Did anyone realise we have an Election in August?

Discussion in 'The big picture' started by Tezza, Jul 21, 2010.

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Did anyone realise we have an Election in August?

  1. Greens

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  2. labour

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  3. liberal

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  4. nationals

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  5. independents

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  1. ecodharmamark

    ecodharmamark Junior Member

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    Currently, in the Federal Lower House seat in which I reside, the pickings are rather slim: Four candidates, one each from the Greens, Labor, Liberal and the Nationals. My ballot paper - unless someone else steps into the breach at this late stage of play - will appear as follows:

    Greens 1
    Labor 2
    Nationals 3
    Liberal 4

    My primary vote, to the Greens candidate, will no doubt be preferenced down to the Labor candidate, who should (just) be able to hold onto this seat given that she has about an 8% margin.

    I have not yet had a look at the Upper House, I'll report back on that in due course.

    Concerning the plebiscite (referendum): I'll be voting YES in support of local government recognition in the Constitution. The (main) reason being is, I think it is the first step in dissolving state (and eventually, local and federal) government in favour of directly democratic neighbourhood collectives, who in turn advise bioregional committees, who ultimately inform a federal council. I want to see 'politics' turned upside down. I want to see true, 'grassroots' bottom-up political thought and action take precedence over top-down governance structures. I want to see Libertarian Municipalism replace our current, outdated system. I wonder if I'll live long enough to see it happen?
     
  2. mouseinthehouse

    mouseinthehouse Junior Member

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    I live in an electorate that has voted in a conservative every election since the electorate was created. Some areas of our electorate are 75% Liberal voters. I could probably count the Greens voters on one hand (ok slight exaggeration, but not much). *sigh* Farmers see the Greens as the enemy which is incredibly sad I think. Big Ag (Liberal heartland) = business = money = good. Greens = 'treehuggers' and 'bunnyhuggers' = laws that hinder farming = bad. This is the reality of things where I live. :(
     
  3. ecodharmamark

    ecodharmamark Junior Member

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    I feel for you, MITH. In our electorate, one booth in the 2010 election returned about a 25% green vote, and subsequently is a great place to go and hang out with like-minded individuals (e.g. three of my academic colleagues live there). However, the booth servicing the (large, predominantly rural) area that I live in (on the fringe of) only returned about a 7% green vote. But that's cool, I like a challenge.
     
  4. ecodharmamark

    ecodharmamark Junior Member

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    In the Senate (Upper House), I'll probably mark my ballot paper 'above the line', and I'll probably (at this stage) give my vote to the Pirate Party (all dependant on who they preference, although at this stage it looks like it will be the Greens). I hadn't read much about the Pirate Party until today, and upon doing so I was pleasantly surprised to learn they have a very well developed, broad (and impeccably referenced) policy platform. Besides, in my book, any party that raises the Black Flag (in this context) has to be a pretty decent mob.
     
  5. annette

    annette Junior Member

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    You gotta love the writers of South Park. There was an episode yesterday about voting and elections. The kids couldn't have a cow as a mascot so the choice was between the giant douce or a turd sandwich. Said it all really. The turd sandwich won in a landslide. Very disappointed in most politicians to say the least.
     
  6. ecodharmamark

    ecodharmamark Junior Member

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    Uncle Jo, taking it to the streets...

    [video=youtube;E96nl87-wGQ]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E96nl87-wGQ[/video]
     
  7. eco4560

    eco4560 New Member

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    Thanks for introducing me to the Pirate Party. It'll be Greens for both for me at this stage.
     
  8. Tezza

    Tezza Junior Member

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    My Senate vote goes to a party that really does"Give a fuck" about this country... The rest couldnt give a "Fuck"...

    Lower house, The Greens.:party::party::party::party::party::party::party::party::party:

    Senate SEX :party::party::party::party: will get my vote.. COS, I too. "Give a "Fuck"

    Excuse my language and spelling ive lost my glasses (reading)

    I agree with ecomark..

    Wish we had the "face book" Like "button" in here id love to agree with most in here but, a its slimply means people can click on "like" witch is an easy way to tell the poster has made a possitive comment..:bow::bow::bow::bow::bow:

    Tezza:handshake::handshake::handshake:
     
  9. Tezza

    Tezza Junior Member

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    Dunno how I forget sometimes..... BUT Im totally "FOR" a seperation from federalsm..

    IT SHOULD BE ....... Local Govenments at the local town,villages... Why on Earth would I put control of my LIFE to some "PARASITE" 3000klms away. LET ALONE his Boss from other side of the planet.....

    Permaculture can be solved in a few short words (not a hundred or a thousand)

    Permaculture is "self suffiency,Self Relience, Self Do.. IN OTHER WORDS Dont rely on someone "ELSE" to DO IT FOR YOU.........

    One old saying was "Dont Rely On Anyone To Do Things For You, AND You Wont be Let Down"

    Why Do we keep voting in "OTHERS" still.?

    Think "LOCAL.BE,GLOBAL"
     
  10. ecodharmamark

    ecodharmamark Junior Member

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    Australian Political Parties: Policies concerned with Climate Change - Part 1

    I'm sick of Dumb and Dumber, or Douchbag and Shit Sandwich. So, on the broader issue of policy, I thought it might be interesting to use the threat of climate change as a bellwether for each of the parties' broader positions on matters of socio-ecological significance, and in doing so unearth some things that might be of interest to permies (and to my students). Here's what I found, or didn't find, as the case may be:

    Animal Justice Party

    No specific policy. Although, some of their other policies do make for interesting reading.

    Australia First Party

    No specific policy. However, but only if you are game, you can probably gauge the intellectual capacity of its progenitors by reading some of its commentary.

    Australian Christians

    No specific policy. The nearest the ACs even come to recognising the issue of climate change, is with the following: "Humans have an obligation to responsibly manage the environment and to mitigate, where feasible, environmental change and pollution."

    Australian Democrats

    As would be expected, the Dems have a rather comprehensive 'Global Climate Policy'.

    Australian First Nations Political Party

    No specific policy (or website, for that matter) found. However, a little bit of background is available here.

    Australian Fishing and Lifestyle Party

    No specific policy. However, the following extract from their 1-page policy dossier should give you a pretty good idea on where they stand regarding the issue: "Existing threats to [the Great Barrier Reef] are: Natural weather events such as cyclones; Climate change; Sea level change. These factors are not human related".

    Australian Greens

    Obviously, a very strong policy position. You can read all about it, here: Clean Energy Roadmap.

    Australian Labor Party

    Ditto, and as one would expect, a very comprehensive platform available for viewing, here: A Sustainable Environment.

    Australian Protectionist Party

    It's getting late, I'll get back to this when time prevails...
     
  11. gardenlen

    gardenlen Group for banned users

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    that christian party(who ever they truly are, wolf in sheeps clothing) said "Humans have an obligation to responsibly manage the environment" that is what should have happened but as people are driven by greed and power that is quiet the opposite to what has happen, that's what happens when you leave the care of the planet in the hands of the greedy and power hungry. none on the list are not driven by ego.

    the term christian is a much maligned word, don't put much faith in it when it gets bandied around.

    anyhow since about whitlam's time, we only put a pencil mark on paper, they world manipulators put in power who they want.

    the poor will still remain down trodden

    len
     
  12. annette

    annette Junior Member

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    Trouble is Mark, they can have a policy on something but there is no guarantee that they will not change it after an election. Additionally, I have seen that policies that were not voted on are implemented without running them past the electorate first.

    It breaks my heart to have such a cynical attitude towards politics, but really I am at the point where I don't think it matters what we vote. I hate this. It's all about expediency and weasel words, vested interests and power trips.
     
  13. ecodharmamark

    ecodharmamark Junior Member

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    Yep, last night's Q&A was a classic example of much what you describe. Trouble is, until we change the system, we are stuck with it. How do we change it? Well, the first thing we have to do is educate the people about the system, and how flawed it really is.

    You are obviously very savvy politically, Annette. However, many of our students will be voting for the first time in their lives this year. All the above exercise is intended to do is merely provide an indicator of political party ideology, as seen through the lens of climate change.

    Next semester we are once again offering a unit called Climate, Sustainability and Society. We deliver it via a problem-based learning approach. Climate change is the biggest problem facing humanity as we head into the C21. Indeed, by the end of the same, humanity has about a 50-50 chance of survival. Our students first need to be able to see the problem before they can begin to find ways of tackle it. Our (local to global) system of governance is a big part of the problem. Hence the above being just one way of helping our students (and maybe a few permies) to open their eyes. Certainly, many of the mature-age students will have some ideas, as will some of the newbies straight out of college. But for most, this will be the first time that they have really thought about the deeper issues of political 'expediency'.

    There is an old saying: "We get our religion the same place we get our milk". Meaning, it is our parents who are the greatest influence upon the ideological makeup - be it religious, political or otherwise - of ourselves. If we are ever going to change the system that you, I, and so many others who frequent this place are in disagreement with, then we have to break this cycle. We have to change the place where we get our milk (ideas). We have to teach people how to think independently, and base their political actions on solid, credible, peer-reviewed scientific evidence. And in order to do that, we must first help each other to learn how to cut through the spin that is offered up by most, if not all political parties.

    Being critical of something is fine, but being constructive with one's criticism is the ultimate aim of academia - and, I would suggest, permaculture.
     
  14. ecodharmamark

    ecodharmamark Junior Member

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    Until such time as they receive a universal, free and secular education. Then they will rise up and throw off their oppressors. Which, I might add, is the whole purpose of this exercise.
     
  15. ecodharmamark

    ecodharmamark Junior Member

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    Australian Political Parties: Policies concerned with Climate Change - Part 2

    OK, back, after a good night's sleep and a couple of hours in the garden...

    Australian Protectionist Party

    Apart from the racist slurs, the views of this mob regarding climate change is pretty well spelt out when they state the following:

    The Australian Protectionist Party does not believe that those pushing a ‘anthropogenic climate-change’ agenda have proved their case; indeed, a growing body of evidence is bringing to light alternative views. It is acknowledged that the Earth is subject to climate change and has been through several periods of global warming or cooling as part of natural function of Earth’s environmental systems. In this light, the charging of additional taxes or fees on energy use will not do anything to prevent ‘climate change’ and will simply unfairly burden Australian workers and put Australian families into ‘energy poverty’.

    Australian Sex Party

    No specific policy.

    Australian Stable Population Party

    No specific policy.

    Bank Reform Party

    No specific policy.

    Building Australia Party

    No specific policy.

    Bullet Train For Australia

    Vague reference, but it is easy to imagine where they stand in relation to the issue of climate change:

    CO2 output; Per capita, Australia pours out one of the highest levels of carbon into the atmosphere in the world. Car travel alone contributes 87% of all transport carbon, an this is a figure that needs to be addressed with an effective national strategy of alternative transportation. By reducing the number of vehicles on the road, a HSR system would be a big part of the solution to this problem.

    Carers Alliance

    No specific policy.

    Christian Democratic Party

    Exactly the same policy position (someone's plagiarising someone) as others of the same ilk when they state: "...environmental issues are important because the environment is God-given and sustains life ... Humans have an obligation to responsibly manage the environment and to mitigate, where feasible, environmental change and pollution."

    On the issue of science, they (predictably) sit on the fence: "The CDP ... Accepts that the scientific debate around climate change is unresolved, and in that sense the CDP remains agnostic in respect to scientific elements of the climate change debate."

    Citizens Electoral Council of Australia

    You can read all about it here (if you have a couple of days time to watse).Needless to say, you can probably guess what it's all about via the subtitle: Global Warming is a Fraud (warning: extreme cases of bias present).

    Country Alliance

    Stay tuned for Part 3...
     
  16. annette

    annette Junior Member

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    How do we change the system? One first has to know what the system is and therein lies the great difficulty. Words would never accurately describe it let alone understand it in all its entirety. Do you describe it in political, social, economic, historical, personal, conceptual, or intellectual terms or on an issue basis as you suggest? Each differs with ones own perception of what "it" is. How do you bring it altogether in a simple and easy to understand statement? Very difficult.

    On a conceptual level it is like the monolith in 2001 A Space Oddity. It is omnipresent, mysterious, spans time and space, follows us from birth to death, comes from outside of us, but we don't understand exactly what it is and does. It governs our lives and yet we seem unaware of it because we have never experienced anything else. Chipping away at the monolith would seem to be ineffective. It would just move to another place or show a shiny side to dazzle. It is this thing that infiltrates every aspect of our lives so much so we are blind to it. We are curious in what it can do or provide for us. But in the ripple of time it carries us along with such a force that trying to swim against the flow is tiring and inevitably a fruitless exercise. Most just go with the flow oblivious to the hidden rips.:(

    It used to be we could interpret the "political system" within a left, centre or right spectrum of ideology. This I would argue is not relevant in today's politics. Parties ebb and flow with perceived public opinions dominated by polling and 10 second grabs on mainstream media. The left now has conservative views on some matters, left on others and some conservative parties are more left wing on some issues than labor or the greens (for example Katter on protectionist policies and indigenous rights).

    Personally I have gotten far more radical as I get older and would like to see a whole new "system". I am trying to get out of this system that I dislike as much as I can.

    One thing would help I think. All politicians and bureaucrats should have to pass integrity and honesty tests before being allowed to run for office or serve. An honest participatory democracy would be a good start. Either that or a benevolent dictator. :)
     
  17. ecodharmamark

    ecodharmamark Junior Member

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    The short answer: Education.

    The slightly longer version: The ONLY way I can see us getting through to the 'other side' (however you imagine this amorphous place to be), is via education - of the universal, free, and secular kind. I agree, it's not easy. But, what's the alternative? I've had several offers to join 'them', but I'd rather poke my eyes out with a blunt stick. So, I keep doing what I'm doing. That is, providing people with an opportunity to learn how to me more critical (in a constructive kind of way) of the (political, and otherwise) world in which we all must share, and then to take action in order to make our world a better (politically, and otherwise) place to live.
     
  18. mouseinthehouse

    mouseinthehouse Junior Member

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    annette you just articulated exactly how I felt after reading Markos' post. I sort of went 'uughh' *slumps in chair*; or as my son wrote on a Yr 8 math test next to one problem: 'too hard, can't think'!

    If I am brutally honest; I would also like to see an anarchic change in the political system but I am not willing to put in the time and effort to try and make it happen because it seems too mind bogglingly (that's not a word is it? lol) difficult and there is so much other nice stuff to do. :/ And therein lies the problem.
     
  19. aikidesigns

    aikidesigns Junior Member

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    I was with Marko for the longest time - mainly coz I didn't want to be obliged to vote forever after, once the EC knew where I lived. The first time I decided to vote, we managed to shaft HoWARd, so that felt bizarrely good (kicking against that prick was the major reason I changed my game plan). Of course he was just replaced by the current three-ring circus with Abbot-the-boob as ringmaster (avec Turnbull as chief clown). Sigh.
    Voting is generally a work-your-way-UP-the-ballot affair for me, since I usually know more about who I want to keep out of power than the other way around. Majors ALWAYS go right at the bottom, with Greens and Independents (depending on their individual gaffs) fighting for the top spots. I still think it's a suggestion box for slaves, but better to use all available options than cower at the back of the cage whimpering... my 2c
    PS Tezza, you will notice I cunningly avoided filling in your ballot. Old habits die hard and there was no "NO DAMS" option... ;)
     
  20. annette

    annette Junior Member

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    I used to be so gung ho about voting. and yes getting rid of Howard was fleetingly satisfactory! When each of my kids turned 18 the first thing I got them to do was to enrol to vote, espousing how women had died to get that vote and don't you dare forget it...it's your duty......you've got no right to complain if you don't vote .......blah blah blah.............I still believe in the vote, BUT a lot needs to change before it regains its importance.

    I was also like a square peg in a round hole in the public service. And over the years it got worse with policy work mainly done to justify a political stance. The final straw was when I was told to make my ministerial briefing notes more 'optimistic'. So instead of just the facts, unbiased and true, they had to be massaged to sound upbeat and fabulous. I kid you not.
     

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