply out of joint.