Rudd was right, but forgot to mention what really matters

Stepping back into to what is colloquially known as Australia’s “top job”; Kevin Rudd said “politics has failed Australians”.

Kevin Rudd - right, but he
 missed what mattered.

Our new Prime Minister was right, but forgot to add that it was not just politics that had faltered, but politicians themselves.

Politicians are embedded in a political paradigm that is broken; a paradigm in which there is a vacuum of ideas about encouraging Australians to prepare for a decidedly different future.

Australian’s have the opportunity on September14 (well, that is presently the date) to change that and elect people who can help us understand and make-ready for that difference.

What is missing, however, are the people, the personalities and the leaders with the intellectual athleticism and the courage to make the essential decisions we need if Australia is to endure the unfolding global differences.

Australians elect their federal representatives in September this year, but their choice, if it is that, is little more than deciding between a Jonathon or a Pink Lady –both are apples, about the same colour, taste pretty much the same and have similar nutritional value.

Irrespective of who we vote for on September 14, little will change and the dynamics of impending disasters that have the world in their thrall will continue to close in.

The agonies of the Labour Party are equally irrelevant, although it seemed Julia Gillard had some grasp on what was needed if Australia, and the world, is to puncture the envelope of difficulties in which we are trapped.

We need leaders who accept and understand the implications and complications of the world’s changing climate; who will lead us through the arising maze of difficulties it will produce; those who will change government priorities to build a country in which emphasis is on small and local; who are sufficiently independent thinkers to comprehend that the paradigm of the past is not feasible in a future in which collapse will be driven by financial disarray, burgeoning population growth, a looming energy crisis, and food and water shortages.

Questioning the effectiveness of our politicians or at least those of her home country, American finance and energy commentator, Nicole Foss, said: "The only things that are likely to come from the top down are problems, not solutions."

“Fixing this situation goes beyond politics; it requires leadership at all levels of society. But politics has a role to play. Both politicians and the electorates they serve must have the courage to enact sweeping policy changes that shift the course of the deep current, not just stir up the surface eddies”, Ms Foss said.

Our politicians continue to waste valuable time as they verbally joust about issues they consider serious, but in reality matter nought when it comes to preserving circumstances in which our communities can flourish.

Rather than worrying about digging up, using and exporting more coal; making us wealthier through financial wheeling and dealing, which by any measure is less than honest; or implicating us further in existing market systems; our politicians should be building resilience in our communities and shaping the lives of Australians in way that would allow them to endure a very different future.

Our present political trajectory driven by bickering and misunderstood wants takes us closer to the abyss, and although we demand courageous and innovative leadership we, as citizens, face an equal ultimatum.

Prepared or not, vote we must and then those elected must be allowed to act strategically

Australians and by implication Goulburn Valley people are in many instances ill-prepared for Saturday’s federal election.

The pre-election campaign has so far told us much, but in reality nothing of import.
Much of what we have heard has played on the credulity of Australians and at every turn avoided the scepticism and honesty that our country’s well-being hinges on.
Isolated pockets of the needed ingredients no doubt exist, but it is not evident among those who will probably be in charge of our affairs after Saturday.
Little has been said about climate change, although Liberal leader Tony Abbott recently described it as “crap” (maybe the polls have softened his view) and the present Prime Minster, Julia Gillard, will refer it to a group of ordinary Australians to consider the matter – sorry Julia we can’t afford even more procrastination.
Oil scarcity, an undoubted reality that will be upon us in the next decade or two, hasn’t yet even rated a mention.
Peak oil, as it is colloquially known, will be, according to the president of the Australian Conservation Foundation, Prof Ian Lowe (above), a more significant problem than climate change and although it has the potential to ease global heating, it will, in doing that, desecrate our world.
Social problems that will arise from oil scarcity and climate change are presently beyond our understanding and are of such magnitude that either our politicians either aren’t aware of the difficulties, or if they are, refuse to talk about them for fear of “scaring the horses”.
Present conversations about Australia’s future appear irrelevant considering our low-energy future in which the world we know and understand will be replaced by something that escapes our comprehension.
The Greens, as evidenced by their name, have some understanding of what is ahead, but as yet I have not heard comment from anyone that suggests they sense what is ahead and within that what we should do and how we should behave to ensure Australia has resilience equal to the certain difficulties ahead.
Vote we must, but then those we elect need time to think, plan and act strategically to counter global heating and, more importantly, prepare Australia for oil scarcity.

Questions about August federal election and universal suffrage

Questions, comments and observations from many often leave me wondering about universal suffrage.

My concerns, it seems, are irrelevant as suffrage is a key plank in the survival and operation of our democracy and again we will watch it function as Australians vote for a new government on August 21.

Australia’s new and present Prime Minister Julia Gillard talked with the Governor-General of Australia, Ms Quentin Bryce (right), on Saturday and the election was called for late next month.
I support the idea of adult universal suffrage, considering it an important human right, but the idea of voting for others and heaping on them the right to make rules that impact on lives and so control our destiny should be discussed and explained right through our student lives.
But there is more than that – we live in a specialized world in which all of us tend to excel, sometimes in decidedly simple terms others quite complex, narrow fields – and although we are all entitled to that right, those same rights come with responsibilities and within that each of us must work to ensure we have an expansive education that enables us to understand, or at least have some insight into the intricacies of life.
Choosing who should decide on matters that will impact on how we live our lives is close to the most fundamental and important decisions we will ever make.
Considering that, it is an aspect of our lives that demands our attention, but beyond that the realization that we must think beyond personal wants and needs and so imagine what is best for the wider community and then vote accordingly.
Some might think they are voting directly for Julia Gillard or Tony Abbott, but that is not the case as we are ideally searching for a local person, who may or may not be affiliated with either the Labour or Liberal Parties.
That person needs to be able to alert and convince their peers in Canberra that Australia be governed to reflect what is important to the Goulburn Valley and within and beyond that make it a good international citizen.