Watching the Four Corners program (ABC 04/05/20), I was struck by the extent of the potential mental and physical health damage that will have been suffered by so many of the medical personnel who were interviewed.

And there were other groups which were not included in those interviews – cleaners in those hospitals, and low-paid staff in the many Aged Care facilities, where protecting the elderly from infection has not always succeeded.

Throw the net wider, and and there will be many in the community both citizens and visa holders alike, whose loss of work and income has left them destitute and often homeless.

For the sake of the exercise, let all these people register in what, for convenience, we will call the Pandemic Victims group, which will entitle them to assistance, and maybe it would be best situated in the Future Fund.

Then my thoughts turned to a couple of wealthy suburbs of NSW, where several residents, having enjoyed skiing holidays in Aspen, Colorado, USA or holidayed in other overseas locations, continued to party on, carelessly ignoring social distancing and creating a hot spot for spreading COVID-19.

We have one of the most effective national health schemes in the developed world and it has been stressed almost to the limits by the pandemic – with no certainty that there will be no more major outbreaks.

People like our wealthy party-goers put unnecessary stress on its resources – and put others lives at risk!.

In the next few months we will, hopefully, start to move on to a new normal and it is critically important that we learn from this experience that the old ‘normal’ is no longer valid.

For starters, expert health science has been our guiding light in manoevering our way through the chaos created by the pandemic. That same pandemic, while it has destroyed many lives, also did us a favour by indirectly reducing emissions.

For the last 10 years the Australian government has reacted too often to political pressure from their back bench, and turned a deaf ear to the rising demand to develop an energy policy and take action on global warming. Scientific advice supporting these demands has been readily available and ever more urgently offered over time.

Listen to it!

Australia is not alone in being affected by the pandemic. Very few countries have remained untouched, and countries like Russia, Japan and the USA, which were reluctant to recognise the need to combat the existential challenge of climate change, have also been behind the 8-ball in tackling COVID-19.

Whatever we do in the immediate future – and which might act as an incentive to those countries named above – we need to build climate change policy into every action.

It is too soon for anyone to have put forward a clear plan for moving on, let alone for paying our way, so I would like to throw in some suggestions.

Firstly, a regular cause for complaint has been the extent to which major corporations seem able to avoid paying much or any tax, yet some of the allowable deductions are ridiculous.

One of these is the cost of preparing a tax return.

There is no cap on the amount that can be claimed!

There is a source for significant saving!

My apologies to all the accountants whose incomes will be decimated by such a change, but the days of champagne and caviar are over!

Secondly, at present the Medicare surcharge, in addition to being levied on those who are without Private Health Care cover and with an income above a certain level, is also used to help fund NDIS.

Unfortunately, because of the Coalition’s predilection for privatisation, this is currently run very inefficiently, and many of those with a disability, and in desperate need for a funding package, are getting a raw deal.

So provide government employment for properly trained assessors to operate the scheme, and, at the same time, increase the Surcharge Levy further.

The additional funds which are generated should be invested in a fund to be drawn on by the Pandemic Victims.

Some of these Pandemic Victims, the gig workers, those employed in the arts and entertainment plus non-citizens, will have been dependent on charity or loans and may be in need of immediate assistance.

Some will not need help for a while but may find that they need to take earlier retirement than anticipated and may need a boost to their superannuation.

At least we should try to repay all those whose labours and suffering was on behalf of others, or, in the case of those not eligible for current government assistance and relief, loss of employment for which they had no choice.

Australia’s multi-millionaires and major corporations could also be invited to donate to the fund, as it needs to be available to be drawn on, long before the Medicare Surcharge levy will reach its coffers!

They could gain great kudos by contributing to the fund rather than making political donations!

This is only intended as a very sketchy outline of something this country has a duty to do. It is surely a matter of honour?

The above needs a lot of refinement but, one way or another, many people have been damaged, both by working to combat the pandemic and because of the necessary actions taken by government to prevent a greater disaster.

We owe them – in the case of the carers – big time!

I end as always – this is my 2020 New Year Resolution:

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

Yesterday, Greg Hunt was embarrassed by ‘Twiggy’ Forrest turning up to a press conference, accompanied by a representative of the Chinese government.

Forrest is one of Australia’s top 10 richest Australians, he is former CEO and current non-executive chairman of Fortescue Mining, which is heavily involved in trading with China, and, under the Corporations Act 2001, his first duty is to his shareholders.

The Australian government wishes, understandably, to have a clearer picture of how the novel coronavirus pandemic started, as it is not the first, and will not be the last, and it has caused massive damage to people’s lives and livelihoods.

For a variety of reasons, they have handled the issue with a significant lack of diplomacy, and business people like Forest do not want to be caught in the subsequent crossfire.

China is upset by the Australian government’s approach to the issue and the last thing Forrest wants is a backlash to his business enterprises which adversely affects shareholders.

Now when you think about it – our nation is, in a sense, a massive corporation, and the PM and Ministers of the currently elected government are the active directors of that corporation – and their first duty is to their shareholders, the electors.

They were elected by individual members of the population who are eligible to vote, and, while corporations are legal entities, with all the rights that implies, that does not include giving them the right to vote for the members of Parliament!

Neither does it – at least to date – preclude them from making donations to political parties in the hope of thereby gaining more favourable treatment! Pity! This matter needs urgent attention!

Now, Forrest and his wife have committed themselves to donate a majority of their fortune to charities in their lifetime – a very commendable decision – which gives them a significant amount of clout with governments.

But that does not necessarily mean that the government should accept all the initiatives Forrest proposes, without doing their own due diligence. While the thinking behind the Cashless Welfare Card might appear noble, no one-size-fits-all solution to a problem is ever perfect and the many flaws in the current system are cause for considerable concern.

But – and much more importantly – the COVID-19 infection is not the only issue which has caused massive damage to people’s lives and livelihoods.

Preceding the pandemic, Australia experienced an extended bush fire season of unmatched and unprecedented ferocity. Fewer deaths might have resulted than from the pandemic – but even one unnecessary death is one too many.

People who lost everything – home, possessions, livelihood – were promised help.

The only help most of them have received so far has been from family, friends, neighbours and charities.

Yet we have an elected Parliament which should have been dealing with their needs while the National Cabinet dealt with issues related to the pandemic.

The southern part of Australia has just had a very chilly foretaste of the coming winter – and displaced people are living in tents and makeshift accommodation.

And then, apart from the forgotten victims of the bush fires, there are those on visas who came to Australia – at our request – but who, not being citizens – are ineligible for any of the government’s assistance packages related to the pandemic.

To be told “Go home!”, when they have been paying taxes while working here, is way beyond shabby!

I am no admirer of our current Prime Minister – nor of most of our politicians of all persuasions. I constantly sense that their self-interest outweighs their desire to do the right thing by the electors!

In the case of Scott Morrison – in the 2019 election, he was conspicuously here, there and everywhere as the daggy dad who knew how we felt. Conspicuously absent was virtually every other politician of note – particularly Peter Dutton, the one-time pretender and the current incompetent head of the largest, most poorly run government department of Home Affairs. Malcolm Turnbull’s promotion of this unpleasant man has been one of the greatest disservices ever done to this country, IMHO!

Now – Lo and Behold! We have a National Cabinet with representatives of both major parties – although not the Opposition Leader himself! – but, occasionally accompanied by an expert or a relevant government Minister, announcements are reserved to Morrison.

To the casual observer, HE is solely responsible for the decisions which are guiding the country through the pandemic crisis – even though some of those decisions have obviously been ones which he would never have willingly supported, because they were so like those Rudd made during the GFC!

A true leader acknowledges his sources, gives honour where honour is due and does not seek the limelight.

But the average voter does not necessarily analyse a particular situation.

Government is there to make policy decisions which benefit the people – ALL OF THEM, OR AT LEAST AS MANY AS POSSIBLE!

Support given to businesses should be limited to help which benefits the nation.

The economy is supposed to serve the people.

Those devastated by the bush fires need help – NOW!

Climate change has not gone away, and future policies must be developed which take it into account.

Biodiversity took a big hit in the bush fires, and if we ignore the need to protect the environment, we will be losers as well!

We should not even try to return to the old ‘normal’ but make sure that the new ‘normal’ is better suited to the needs of those who are now destitute, including those invited to our shores who are not our citizens.

Compassion and caring for others should not be confined to the many underpaid members of the ‘caring’ professions.

I end as always – this is my 2020 New Year Resolution:

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

Because, increasingly, governments seem to be relying for advice from political advisers – whose job is clearly designed to enhance the chance of the politician’s being re-elected – decisions made, based on that advice, are informed from a very narrow knowledge and experience base.

How many politicians, who are eventually promoted to Minister, have studied at university?

How many of those do not have a HECS debt, thanks to Gough Whitlam’s now abandoned policies?

Is there more than a handful of them who have first-hand knowledge of the problems experienced by a close friend or relative, suffering from a serious disability?

How many of them have been out of work for any length of time, struggling to cope with a truly inadequate income?

How many of them have spent enough time in an ATSI community to have a glimmer of understanding of life in that community?

How many of them have suffered racial abuse and discrimination or have close friends or acquaintances who have?

How many of them have spent any significant period of time having to make seriously important decisions on priorities because of extraordinarily limited funds availability?

How many of them have been dependent on carers, or themselves have been a carer for any length of time?

How many of them rely on advice from the Public Service departments rather than from their political advisers?

For generations, home-based mothers were regarded as not having a job!

What a travesty of truth!

Being a hands-on parent means you not only look after your children’s hygiene, nutrition, safety, attention to homework and general progress at school, keep a close eye on the children’s friends to ensure there are no detrimental influences on the child, talk to teachers, and – in between trying to ensure your children head towards a viable future – do the shopping, cooking, transport the children to any sporting venues more than a bicycle ride away – and, particularly if you are (as many women are) a sole parent, fit in part- or full-time employment outside the home as soon as the children can be properly supervised in your absence.

Few men are in a position to begin to understand what that is like, and if you receive little or no support from a partner, even the part-time work is a significant problem when the children are small.

That is just for starters, in detailing the knowledge not necessarily available to our decision-makers from firsthand experience.

And there are still men who see everything to do with managing the household and the children as the mother’s job!

Then there are those who cannot find work.

In some areas there are few jobs available, particularly  for those relatively unskilled, yet for them to move elsewhere and look for work, they need first to find accommodation, have some decent clothes to wear to a job interview and be able to afford transport to interviews. That is before they have started earning! And the paltry amount offered by WorkSmart will be re-established once we emerge form the COVID-19 lock down!

The state-run TAFEs of bygone days did at least offer those who did not think in terms of university, a realistic chance of becoming qualified in a trade. Today’s privatised organisations require up-front fees, with no likelihood of a refund if the organisation goes belly up – as too many have done.

The current incarnation of Centrelink is also in part privatised, and in consequence sees its role as satisfying shareholders rather than helping human beings in need.

RoboDebt was a prime example of profit-motivation driving an illegally designed program which damaged people in desperate need of support. How many have already  been refunded money they did not owe?

The cashless welfare card puts money in the pockets of the card supplier (money which ought to be going to those in need!) while making life even more difficult for people struggling to manage their finances, on the pretence of helping them to budget.

Not everyone is out of work by choice, but if you have grown up in a household in which your parent(s) has/have been unable to find work, you do not have a model to guide you, as is the case with those whose parents are in continuous employment.

If you have a serious disability, from birth or acquired, assistance from NDIS is way short of optimal – again because privatisation and outsourcing means you are not necessarily being helped by appropriately trained and motivated people. And this is also true for able job seekers who have to follow unrealistic regimes while competing for jobs in a market with more job seekers than jobs!

How many of those, planning the legislation which demonises the jobless, have had an firsthand experience of the effect of their policies?

Just to throw in another very pertinent issue, thanks to very poor decisions about the NBN, there are many parts of Australia where access to the internet is difficult or impossible. And on top of that, despite valiant efforts to remedy the situation, many of our more elderly still do not have the ability to use the internet and miss out on government information, posted online in the arrogant assumption that it will reach everyone.

I have a friend, only months younger than I am, who never checks her emails or uses a browser because, following a stroke, causing some cognitive impairment, it is too challenging. And she is also, in consequence, cut off from MyGov and similar websites.

It used to be that people from all political backgrounds, stood for election in order to promote policies to help people in ways that matched their political ideals.

Now, we have a few political parties whose adherents attach themselves, early in life, after possibly a brief taste of a ‘real’ world career, become a party apparatchik, assist the local branch, stand for pre-selection – preferably in a ‘safe’ seat – and enter parliament with a limited picture of the world outside their ideological group.

I grew up at a time when communism was a live issue. When I studied mathematics at Imperial College in the mid-1950s, the head of my Faculty and several of the lecturers were members of the British Communist party (BCP). The invasion of Hungary in 1956 was a turning point and the BCP dwindled thereafter, but the picture we had in the UK at that time was of communism being designed to help those oppressed by the power of the establishment, and to attempt to share wealth more equitably. Potentially noble aims, but Stalin and his successors merely established a new, utterly authoritarian regime, while the underlying concepts of socialism lingered on, raising suspicion because of events.

The idea now that an individual, independent of any party structure, could in any way influence national policy agendas is a pipe dream. Yet, when I was a teenager, it was still seen in the USA that even a lowly cow-hand could aspire to be President!

Not too many billionaire cowhands around to seek election these days!

The market rules, and international corporations call the shots so our elected politicians rush to do their bidding while ignoring the needs of the electorate!

Like the UK, but not quite as completely, we have followed too closely in the USA’s policy footsteps and unless we backtrack, we will pay a very high price.

The current disastrous state of the world’s heath, as regards people and also the economy, must surely give us pause to think – we could do better than this.

The lowering of emissions because of the slowing down of industry and the significantly reduced use of transport – particularly airplanes! – MUST be used to change our trajectory.

The economy is NOT the major consideration. Not unless it is being restructured to assist fighting global warming and improving people’s lives.

We have representatives on the National Cabinet who do not share the Coalition’s ideology – and the Coalition, in any case, only has a one seat majority – far from overwhelming! – which means there are effectively as many who oppose them as support them. (The Coalition did NOT win a majority of votes!)

As a member of Extinction Rebellion Darwin, I am aching for the lock down to be lifted so that we can be out on the streets demanding policy changes which will give our grandchildren hope for a life!

I end as always – this is my 2020 New Year Resolution:
“I will do everything in my power to enable Australia to be restored to responsible government

There were snippets on the news yesterday  (21/04/20) showing thugs in Michigan – and it might not have been the only State capital – bearing what, to my untrained eye, looked like assault weapons, demanding that their Governor lift the Covid-19 movement restrictions.

Then there was the ABC Foreign Correspondent program, interviewing nurses and health care staff, who were risking being dismissed by protesting at the lack of provision of adequate PPE (personal protective equipment), which lack, in turn, was putting their own lives at risk while they were trying to save the lives of others.

And the pictures of refrigerated trucks being filled with bodies.

Has there ever been a clearer example of the abject failure of the capitalist, user pays, approach to government?

And the USA claims to lead the world!

Here in Australia, we were heading towards this approach, with crazy talk about herd immunity being bandied around, but, fortunately, a national cabinet had enough balance to steer more towards the humane and away from the ideological.

Is there a total breakdown of communication in the USA, so that people are not provided enough information for them to understand the need for the lock-down?

Or is their insistence on personal rights so strong that it overrides any means of persuading them that they need to moderate their behaviour in order to save lives – including, possibly, their own?

To me there is something totally alien about a country which claims to be Christian – which the USA does, while tolerating other faiths – which then is so selfish as to put hundreds and thousands of lives at risk by pressuring state governments to end the lock-down and allow freedom of movement when the infection rate is still rising.

And that is on top of having a health system which can barely cope with the current caseload, and which may be placed in the position of refusing help to those who cannot pay, while simultaneously sacking experienced staff for publicly, and understandably, criticising health institutions and their management.

I find it truly mind-blowing!

And the strange thing about American political attitudes is that they accept that the wealthy can be philanthropic, yet the minute anyone tries to persuade them to help other people themselves, they are accused of being communist.

Even the words ‘social welfare’ are interpreted as socialism in a derogatory way!

I have met some charming and thoughtful people from the USA but I would never in a blue fit choose to visit, let along live, there!

The final kibosh is their – IMHO – insane love affair with guns!

I think the developed world is hoping that reasonable arguments prevail and the current President is not given another term to swing his wrecking ball through democracy!