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The despair of having a Morrison government

The Coalition took very few policies to the last election – which left them plenty of space to use in vilifying the ALP’s long list of policies, using lies and misinterpretations as weapons.

And, to be honest, the ALP did a very poor job of explaining their really complex policies, correcting the lies and adjusting to valid criticism on the so-called ‘retirees’ tax’.

But one very personal undertaking by ScoMo was to tackle suicide.

True – he has put in train action relating to veterans, because there has been very effective – and necessary – lobbying from distressed relatives of family members of veterans. How well his plan will address the issue is another story, but he is still ignoring, for example, the high level of youth suicide, particularly in Aboriginal communities.

Throughout his ministerial career, whichever portfolio might have been his responsibility, one thing ScoMo has demonstrated, in spades, has been a total lack of compassion and empathy. Which reinforces the fact that his ‘religion’ is a cult, so clearly unrelated to the teachings of Jesus Christ, as recorded in the Bible, as to make it a perversion to call it Christianity.

But suicide in the general public is set to rise because of the despair that follows living through the cataclysmic events of recent months, particularly in the almost certain knowledge that they might just be the beginning of a sequence of similar events.

The government has over-emphasised the importance of the economy during its time in office, making unfounded claims as to its superiority over Labor in managing the finances, yet clearly without factoring into their planning the costs of dealing with disasters on the current scale.

They had been warned.

Yes – the efforts of volunteer firefighters have been incredible, and the funds donated by the community to go to those volunteer services’ needs, and to help the victims of the fires, has also been magnificent.

But why the bloody hell are we paying taxes – a horrifying amount of which disappears into politicians’ pockets – when those in charge forward plan so woefully?

They simply refuse to accept scientific evidence in an amazingly ignorant way.

I find it beyond puzzling that supposedly intelligent, educated people can accept the amazing advances in one specialist branch of science – medicine – while refusing to accept the results of rigorous research and modelling by climate scientists. Particularly when predictions, based on rigorous modelling and made decades ago, are proving to be spot on!

I appreciate that the fossil fuel lobby donate generously to party funds, but the government is elected for the benefit of the population not the political parties. Letting money persuade them to close their minds to important knowledge is criminal.

More than 30 years ago, in order to be a driving instructor in the Schools Driver Education program, I undertook a defensive driving course. We were taught that accidents do not happen, because the essence of safe driving is anticipation. What we refer to as ‘accidents’ are inevitable outcomes of failure to be observant, and to anticipate the possibility that other drivers will not behave as might normally be expected.

And that is a brilliant rule in life in general! Totally necessary when we are dealing with events over which we have limited control – as is the case with climate, when we have been warned that increasing adverse weather events are most certainly going to result because of increasing emissions from the use of fossil fuels.

The Coalition continues on the path of claiming, quite falsely, that its policies are adequate to meet the very minimal goals in emission reductions it has undertaken. Our emissions are not reducing fast enough to meet those goals and the fact the reports on those results are invariably late, and issued in ways that often escape attention, simply underlines the fact that the government is deliberately lying.

We have a Constitution which was written to define the particular areas of responsibility of the States and the Federal government, and it was written at a time when technology was in its infancy. It has no Human Rights provisions, and it has no clauses to enable action on corruption and malfeasance by governments while the means of challenging legislation through the High Court are cumbersome.

We are currently stuck with a lying, corrupt government. It refuses to act in our best interests – and when more than 50% of the population is crying out for action on climate change and yet the government refuses to listen, we have limited ways of forcing the government to act – or go!

In one or two periods in my life, I seriously considered suicide. I could not think of a fail-safe method which would ensure that I would not end up alive but disabled and I also realised how selfish such an act would be in my particular circumstances because of the people who would be affected.

But for an increasing number of people for whom the prospect of surviving in viable conditions seems totally remote, it is a different story. And we have a government which is oblivious to their extreme distress and desperate need.

If ScoMo was sincere about reducing suicide, he needs to appoint a national, non-partisan government which includes non-political experts in charge of relevant areas who accept the reality of the climate emergency and who will, as a matter of urgency, institute policies to step back from use and export of fossil fuels and work with like-minded governments to assist countries like India to significantly speed up emission reduction.

He won’t, of course. He has achieved his dream of supreme power over this country, is best mates with a similarly obnoxious leader in POTUS, and doesn’t give a fig about the fate of those affected by his selfish ignorance.

The result of the last election was not a miracle. It was an inevitable disaster in a country which struggles to accept truth.

It is beyond frustrating to know that, by letting off steam in order to reduce the pressure which I feel, whatever I write or say is not going to affect the actions of those who are destroying lives and livelihoods.

I still feel that if enough of us feel the same and are prepared to march, lobby, demonstrate through acts of civil disobedience and use every available method to make the politicians listen, we just might change minds. But – will it be in time?

Once more – this is my Resolution:

“I will do everything in my power to enable Australia to be restored to responsible government.”

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18 comments

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  1. HumeAndTwain

    Rosemary, I hear you, and both my inner and outer voices echo with pain similar to yours. Doubled, in fact, as I fear for my native land of the USA as well as my adopted country of Australia seeing the bumbling and uncaring hands that are currently at the helms of both.

  2. Jude Dodd

    My belief is that Morrison’s suicide mantra is purely a distraction, or virtue signalling: something he trots out to quickly detract from difficult questions about the shitshow that is his govt, something positive he can use to tug at heartstrings. Dogwhistling even? He has, as you say, no compassion, no real Christian values, so why all the noise about suicide? It’s all bullshit.

  3. whatever

    Scotty suddenly became interested in suicides in the military because he needs Jacqui Lambies’ vote for Union-smashing legislation.
    Lambie has long campaigned on this issue, and she obviously made the suicide-investigation a pre-condition for her Senate vote.

  4. Andrew J Smith

    Very simple, putting aside the research into mental health issues, highlighting suicide allows emotions to be triggered which moves society and voters.

    Using Socratic principles of ethos, logos and pathos, the LNP and commercial media focus on (PR or pretend) ethos, and more importantly pathos, while avoiding the more substantive logos of facts and analysis aka science and climate change; ‘hearts not heads’ (Lynton Crosby).

  5. Glennis Whitney

    Suicide is a spur of the moment happening, how is he going to stop al the suicides, people don’t broadcast when they are going to do it they do it silently I know been there.
    This is Scomo’s distraction to get the Sports Rorts off his back. My thoughts are with all who attemp this sad sickness.

  6. DrakeN

    Thank you for this article, Rosemary.

    WIth regard to paying taxes – it is the inadequate taxing of those who take the most of the communal wealth for themselves which is the crux of the matter.

    In reality, of course, taxes pay for nothing – the government issues money as it sees fit and withdraws it from circulation, via taxes, as deemed necessary.
    The ‘tax/excise’ on this that or the other is not allocated to specific purpose, it merely goes into ‘consolidated revenue’ which itself is a total misnomer.
    Hoarding of wealth by the rich, for the purpose of gaining even more, is the underlying problem; it takes money out of circulation, especially when it disappears into tax ‘havens’.

  7. pierre wilkinson

    Scotty from marketing has perfected the art of announcment without actually achieving anything…
    he just says that he will, or has done something, is going to do more but in a calm rational way that actually precludes actually doing anything..
    it is the announcement that gets publicity, not the achievement in his eyes
    and anyway, suicide is against his religion, so anyone who contemplates or does suicide is obviously unworthy of any effort to save them

  8. John lord

    The purpose of evangelical, fundamentalist and charismatic churches is the saving of souls as opposed to say mainstream churches which is more charitable. Doing good deeds.

  9. Pingback: The despair of having a Morrison government #newsoz.org #auspol - News Oz

  10. Terence

    “I appreciate that the fossil fuel lobby donate generously to party funds, but the government is elected for the benefit of the population not the political parties. Letting money persuade them to close their minds to important knowledge is criminal.”

    You’re so funny.

    It’s the elephant in the room that no one dares mention. The politicians know it, the media know it, all Australians know it but do we address the issue of donations, nah she’ll be right mate.

    The reality is and no one seems to have the guts to say this either, is that most people are stupid especially in Qld. Stupid one day, idiots the next. I am yet to have anyone explain to me how, despite everything that he has done in the past, that Clive Palmer was able to garnish more than his own, self serving vote is truly astounding. Yet in came the votes. If that’s not stupidity personified, I don’t know what is. Although it looks like America are saying “Qld, hold my beer.”

    BTW – nothing that the politicians do is criminal because the laws are written by the politicians for the politicians. Albo and the ALP are weak as piss and just as useless as the LNP. Albo – “I have not seen any evidence of direct corruption … that has been proven in my time when I’ve been in parliament.” Well open your eyes ya F*ckin’ Muppet.

  11. DrakeN

    Glennis: “Suicide is a spur of the moment happening,…”

    Not necessarily.

    Often it is the consequence of longer term depression and despair.

    The “Black dog” often kills incrementally.

  12. Jude Dodd

    I think you mean ‘garner’ Terence, rather than garnish. Hilarious nonetheless.

  13. Terence

    OBTW – How’s this beauty being reported in the Nine/Fairfax today:

    “The free market Institute of Public Affairs has joined forces with Labor in a campaign calling for fewer criminals to be sent to jail, which they say will reduce repeat-offending and save money.”

    Of course they would, it would be an obvious benefit to many of the IPA and ALP members.

  14. Terence

    Hi Jude

    Yes that is correct. Silly me.

    Thanks

  15. Terence

    Oh the day just keeps getting better and better, this in the Crapier Mail

    “A VERBAL brawl has erupted between inner-city Liberals and Queensland Federal Nationals over the Morrison Government funding a feasibility study for a coal-fired power station in Collinsville”

    Georgie Porgie and Mug Caravan want the government to fund a new coal fired power station. I feel so much better that the adults are in charge.

    Being an Agarian Socialists is far better than being one of those greenie ALP type socialists. Apparently it all in the way you waste other people’s money.

  16. ajogrady

    Why do we call the L/NP government our elected representatives when in actual fact they only represent their donors. They all should be wearing sponsorship strips. At least then we would know who owns them. We pay them to protect and serve us. The Australian public get duped twice, once at the ballot box and then when our tax dollars are gifted to their corrupt donors or taxpayer funded slush funds in the guise of grants systematically and corruptly distributed for the benefit of the L/NP. Democracy is the victim of corporate power and greed avidly sought out by our criminally corrupt government.

  17. Patricia

    Morrison’s suicide mantra is about buying Lambie’s vote for the least amount possible as she is easily and cheaply bought.

    $40 million for some fat arses linked to the LNP to sit around and ask a few questions and then provide a report in 12 months time.

    What f’ing good is any of that going to do for the people who are at peril, who need support now? but who are not going to get it.

  18. RosemaryJ36

    We know what the problems are but how do we solve them????

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