When so many in business started stressing the need for the government to tackle the COVID-19 recovery and action on climate change, simultaneously, I foolishly let my hopes rise that the government might, for once, recognise that planning for the future took priority over courting favours from the fossil fuel industry.
Silly me!
Clearly the $60 billion stuff-up over the stimulus package has substantially undermined any remaining credibility which might have still adhered to the Coalition’s claims to being better managers of the economy than the ALP.
Body language is an important aspect of communication, and Scott Morrison’s projects a man whose stubbornness prevents him from ever taking advice or changing a policy if there is the least chance that he might appear weak in the process.
He does not have the right mentality to lead a nation!
A leader listens to others, sifts through the views and advice, weighs up the consequences of alternatives, and assesses the path to follow which will most benefit all of those affected by the decision.
In Morrison, we have a man who, for reasons known only to him, has decided the goal he wants the country to reach, ignores advice which conflicts with his predetermined destination, and listens only to those who support his limited policies.
The National Cabinet has, at least, managed to achieve some outcomes which would never have been possible if he had been left to his own devices.
Never in a blue moon would he have produced a stimulus package, so similar to that developed by the Labor government in the GFC, if he had not been under pressure from the State Premiers.
As has been noted elsewhere, he ensures that he is only ever delivering good news, and when things go $60 billion wrong, he is nowhere in sight.
This way, he hopes to receive all the kudos while lesser people cop the brickbats.
It is little wonder he forms a bond with Trump. They are both narcissists and power hungry, and their own status is far more important to them than leading a country to a destination which improves the health and well-being of those who most need help.
In years gone by, those who claimed to be adherents of a religion, yet whose behaviour did not match that required by that religion, were referred to as whited sepulchres.
This is, IMHO, an apt description for Morrison.
This country seems to be hell-bent on ending up with a small number of very rich people, dictating terms to an increasingly disadvantaged population, which is struggling to survive.
This is the outcome of seeing us as responsible for supporting the economy, instead of accepting that the purpose of economic policy is to support the people – particularly those least able to support themselves.
Climate change is real – we have seen the extent to which the skies have cleared with fewer planes in the air and cars on the road, but that situation will be reversed if we do not change our policies.
Severe weather events are still occurring, and the resulting loss of life and creation of refugees will increase, at the same times as melting ice will raise sea levels.
We can slow the frequency, and possibly reduce the severity, of these disasters – but only if we do not further delay action.
Gas might be less polluting than other fossil fuels, but those promoting its use are only telling part of the story.
If our grandchildren are to have a world worth living in, we have to stop fiddling at the edges of the problem, take a deep breath and dive in.
Having lived, during WWII in the UK, under massive restrictions, with associated shortages, I know that, if people can be convinced of the necessity of foregoing some conveniences for the benefit of coming generations, they will accept the need to do so.
It will not be easy and it requires a complete re-think about priorities and the necessities of life, but it needs to be done if we are not to bequeath to future generations a world that destroys life on a grand scale.
It also requires a change of policies which give tax benefits to the wealthy while disproportionately, through GST, taxing the poor more heavily.
Mankind is already the world’s most destructive predator.
Can we make sufficient effort to be the saviour of the environment?
Without that effort, ‘leaders’ such as Trump, Putin, Bolsonaro, Xi Jinping, Modi – and Morrison – will create a world with a hostile environment.
Hopefully, in those circumstances, there will be species other than human beings who will survive our destructive influence!
We in Australia may only be a small part of the world’s polities. But we are all under the same obligation to protect the future for our descendants.
Let’s see our elected politicians earn their title of “Honourable Member”!
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.”
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