From manners to mining, the musings that struck a chord

THE final column for the year is always a good time to review the issues that drew the greatest response from readers.

Rude hand gestures

THE final column for the year is always a good time to review the issues that drew the greatest response from readers.

Of the 47 columns and 40,000 words I have written in this space since January there are several that seem to have struck a chord.

The column that had perhaps the most impact was not, sadly, that which outlined the release of my new book, The Big Tilt, in May but, rather, something I wrote in September about the demise of manners.

I argued that modern Australia seemed to be suffering from a plague of rudeness, especially among some elements of the business community. I cited phone calls and emails not being returned; the hogging of armrests on planes; and the exclusion of outsiders at drinks functions where everyone gathers in tight chat circles.

The response was immediate and supportive, and not just from readers. There were follow-up radio and newspaper interviews as well as television segments.

The column spawned a dedicated Facebook page called the Society for Normal People, where those who feel disaffected by the rudeness of others can go to express their dismay and to find solace amid the company of like-minded others.

The idea for the Facebook page came from a line in the column where, exasperated, I declared that at times when I walk away from business functions and meetings where I have just experienced rudeness I think: "Am I the only normal person in the world?"

During the following week I was inundated with emails from others wanting to join my "society", so I set it up. The Society for Normal People now has 3400 members.

Another influential column was from early July where, in advance of a presentation I gave to the Property Council of Australia congress in Darwin, I outlined my argument that it was time for the development community to spell out the case for measured, planned and responsible growth and development.

I argued that for too long developers have been tippy-toeing around development issues for fear of upsetting the anti-growth movement. I said that this strategy had failed. I think there is now a more intense anti-growth sentiment now than at any time previously. And I don't think it's likely to dissipate in the future.

I argued that the strategy of not speaking up publicly for development had resulted in the general population being swayed by counter-arguments; that anti-growth sentiment expands in a PR vacuum. The response to this column was electric.

It touched a nerve with small to medium-sized developers (and some from larger groups who wanted to remain anonymous) who articulated specific cases of developments that, despite complying with local regulations, were still subjected to delays and obstruction.

Enough is enough, I said. It's time for the property industry to put the case for responsible growth and development to the people. Predictably, some elements of the anti-growth blogosphere went into meltdown over my call to arms. But my argument was that we live in a democracy: the case for and against growth should be fairly put and heard by both sides.

More recently my columns about the rise of phantom populations in mining towns also drew popular response from readers and from other media.

Last month I explained my reckoning that Queensland's Shire of Isaac (for which I had just completed a study) with a local population of 23,000 was effectively providing services that were being drawn on by a community of more than 50,000 when fly-in, fly-out miner populations were taken into account.

Isaac is centred on the township of Moranbah, inland from Mackay in the Bowen Basin. But the point would also apply to towns such as Roma in the Surat Basin and Karratha and others in the Pilbara.

I also suggested that the Australian Bureau of Statistics should consider developing a new model for measuring populations in the 21st century that takes into account the reality that some places have substantial numbers of part-time residents. This has always been an issue in holiday locations such as the Gold Coast and Cairns but it is now surfacing when calibrating the allocation of infrastructure relative to local populations in mining communities.

A column that seemed to resonate with the business community especially was from late August, where I talked about the Armageddon scenario in which the Australian economy was transformed in the 2010s. In this outlook jobs are pared back in manufacturing, agriculture, retail and tourism as the business model in each industry changes.

The rise of China, of internet retailing, of the Australian dollar (thereby reducing our appeal to overseas tourists) will continue to erode jobs amid the low-skilled workforce. But the ageing of the population and our shifting roll as a supplier of energy and commodities to China will underpin demand for more skilled workers in health (and probably international education) as well as in professional and technical services.

I am often asked if I write the columns personally. The answer is yes. Every one. The key to writing a popularly read column is to be varied in the subject matter. Hopefully they all contribute to a better understanding of the demographics of Australia.

KPMG partner Bernard Salt is an adjunct professor at Curtin University business school.

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