July 3, 2016
by Dafyd Martindale
Australia let itself down badly at Saturday’s Federal election.
At a time when Europe risks falling apart because of Brexit and Russian expansionism; when China’s muscle-flexing in the South China Sea threatens peace in Asia; and when Islamic State and its friends are trying to export terrorism world-wide, we need a steady hand at the wheel.
And at a time when the world is facing the possibility of more fiscal crises, and when there is an even-money chance the United States could elect a loose cannon as its head of state, there has never been a greater need for a strong, united Australian Federal Parliament than there is right now.
Instead, it looks like we’ll have a hung Parliament; instability in both major parties over who will lead them through the next few years; and a group of minor vanity parties pushing their hare-brained ideas to guide the destiny of our nation.
In many ways, the blame for this situation must fall squarely into the laps of the Liberal Party and the ALP.
For the past decade or more, both of Australia’s major parties have felt that rather than trying to explain our country’s complex problems, we are better served by soundbite slogans, blind faith and the odd bit of pork-barreling.
But here’s the big surprise: Australians are not fools.
So when we’re confronted with “Strong Choices”, “A Plan For Jobs And Growth”, “Stop The Boats” or “Save Medicare”, we know we’re being fed a line by political elites who think we’re downright stupid and can be manipulated with empty slogans.
This disconnect has led to a growing level of disenchantment that has shown itself very clearly in the Federal Election result with the high number of votes given to minor parties whose polices – when closely examined – often run close to lunacy.
Does anyone REALLY believe that Pauline Hanson’s One Nation, the Nick Xenophon Team, Katter’s Australia Party, the Palmer United Party, or Ricky Muir’s Australian Motoring Enthusiast Party have any serious answers about how to navigate our ship of state through the stormy international seas it’s now sailing in?
If you do, then you’re probably one of that small and unfortunate group of people who go through their lives paying no attention to local, State, national and international news until something comes out of the blue to bite you on the backside.
There’s no excuse for shirking your responsibility to be an informed citizen, any more than electing to live your life out of the news loop offers an escape from having to live with the consequences.
All the same, no matter what side of politics you prefer, most Aussies will agree the ALP and the Liberal Party have one saving grace the minor parties don’t have, and are never likely to.
Their members are united by a deeply felt common ideology – in the ALP’s case by trade unionism and the primacy of a fair distribution of wealth over profit, and in the LNP’s, by a belief in the inventiveness of small business and the strengths of a free market. These shared beliefs makes them stable – in the long-term, at least – and long-lived.
The vanity parties, by contrast, are formed around individuals and tend to fall apart when they expand, because there is really no common, deeply felt ideological glue to bind their members together.
We saw this with the rapid implosion of the Palmer United Party; and we will see it again when Bob Katter retires or dies; when Nick Xenophon has a falling out with the group of unknowns who’ve ridden his coat-tails into politics; or when (as has happened before) Pauline Hanson’s acolytes disagree with one another.
If the Liberal Party or ALP – or preferably both – could change their ways and start treating the rest of us like intelligent human beings who can be trusted to make the right decisions if given all the facts – even unpopular decisions, or decisions that might cause us short-term pain for a worthwhile long-term gain – they will regain the leadership and trust of the nation.
But while they continue to employ spin doctors to explain their decisions, take their policy positions from focus groups, and treat us all like children, we will continue to turn our backs on them.
No matter what it costs us.
It’s just a pity that many Australians have chosen this delicate point in world history to do just that.
