>>I gather you missed the BIS study that said the effective is more like 74% once everything is taken into account

Here's an article describing what the IMF and a senior economist are saying: http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2010/06/23/2934885.htm

To tell people that the consequence of this tax is that all mining industry profits will be taxed at the rate of 56.8 per cent and that this is the highest tax rate in the world - which is a gross distortion of the actual consequences of the tax - is likely to make people think twice about whether they want to invest in mining in Australia, until they see that this is a gross distortion," he added."

If 56.8% is a gross distortion then what does that make claims of 74%? You're being conned. I predict that over the next week it'll be revealed that this tax *encourages* investment and exploration which means more jobs and better profits for miners who want to get out there and grow the industry. Only unashamed "takers" end up paying the full tax. Too late to save Rudd, though. His mistake was to take on a wealthy industry without being prepared for the response whereas his replacement was smart enough to distance herself from the initial FUD-fest until balancing analysis came in.