An election to behold… Tuesday, 10th August, 2010

Posted by toxation in Internet, Politics.
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Well, in 10 days, Australians have the opportunity to instil a new Commonwealth Government that is lacking in vision, foresight and commitment to a better Australia, or stay with an old Commonwealth Government that lacks credibility, stability and continuity.

So which of the evils do we choose?

A number of issues have been played out to date, but the whole campaign has been relatively bland. Unfortunately, people have played on gender, religion and in circumstances, race. All things which we apparently respect in this country and were supposed to have moved on from. As a result, we have a tokenism female Prime Minister and a gospel speaking monk of an Opposition Leader, according to media.

And what of their policies?

The Australian Labor Party is doing its traditional thing of cash handouts for the young and needy, guaranteeing its vote from traditional 18-25 yos and the already wealthy that play the loopholes.

The Liberal Party of Australia/The National Party of Australia/Liberal National Party/Country Liberal Party coalition (phew) is cutting back on far reaching and in many, but not all, cases, essential infrastructure projects, securing the vote of the (other) wealthy apt at playing the loopholes and the traditional ‘grey’ vote of the 60+ age bracket.

The ALP has one policy in particular that needs to be built. The National Broadband Network. It MUST be built.

ALP +2.

The coalition wants to scrap it and put up what the media has already appropriately branded a ‘patchwork’ network of outdated, failed and grossly inadequate infrastructure for a third world style of system.

Coalition -1.

The downside is that the same minister for the NBN, Senator Stephen Conroy, is also pushing ahead with his party’s policy of a China-esque internet filter.

ALP -1.

The coalition has flatly rejected this prominent policy, without question, virtually ensuring that whatever the return of the polls on August 21 the death of this policy, as the Greens will control the balance of power in the Senate and together with the coalition, will stifle legislation for a blanket internet filter.

Coalition +1.

The ALP, under Prime Minister Julia Gillard, wants to create a ‘citizen’s assembly’ to gauge support for the introduction of a tax on carbon. Sorry, a what? For what reason?

What the hell is Australia’s parliament for? What the hell is an election for? Why is the Prime Minister beating around the bush, trying not to trod on the feet of those it wants to vote for it? Put your damn policy down on the table, let the (previously) elected representatives of this country thrash it out in an election campaign and then allow the electorate to elect the original citizen’s assembly of this nation to deal with it. Stop wasting time and spinning like there’re going to be no sheep left. Our democracy is one of the most stable, safeguarded in the world, stop treating it with contempt.

What exactly did the previous Prime Minister’s ‘summit’ of Australia’s apparently 2,000 brightest achieve? I don’t exactly hear the Labor Party trumpeting a plebiscite for a republic come August 21.

ALP -1.

As for another policy. It’s so hard because there are very few policies of note to speak about. At least, positively. Both parties, or rather, both sides of politics, are only playing the next three years (which incidentally has reminded me of another issue, more on that in a sec), which is not good enough for them, it’s not good enough for Australians.

One policy that they appear to agree on (in part, and so they should) is a paid parental leave scheme. Labor wants a minimum wage gettup, the coalition wants a pay-rate at the weekly wage earned by the mother. The Liberal policy comes up trumps, but at least both support a scheme, which is entirely necessary with today’s cost of living.

ALP +1, Coalition +2.

Now, back to the three year cycle thing. It would be wrong, dire even, to contemplate a 4-year, fixed term for the Commonwealth Parliament. It creates complacency and does nothing to eliminate the election cycle, but rather extends it. A possibly better situation would be a running cycle, with a 1/3 of the parliament called every three years, staggered by one year, meaning that if members of a government are not delivering on the government’s promises, a government can change hands every 12 months, allowing the electorate to decisively demonstrate their (dis)satisfaction and make the bastards honest.

So who do you choose? Some say the big parties are not worth voting for, so go the minors. I’m going to recommend against such an action, principally because the majority of those voters go Green. The Greens attempt to paint themselves as a credible alternative, but they are principally as two faced as Labor and the coalition, and in many cases worse. One only needs to see the Green accord struck with the party in Tasmania’s parliament in the 1980s and the 1990s.

In both instances and even in the current Senate, the Greens have vehemently demonstrated that it’s their way or no way. Make no mistake, the Greens would turn the oil valve off tomorrow and grind us all to a complete stop. Do you want to live without electricity? Do you want to live without heat? Do you want to live without refrigeration? Humans lived without those things in various ways for a long time, there is a reason they developed methods to harness or generate those things.

And if you believe that Australia’s 98% reliance on coal for electricity can be replaced with renewable energies, you are the saddest, most ill-informed person.

The sun doesn’t shine 24 hours of the day. The wind doesn’t blow 24 hours a day. Waves do not, er, wave 24 hours a day. All of these ‘solutions’ are mere novelties that cannot ever produce that 98% gap that would be created in Australia’s energy needs if its coal fired power stations were turned off tomorrow.

There is currently only one solution that produces no gaseous pollution that could cater to that 98% gap, and could be done in 5 years. Nuclear energy. But enough for now, I’m sidetracked.

So who do you vote for? At the moment, my scales are tilted for Labor, because no matter what else, the NBN has to be built. Another three years in office may be incompetence we need to have in monetary policy to ensure such infrastructure (not to mention the forced separation of Telstra) is carried out.

Ciao.