russell

Selling Telstra as a single entity was stupid.

The customer services side could have been sold, but the national infrastructure should have remained government controlled.

Like water pipes and roads, only one set of phone lines exists in streets and homes. This does not lend itself to being duplicated by startup phone companies. Therefore, the hardware needs to be leased from a central provider such as Telstra. Therefore, Telstra should be *only* a wholesaler, to avoid conflicts of interest.

Only with a central government provider, can communications improvements be rolled out in a coordinated fashion nationally.

As it is now, the previous corrupt government has led Australia down the Stupid American Way of privatization and fragmentation.

Now all Telstra does is bicker about "shareholder value" instead of doing any real work.

When will Australia polititions learn to stop following the Stupid Yanks and think for themselves?