You will reject out of hand the question "Is Australia a police state."
An amazing government "ad" is shown on TV. The one promoting the hotline for reporting events that could be linked to terrorism. The opening statement is of a phone call from someone saying "I saw something the other night, and I thought it was a bit strange ... " and another call saying "I overheard them planning something and I thought I should tell you." and another talking about "a suspicious website"
The War On Terror is very important to John Howard and George Bush. They have enacted laws to give the police many agressive freedoms.
That ad is encouraging people to do nothing less than reporting someone to the secret police for no reason at all. .. to report anyone with nothing more than some malicious crap. ... to legitimise applying meaningless crap against any member in out society which will get them into trouble with the authorities.
The fifth and final stage of a country's progress into a police state is where the public co-operate in their own survielance and un-doing of their own civil liberties.
Man started to affect some global things with the start of the industrial revolution. Atmospheric carbon dioxide levels started to rise then ... and now human activity is having many powerful effects that reach over the globe.
If now, when human activity is having such leethal consequences on the planet, the world is not run for the good of it, then what hope is there?