This link is to an opinion piece in the national newspaper today. It is a fairly salient examination of the current debacle that the current Australian government has made over relations with our neighbour. Quite a few near term examples of which the cessation of live cattle trade is but one - although a very major one [What a stuff up by Australia].
Can they fix it up? It might not matter, if they are not there after the next Australian election, as is widely tipped. BUT.....the mess still will be. And I would agree, it will take some fixing.
When you live in north Australia Indonesia is very near, and of much greater relevance. Unfortunately the latte swilling set of the SE corner of Australia do not understand that.......at all. Self centredness rules - speak English, beggar your neighbour, have no understanding of the rest of the world - sounds increasingly like the mid-west of the USA - pleasant, but disinterested in anything other than football.
We ignore Indonesia at Australia's peril - a rapidly growing middle class, vibrant manufacturing, excellent GDP growth, yet not without problems and very close by.
