By Christian Marx
Australia has a big problem. The democratic processes and freedom of the press is under threat. Not content with having an out of control Murdoch-owned media, the Institute of Public Affairs is now attempting to destroy the only balanced mainstream media outlet in the country: the ABC.
This deplorable organisation is made up of some of the wealthiest people in Australia. The IPA was founded in 1943 by none other than Rupert Murdoch’s father. It is a pressure group, and increasingly is now enmeshed into the political system itself, with over a dozen politicians in parliament affiliated with this partisan, extremist group.
The sheer Orwellian guile from these soulless cretins is a sight to behold. The IPA claim that private companies should be able to print what they like (irrespective if much of it is lies, spin and outright persecution). However, if it is a tax payer funded media organisation, it must remain within its charter and more disturbingly the reason it is funded by taxpayers negates its right to exist! Their mantra is state-owned media is evil … So in their warped world, private media can lie and spin, but if a balanced and neutral media dares to expose any inkling of corporate corruption, it must be gagged and/or put into private hands. This reeks of Fascism, and the hypocrisy of the IPA is breathtaking.
These rats at the IPA do not want a well-informed populace, as critical thinkers move away from conservatism in droves. Universities are meant to be halls of science and learning. IPA is fearful of this though, as their anti-science, climate-denying agenda upsets their fossil fuel donors.
Their recent shrill of fear mongering regarding Western Civilisation is another leitmotif of the IPA.
Apparently, learning about the horrors and mass deaths and slavery caused by Western Imperialism is taboo, and all must be turned into pro-Western Civilisation robots.
Those pesky hundreds of millions slaughtered for land, oil, gas and other minerals are to be ignored and the supremacy of the white man is all powerful. The ancient regime of Neoliberal capitalism must be maintained at all costs … even as its demise is glaringly apparent throughout the West. Forty million live in poverty in the United States and 3 million in Australia.
Compounding their hatred for human rights is their rampant attacks on anyone who is not wealthy or white. The IPA will do anything to create division within society. They do this to throw shade on the rampant theft and erosion of social services by their wealthy donors. Instead of fighting for equality and a harmonious society, they seek to dislocate all that is decent and good, and push their “Political correctness is stifling free speech” mantra.
Demonising minorities in the mainstream press can lead to holocausts … but heaven forbid if the media is regulated in order to stop this cancer of hatred from flourishing in society. The Institute of Public Affairs need hatred and division. Their policies are so toxic and detrimental to the majority of Australians, this goon squad needs scapegoats in order to enrage those who lack critical thought and are poorly educated.
Unless this horrendous lobby group is tackled head on and exposed to the general public, the damage they will do is catastrophic. The IPA have already implemented many disgusting policies from their 75-point manifesto. The IPA are the very definition of a Fascist organisation. They seek to limit human rights in favour of private, corporate rights. Here is the definition of Fascism according to Wikipedia:
“A form of radical authoritarian nationalism. Characterised by dictatorial power, forcible opposition and control of industry and commerce … Opposed to Liberalism, Marxism and Anarchism, Fascism is usually placed on the far right of the traditional left/right political spectrum”
Unless the mainstream populace wakes up to this horrendous putsch from corporate Australia, we the people will lose everything we fought for over the past 100+ years. This includes pensions, our national broadcaster, unemployment safety nets, health and safety laws, our education system and our universal healthcare. The Institute of Pathetic Authoritarians must be fought with the fire of 10,000 Suns! The future of Australia depends on it!
Below is the 75 IPA manifesto for a dystopian Australia. Be very afraid!
1 Repeal the carbon tax, and don’t replace it. It will be one thing to remove the burden of the carbon tax from the Australian economy. But if it is just replaced by another costly scheme, most of the benefits will be undone.
2 Abolish the Department of Climate Change
3 Abolish the Clean Energy Fund
4 Repeal Section 18C of the Racial Discrimination Act
5 Abandon Australia’s bid for a seat on the United Nations Security Council
6 Repeal the renewable energy target
7 Return income taxing powers to the states
8 Abolish the Commonwealth Grants Commission
9 Abolish the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission
10 Withdraw from the Kyoto Protocol
11 Introduce fee competition to Australian universities
12 Repeal the National Curriculum
13 Introduce competing private secondary school curriculum
14 Abolish the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA)
15 Eliminate laws that require radio and television broadcasters to be ‘balanced’
16 Abolish television spectrum licensing and devolve spectrum management to the common law
17 End local content requirements for Australian television stations
18 Eliminate family tax benefits
19 Abandon the paid parental leave scheme
20 Means-test Medicare
21 End all corporate welfare and subsidies by closing the Department of Industry, Innovation, Science, Research and Tertiary Education
22 Introduce voluntary voting
23 End mandatory disclosures on political donations
24 End media blackout in final days of election campaigns
25 End public funding to political parties
26 Remove anti-dumping laws
27 Eliminate media ownership restrictions
28 Abolish the Foreign Investment Review Board
29 Eliminate the National Preventative Health Agency
30 Cease subsidising the car industry
31 Formalise a one-in, one-out approach to regulatory reduction
32 Rule out federal funding for 2018 Commonwealth Games
33 Deregulate the parallel importation of books
34 End preferences for Industry Super Funds in workplace relations laws
35 Legislate a cap on government spending and tax as a percentage of GDP
36 Legislate a balanced budget amendment which strictly limits the size of budget deficits and the period the federal government can be in deficit
37 Force government agencies to put all of their spending online in a searchable database
38 Repeal plain packaging for cigarettes and rule it out for all other products, including alcohol and fast food
39 Reintroduce voluntary student unionism at universities
40 Introduce a voucher scheme for secondary schools
41 Repeal the alcopops tax
42 Introduce a special economic zone in the north of Australia including:
a) Lower personal income tax for residents
b) Significantly expanded 457 Visa programs for workers
c) Encourage the construction of dams
43 Repeal the mining tax
44 Devolve environmental approvals for major projects to the states
45 Introduce a single rate of income tax with a generous tax-free threshold
46 Cut company tax to an internationally competitive rate of 25 per cent
47 Cease funding the Australia Network
48 Privatise Australia Post
49 Privatise Medibank
50 Break up the ABC and put out to tender each individual function
51 Privatise SBS
52 Reduce the size of the public service from current levels of more than 260,000 to at least the 2001 low of 212,784
53 Repeal the Fair Work Act
54 Allow individuals and employers to negotiate directly terms of employment that suit them
55 Encourage independent contracting by overturning new regulations designed to punish contractors
56 Abolish the Baby Bonus
57 Abolish the First Home Owners’ Grant
58 Allow the Northern Territory to become a state
59 Halve the size of the Coalition front bench from 32 to 16
60 Remove all remaining tariff and non-tariff barriers to international trade
61 Slash top public servant salaries to much lower international standards, like in the United States
62 End all public subsidies to sport and the arts
63 Privatise the Australian Institute of Sport
64 End all hidden protectionist measures, such as preferences for local manufacturers in government tendering
65 Abolish the Office for Film and Literature Classification
66 Rule out any government-supported or mandated internet censorship
67 Means test tertiary student loans
68 Allow people to opt out of superannuation in exchange for promising to forgo any government income support in retirement
69 Immediately halt construction of the National Broadband Network and privatise any sections that have already been built
70 End all government funded Nanny State advertising
71 Reject proposals for compulsory food and alcohol labelling
72 Privatise the CSIRO
73 Defund Harmony Day
74 Close the Office for Youth
75 Privatise the Snowy-Hydro Scheme
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Christian Marx is a political and social activist interested in making the world a fairer place. He has a Bachelor of Social Science and has a keen interest in sociology, politics and history. He was one of the organizers of the March in March rallies in Melbourne and is the founder of the progressive news and information page, “Don`t Look At This Page”, and is also a co-founder of “The Global Revolution” website.
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