Time to Vote
So Mr Morrison has called the federal election for 21st May 2022. If you’re like me (and thankfully not many people are) you may be wondering how to vote in this election.
This is actually the first time that, four weeks out from the election, I haven’t yet decided where to cast my vote. For background, I’m a right-leaning conservative. I dip my toe into the warm and welcoming waters of Libertarianism occasionally, but I’m closer to the centre than that. Conservatives believe in individualism, self-reliance, free trade, minimum government, minimum taxation, freedom and personal liberty.
Back to the election; People tend to forget that they aren’t actually voting for Mr Morrison or Mr Albanese. While those two are the leaders of their respective political parties, you and I do not get to vote for them (unless you are reading this as a resident of their respective seats). We get to vote for our local representative in the lower house (House of Representatives) and also get to select members of the Upper House (The Senate).
I’d like to discuss my own electorate here, but I’m sure the thoughts here can be applied to most of the electorates around Australia with this upcoming election
Firstly, in the House of Representatives, my federal seat is called Riverina, and our current sitting member is Michael McCormack. Mr McCormack is a member of the Nationals, former leader of the Nationals, former deputy Prime Minister and has held several ministerial and secretarial portfolios. He is friendly, approachable, and a nice fellow. I’ve met and interacted with him a few times over the last thirty years or so, and have always found him to be polite, attentive, and interested in what others are saying. Last election he was returned with an increased majority.
Probably because at the last election, there was no real competition.
The local Labor candidate was Mark Jefreson, who is also standing in this election. I know Mark well, being a former workmate who became, along with his wife Kylie, good friends with my wife and myself. It’s one of those friendships where we don’t ring each other very often, and meet up for a social evening maybe once every few years, but we always pick up where we left off and always enjoy each other’s company. Mark is a good man. His disappointing results at the last election, I’m sure, had more to do with the unpalatable policies of the Labor party, and a distrust of Bill Shorten, rather than his personal approval.
Also, at the last election, there was limited competition in the seat, especially from the conservative side, which saw some people (such as myself) begrudgingly giving Mr McCormack the prized “1” vote.
I think this year, things may be different in many seats across Australia, including the Riverina. But I don’t think these differences won’t necessarily benefit Labor. Here’s why:
Across this great nation of ours (the world’s best place to live), people are angry and upset with, not only our Governments, but the entire political system. And it appears to stem from their (the Government’s) response to Covid. Sure, during the first six or eight months of the pandemic, the disease was unknown. We didn’t know how it would affect people, what the long term ramifications were, how to treat it, or how to avoid it, let alone where this virus came from.
Governments responded strongly. And their first course of action was, in my summation, the biggest and most reprehensible “mistake” in the whole Covid saga - Our Governments suspended the democratic process, and handed ultimate legislative power to a handful of people: the state Premiers, the state Health Ministers, and their Health Advisors. When this step was announced, I had a sinking feeling in my gut that said “this can only end badly”. Government was now free to impose whatever law or rule that they decided upon, without being evaluated by an opposition, and without being answerable to the people. This step into despotism was lauded and somehow justified by a compliant and obedient press.
Total lockdowns meant that businesses that couldn’t support a ‘work from home’ arrangement were effectively closed. This, of course, hit the smallest businesses in the private sector hardest, as public sector employees were, by the very nature of their jobs, able to diverge into a work-from-home arrangement.
Air transport ceased. All hospitality venues closed. Our governments took away our basic rights and liberty. Our freedom of movement, freedom of association, our ability to provide for our families, our ability and want to care for our elderly, sick and dying. All of these fundamental human rights were removed because, we were told, this was the only way to beat this mystery virus which threatened to kill us by the millions. Our media were complicit with spreading and fanning the fear. We were all told of horrendous death projections, made my our most respected scientists, and we made too afraid to leave our homes. The nation’s people, stuck at home, watched morning, daytime and evening television news. We were told we should be afraid- and we were. We all accepted these draconian and previously unthinkable measures, believing that it was all for the “Greater good”, designed to save lives, by preventing our health system from becoming swamped and stretched to the point of breaking. We all love our health professionals. We love our nurses in particular, and were afraid of the consequences of this virus upon them. While we all cowered in our homes, the doctors, nurses, paramedics and medical support staff continued to serve the community; they were putting their own safety above ours.
Six or eight months into the pandemic, however, data started to become available which showed some interesting statistics. It appeared that Covid-19 (by now, it had an official name) wasn’t the broad and indiscriminate killer that we initially thought. It was becoming apparent that your chances of succumbing to Covid increased as your age increased. The over 70 cohort were clearly the most vulnerable, as were people with obvious comorbidities such as cancer, renal failure, cardio-pulmonary complaints, or poor lung capacity/function.
People started to ask questions: Why are kids unable to attend school, when their health suffered little impact from the virus? Why are family businesses being destroyed (along with the family's financial security)? Why have our freedoms been removed when it is evident that “zero covid” - the elimination of the virus - was obviously an impossible dream.
People started asking these questions the only way that they could - on social media. Our Governments weren’t answerable to the people, and our media showed no interest in asking questions of our leaders. Our media became nothing more than stenographers, simply telling us what they were told to say, without questioning any of the measures or challenging our leaders at any time. Those few journalists that were starting to think for themselves and ask questions were banned from the daily press conferences and their personal independence was shut down by their management upon orders from the government. Our state governments, ALL of them, regardless of which party they belonged to, were out of control. Sure, some more than others, with Labor governments being the most dictatorial, but the Liberal/National governments do not get a pass here either.
People, who were losing everything that they love and need, started to protest. Firstly on Social Media. Police, now acting as a militant arm of the Government, started to visit people in their homes, advising people that their right to free speech has been revoked. Those that did not comply were arrested in their own homes. Something you might expect from the old USSR, or today’s China, or North Korea. But not a free and liberal society like Australia. The actions of police against verbal and physical protestors during the last couple of years has been an abomination.
Meanwhile, some scientists were experimenting with different treatment drugs, namely hydroxychloroquine and ivermectin. Australian Doctor Thomas Borody, best known for discovering a cure for peptic ulcers, devised a treatment that proved effective - namely ivermectin taken with ZInc and Doxycycline. This safe, cheap and readily available course of action was shut down immediately by governments and the media. Reasons for this are unclear. (I have my theories, but I don’t want to sound conspiratorial, so I’ll leave that for another day). We were told that the only way out of this nightmare is vaccination, with several pharmaceutical companies, universities and research centres working feverishly to develop and test a Covid Vaccine.
Then, thanks to modern science and the free market system, a vaccine was made available just 12 months after the Covid virus escaped into the community.
We (I) thought that this was our way out. With an effective vaccine, life could return to normal. We would soon have all of our freedoms returned, we could return to democracy, and live a normal Australian life.
Nope.
We were told that freedoms would be returned (which, I remind you, were never the government’s right to remove in the first place) after 70% of the population is vaccinated. Then the goal posts shifted. It was declared that herd immunity would not be achieved until 80%. As we approached that target, they shifted the goal posts again ; we had to have 80% vaxxed and boosted. Then 90% double vaxxed. Then 90% double vaxxed and boosted. And on, and on.
Now people were getting really jack of it. Still, governments remained “strong”, making the “tough decisions” and self-sacrificing for the good of the people.
Twelve months after the release of the initial vaccine, and with several different vaccines now on the market, life has still not returned to normal.
Sections of the community have had their individual rights removed seemingly permanently. There are people in our community that are not allowed to work and earn a living. There are people who have refused the covid vaccination that have been sacked from their positions, and are not allowed to ever work for the same employer, or any government department, again. To disallow an individual from earning a living, providing for their family, and contributing to society, is an egregious abomination. These same people are not allowed to travel by air, they are not allowed to leave Australia. They are effectively second-rate citizens and government prisoners.
Our governments, of all persuasions, have divided the population into two groups: Those that can, and those that can’t. This is how all of the evil and destructive regimes around the world have come to power: by setting one portion of the population against the other, and feeding the resentment and sometimes hatred of the differing groups. Think communism, dictators, fascists and despots. The 20th Century was riddled with examples of how this kind of thinking always leads to the same thing: misery and death on an industrial scale.
Now, back to our discussion of the election.
The left side of politics (Labor, Greens) are always dividing the population, usually on income status, with the poor being told that their misery is a direct consequence of other people being wealthy. Nowadays they are dividing us, (thanks to political correctness and postmodernism), by coupling wealth with race, gender, religion and sexuality to name a few. A wealthy white Christian man is the ultimate pariah in the eyes of those that subscribe to this doctrine, and this very doctrine is being pushed and developed by the left side of politics throughout the world, including Australia, by people that may be well intentioned, but are grievously mistaken at best, pure evil at worst.
What has this got to do with the upcoming election in Australia?
All of the government imposed injustices and Marxist measures imposed upon us are things that you might begin to understand if all of our governments were leftists. That might sound hyperbolic, but you only have to look at the popularity of Dan Andrews among the left. He was seen as the “most courageous” leader. His impositions and iron-fisted oppression of any dissention is being lauded and celebrated by leftists and our media alike.
But supposedly “Conservative” state governments, and our Liberal federal government, also drank the kool-aid, and revelled in their self-appointed power trip. The state Premiers - all of them - got lost in their own new found power, acting like Kim Jong-un, presenting themselves as being “tough”, “determined”, “single-minded”, and our saviour. An opinion reflected by large sections of the community and the media.
The Federal Government, being led by Mr Morrison, has been complicit in fanning the flames of the Premier’s egos. But what’s worse, is an absolute lack of strength in leadership.
Mr Morrison could see injustices. He complained. He took no action.
Mr Morrison could see the despotism. He complained, but did nothing.
Mr Morrison could see people’s pain. He complained, but did nothing.
Mr Morrison saw hypocrisy, desperation, protest, division, fear, anger, violence, unrest, outrage. He did nothing.
Mr Morrison has shown that he is not worthy of re-election.
My local member, Mr McCormack, has typically been silent. I don’t know where he stands on all of this. So I’ll take his silence as compliance.
Labor is not a viable alternative. Mr Albanese has shown no leadership, either.
However, it looks like we will be spoiled for choice this election. For those of us who politically lean to the right, there are a few alternatives to the Liberal and National parties.Do yourself a favour. Look into your local candidates. Find out what motivates them. Find out where they stand on the issues that are important to you. What are their ideas for the future? What are their policies? What is their vision?
You have a month to find out. Get cracking. Vote wisely.
Hot prediction - Morrison minority Government with support of a couple of minor parties or independants. To me, that’s the best case scenario.
No comments:
Post a Comment