If you thought Fatty Vanstone’s policies were no good, you should’ve been around for Philip Ruddock (the minister preceding her)!

I don’t think the technology “strategy” will be any better under a labour government, but then I didn’t really think there was anything wrong with it under the Liberal government.

And I suspect that if 5 years ago you were trying to push the idea of RIA’s then I can see why you weren’t having much luck. Talking to clients about things that don’t exist yet tends to be a bit of a hard sell I find ;-)

I’ve tightened up my generalisation just a little. I should have said “was”, not “is”. I did say that things are looking different under the new government. I even say that Melbourne is (technologically) vibrant.

I lived in Australia during Howard Government, Vanstone’s immigration short-sightedness, and luddite communications senator Richard Alston.

I always use a metaphor that technology is like a rice pudding. A hard crust on top. The tangible part you can see. Products and services. Underneath is the molten, fluid, hot crucible of ideas, development, and potential. And this is the aspect of technology that most interests me. Not the stuff you can buy at the shops.

It’s a small consolation that I was right about the up-and-rising areas of technology (RIAs, Flex, and the application of these). And now I’m able to charge an arm and a leg for my time and expertise. But just think what I might have been able to do in Australia had my foresight been matched with some investment, talented and motivated people to collaborate with, or more time to reside in Australia (visa) while my (international) market matured.