The argument against the decision to allow beef imports from geographic areas that have experienced BSE outbreaks began as an argument to keep out BSE. It was always an argument palely masking the real reason for the opposition, and that argument is a fear of competition, a fear that Australian producers are not up to competing with the rest of the world, a basic inferiority complex, with a strong sniff of xenophobia and laziness thrown in. It hasn't taken long for economic nationalist groups such as Ausbuy to throw off the mask, and show themselves up for what they are: a bunch of fearful people who have no understanding of, and no desire to understand, the operation of international trade. They want no barriers to Australia selling product in international markets, but believe we should not allow foreign goods and services in our own markets, if we are able to produce those products ourselves. To the extent some of these econats try to rationalise their position, they fail badly, and thus resort to the old quarantine defence. Sheer ignorance and hypocrisy are writ large in their behaviour. Jingoism rules! How pathetic!

Bushie Bill you are WRONG. It's not a level playing field. The Aussie farmers have fees and systems (animal welfare, land clearing restrictions, MLA, NLIS etc) that the overseas producers do not have. If they want to bring in their beef we must either drop our standards or they must increase theirs.

Just what part of my post was wrong, goaway? Why do you talk about a level playing field? There is no such thing, and there never has been! It is as senseless a concept as "a fair go", often heard on these pages. Proponents of level playing field and fair go myths are refusing to live in the real world, and in reality, are demanding that the they be given a tilted (to them) field and an unfair (to others) go. Hypocrisy rules supreme. Don't expect logic and rational thinking to occupy a farmer's mind in his (and her) quest for a dollar.