Perhaps Australia isn't such a lucky country.....

Many years ago Australia was dubbed the "lucky country". Melbourne often wins the accolade as the most livable city in the world. And perhaps that's all true.....except the stark figures released today about the level of poverty in the nation show that many are not, in fact, living the good life in laid-back, sunny Oz - the land "down under".

"Poverty is increasing in Australia, with one in seven Australians living below the poverty line, according to a new report.

The Poverty in Australia report, to be released on Sunday by the Australian Council of Social Service (ACOSS), also shows one in six Australian children are living in poverty.

The percentage of Australians and of Australian children living in poverty rose from 2010 to 2012.
The poverty line – defined as 50 per cent of median income – was $400 a week for a single adult and $841 for a couple with two children in 2012.

The report shows 13.9 per cent of Victorians live in poverty with those in non-metropolitan areas most likely to be below the poverty line.

In Melbourne 13.7 per cent of residents were in poverty compared to 15 per cent in Sydney, 13.9 per cent in Brisbane, 13.8 per cent in Hobart, 12.4 per cent in Perth and 11.5 per cent in Adelaide."

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Mahler's Prodigal Son

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