Australia – The Lucky Country? – Please excuse the hollow laugh!
Lucky for whom?
Not for our First Nations, who still battle to overcome the disadvantages of an invasion which stole their lands, massacred much of their population, treated them as slaves in chain gangs, raped their women and stole their children.
Not for the refugees, fleeing war, persecution and discrimination who sought safe haven and a better life, only to be incarcerated in detention centres, run by an organisation whose personnel are at least one step less caring than a high proportion of Corrections Services employees, denied a proper hearing for their claims for refuge and, in too many cases, returned to death in their land of birth.
Observation has taught me that many people who are recruited into the police forces of any country should be screened out because they are psychologically unsuited.
Peter Dutton is such an individual, and every cruel edict that he issues screams out that his suitability for the level of power he has acquired is woefully nonexistent.
What has brought on this tirade?
News that a cohort of refugees who were being held in detention in Darwin are just being whisked away to detention in a Melbourne hotel, despite that fact that they included many brought here for medical treatment. And at least one of their number had the long-waited-for medical appointment lined up, here in Darwin, for the day after they will be removed.
Those who honestly believe in the benefits of a true democracy are currently distracted by the farce being enacted in the USA. An immature man whose desire for power was nourished by the Republican Party, has just thrown a hissy fit because not enough people were convinced by his claims to be working for their benefit, and he is now required to step aside for a preferred candidate.
Deluded, as he is, that he is god’s gift to the USA, he is raising fears that a civil war might erupt as the rump of his followers are looking for every opportunity to start a fight.
What has this got to do with us?
The USA has, for years, been a close and strong ally of Australia, although that relationship is now putting us in conflict with China, up to now a strong trading partner.
We are between a rock and a hard place, and the situation is made more difficult by the fact that the Coalition government, which currently holds power, is more supportive of policies which are disadvantaging us, because they are matching those of Donald Trump’s USA.
GLOBAL WARMING IS A FACT OF LIFE!
The rate of warming is increasing.
The occasions of severe weather events are increasing in frequency and in level of severity.
The Coalition is pushing a policy of increasing use of gas, while all the real experts are assuring us this is not good policy.
The Australian Premiers have fought the good fight against COVID-19, and their level of success has been remarkable, particularly when compared with much of the rest of the world (being a large archipelago does help!), but the Prime Minister, together with several of his Ministers, is happy to claim the glory for this outcome, despite having played politics in most despicable ways during the worst of the second wave in Victoria.
The Coalition government and its Ministers are regularly forfeiting our trust and respect by their open corruption and their obvious lack of intention to rein in their bad behaviour.
If anyone were to compare the numbers of citizens who were proud to be Australian, say, 40 years ago, with those feeling the same level of pride today, the outcome might not be flattering for the government!
There is a total lack of understanding of the fact that the action taken to fight the pandemic has destroyed hundreds of jobs, that people are bearing increasing debt levels through being forced to delay paying rent and mortgage payments.
That the threat of eviction or foreclosure is a continuing nightmare.
That support provided by government is being reduced, leaving many in truly parlous circumstances.
That access to continuing education is becoming an increasingly impossible dream for many.
The national government is failing to accept that the future will never fall back into a familiar routine.
Life has changed due to the pandemic, and life will continue to change because of our failure to take appropriate action by reining in use of fossil fuels.
We cannot afford to be led by a Prime Minister whose idea of leading is to delegate everything he can to the States – including desperately needed social housing – but then criticise if perfection is not achieved and claim the credit if it is!
There is much which we can do. We actually have more power than we realise – and it is not only vested in the ballot box.
We desperately need a strong Opposition in Canberra, but it seems that all political parties seek power for themselves, as first priority, and looking after the needs of the homeless and desperate is left for the charities to pick up the pieces.
Was Australia ever ‘The Lucky Country’?
For some, maybe, but only occasionally.
Is it now?
No way!!!
When might it be?
When we all start acting as a community to help those who need help and share the wealth and opportunity more equally.
Is this possible?
Of course.
Why isn’t it happening now?
Because we are all too bloody selfish!
Like what we do at The AIMN?
You’ll like it even more knowing that your donation will help us to keep up the good fight.
Chuck in a few bucks and see just how far it goes!
5 comments
Login here Register here-
guest
-
Kerri
-
Jack Cade
-
John Boyd
-
RosemaryJ36
Return to home pageThe opening lines of the last chapter of Donald Horne’s “The Lucky Country” (1964) say this:
“Australia s a lucky country run mainly by second rate people who share its luck. It lives on other people’s ideas, and although its ordinary people are adaptable, most of its leaders (in all fields) so lack curiosity about the events that surround them that they are taken by surprise.”
Horne criticised Australia for its philistinism, provincialism and dependence.
In 1976 Horne followed up with “Death of the Lucky Country”, followed by Ian Lowe’s “The Lucky Country? Reinventing Australia” (2016).
But we know Oz has done some wonderful thins, even if people had to go overseas/
About the “immature man” of the US Republican party, the US proprietor of the Murdoch media has promoted him as a brilliant innovator despite his faults, who did wonderfully well by coming second in the recent two horse presidential race. Consequently, the winner, Bident, who promotes action on climate change, is not a worthy model to be followed.
Here in Oz, the Murdoch media says it believes climate change is real, but overstated by greenie activists. Therefore the Murdoch pundits feel obliged to publish sceptic/denial opinions to the exclusion of anything to do with “bogus” IPPC opinions. Jobs are what is important, and the Murdoch mediia supports workers, unlike the Labor Party, especially workers in coal mining – because coal is a big earner in the Oz economy.
So Murdoch scribblers critcise Albanese for having the notion of zero emissions by 2050 because he has not released the costings – and 2050 is ages away, so how would he know?
Whereas, Morrison and Oz are committed by the Paris Accord to zero emissions by between 2050 and 2100. Incredible far distant insight by the Coalition! But one of the scribblers says that Morrison must not mention it – keep the separation from Labor!
Cunning devils! Such transparency! Such hypocritical contradiction!
The perpetual BS from the opposition that “the people don’t want to see political fighting” throws the baby out with the bath water.
Yes we are sick to death of the political argy bargy but that doesn’t mean we want an opposition that is a doormat.
Nor does it mean we want an opposition that is LNP lite!
The ALP is hopeless at pinning down their support base and as long as they try to win by being the same as the existing government (undoubtedly on the theory that they won by doing a,b,c, we had better do a,b,c, if we want to win) their base will go elsewhere.
Joel Fitzgibbon is right in saying the ALL has forgotten it’s working class roots. But Joel Fitzgibbon may as well quit and join the Libs as he is 95% on their team already.
Victor Hugo said that no army on earth will be able to resist an idea whose time has come. Id like to think he is right, but it will be a long and bloody battle.
Kerri..’…as they try to win by being the same as the existing government..’. How can you say that? Look at the policies ‘we’ took to the last two elections. You can argue that we didn’t manage the campaign well, but to say that there is no difference between the ALP and the ATM government is…well..a bit hard to take.
John Boyd – I know where Kerri is coming from and I know that a hostile media does not necessarily offer support to the ALP.But we need to hear – NOW – what Labor’s vision is and a clear definition of how they differ from the current lot.
I see Coalition policies as biased, as sadistic, as totally lacking in empathy for the thousands struggling to survive.
How much of the funds tossed at business have been approved in the budget?
They want Labor to cost their policies
Isn’t there an easy answer?
As much as it takes to ensure people can sleep at night, with a roof over their heads, enough food in their bellies, genuine assistance, from trained advisers, to find a job and clear information about what help is available.