Thursday 22 July 2010

Poor rich Twiggy Forrest: how much can a koala bear?

Fortescue Metals GroupImage via Wikipedia
So Twiggy's changing his mind, it is reported.
Well, Networkers, I think we can look at this story 
a couple of different ways.


Scenario #1

Please note the opening para of this story:  Small and medium miners, including Andrew Forrest's Fortescue Metals Group, are considering restarting the advertising campaign against the government's mining tax

As I understand it, it was the big boys who sat at the negotiating table: BHP Billiton, Rio Tinto, and X Strata.  Twiggy is mentioned in the context of 'small and medium miners'.  Twiggy was front and centre as the face of protest against the Resource Super Profits Tax.  So this appears to mean that the small and medium miners have formed themselves into a registered union of employers (namely the Association of Mining and Exploration Companieswith Twiggy as the union secretary.  It would seem by this report, that the big boys found a deal to be done, they cut it, and left the others voiceless - and, possibly, powerless.  Now Twiggy is trying to find a way to put some clout back.  


However, the AMEC claims the following for itself:
This enables AMEC to retain strong relationships with all sides of politics at the highest level and provide members with a lobbying and advocacy power they could not otherwise generate.


Mmmm..........?
  • How strong are relationships with all sides of politics at the highest levels going to be if the ol' Twigg resumes his industrial campaign?  
  • How strong is the lobbying and advocacy power of the Twigg' and his fellow unionists - since they didn't get a guernsey at the negotiating table first time around?
Miner's of the World, unite!
You have nothing to lose
but your chains!



Scenario #2

There are many fiefdoms and empires across the globe.  Some are highly specialised, some are based on geography.  Some profess democracy.  Others revolve around one or a few powerful people.  Now I can understand that when you have the wealth of Twiggy, a lot of people do your bidding with great alacrity and you can seem like the King of All You Survey.  Now, Twiggy has seen a bit of see-sawing of his fortune in recent years, so I suppose it is understandable that when he sees yet another threat on the horizon, he might want to control the risk which the threat is perceived to pose.  
~~~~~~


But what else is going on in the Kingdom of All You Survey?

Well, there is an election campaign in full swing and the serfs, vassals, helots, and villeins each have a vote.  The said serfs, vassals, helots, and villeins have no money to mount a vote-swinging advertising campaign in their favour and neither do the civil organisations supported by the said serfs, vassals, helots, and villeins.  GFCs tend to have this sort of effect.  

smelling salts should be brought in promptly.



BTW, Twiggy, have you and your comrades had a chat with Bill Ludwig?  
He seemed to have had a bit to do with the seating arrangements
 at the the last round of negotiations.



Further reading:
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