Every year, the Federal Government does the budget on behalf of the Australian Taxpayer.

I checked with dad and he's pretty confident I pay tax, so this includes me.

When dad does my budget, he puts the money into several 'buckets' such as haircuts, Hummer maintenance and nightclub expenses.

We then keep the buckets in the shed.

In a similar fashion, the Federal Government puts our taxpayer dollars into 'buckets' such as foreign aid, defence and subsidies for Collingwood memberships.

This year's budget has been described by some as mean and a fundamental breaking of the Australian social contract.

Others claim it is a necessary tightening of the nation's collective belt, after years of living beyond our means.

Personally, I believe most people commenting on the budget have no idea how it works. That includes those that developed it, especially Treasury who know the cost of everything and the value of nothing.

I've studied the budget in great detail and while the ideological agendas that infuse this one are strong, it is also shaped by broader global trends in financial markets. Personally, I believe there are worrying signs out of China, where the industrial advanced east coast provinces are struggling to continually fund growth in the inner provinces.

Of course, in Australia, federal governments have the freedom to make budgetary decisions without having to worry about the service delivery burden that falls to the states.

This inherent tension between the States and Federal government is not a flaw of our political system but there by design and in my opinion, the key driver of outcomes in Australian political life.

That all said, I'm just a footballer and don't pretend to have greater insights than others.

Anyway, i'm off to practice my goal kicking. It's really hard!

Travis Cloke