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How can we deport Amanda Vanstone? She is a woman without conscience and is certainly not fit to serve in any public capacity. Her dismissal of the current revelations of incompetence and inhumane activities by the department she oversees is beyond comprehension. However, her attitude should not surprise us. It’s the same attitude displayed by her colleagues in the parliament and manifest in different ways.
Take, for instance, the budget just handed down. Both the Treasurer and the Prime Minister have been trying to convince us that having less is more, that being poor is rich. Doesn’t it strike you as odd that in a nation where we work longer hours than many other western nations the rich are being encouraged to work more by getting tax cuts while the poor and the unemployed are being penalised for not being able to work in the first place.
On the back of these inequitable distribution of wealth programs come the news that our retirement funds, already totalling some $700 billion will be boosted by the deposit into the accounts of the fund managers of another $16 billion of government (actually our) money. As Susan Ryan, president of the Australian Institute of Superannuation Trustees, says, the only real winners out of this will be the fund managers who will initially be $31 million better off for just opening their books to take the money. The funds, our future wealth, will be transferred into bonds and stocks and non-existent ‘futures’ and traded on the international money markets. In short, our wealth be subject to the gamble that is finance trading. The only ones who win in the casino of financial trading, are the brokers and their agents.
Then there is the debate over IVF. Why is it that government feels it has to regulate a woman’s ovaries? At the same time that Howard, Costello and crew are telling us we need to procreate to make sure there are enough Aussies to keep the place going, they want to deprive some women from having children. Only some will miss out as the rich will always be able to pay for better health care than the rest of us. For the vast majority, however, rather than see IVF as an investment in the future, our government wants to prevent the privilege of parenthood from being realised by some.
Let’s move from there to the imposition of flags and prayers at schools. Last year the government told us that they were prepared to give all schools a small sum of money, but … in order to gain access to the cash the school had to erect a flag pole and invite their local federal member to a flag raising ceremony. I find it interesting that we are supposedly engaged in a war on terrorists who are described as ultranationalist, religious fundamentalists while our government is forcing schools to subscribe to a particular form of nationalism. In the meantime the Parliamentary Prayer Network describes its new schools program as follows, “Our Schools Programme, developed by a qualified school teacher, is designed to train up a new generation of prayer warriors for our leaders. Each school adopts an MP to pray for and to build a relationship with. Schools receive a number of items to help them on their exciting prayer adventure. These include a plaque and a photo of your MP with his or her profile, to display in your school. Activities include suggested prayers for weekly assemblies and two activities per year for a designated class to complete. We also send copies of books on government and Christian heritage.” So much for a tolerant and culturally sensitive parliament. Let’s not forget that as many Labor politicians belong to this fundamentalist group as coalition pollies.
Returning to immigration we find that the Minister is only keeping in line with the ideology that pervades our erstwhile ruling elites. Without showing an ounce of compassion or humanity she is able to ignore, dismiss or ridicule the cries of help coming from not only those detained behind razor wire, but also from those who occupy similar social status. Doctors, psychiatrists, priests, judges and anyone else who criticises the system she oversees is dismissed with a wave of her chubby and grubby little hand. I don’t think any else could have taken over from Philip Ruddock and continued the same injustice and in humanity with such relish as her Great Expandedness has.
So why are we surprised by all this? No. The more accurate question is why does our media act so surprised by all this? Well, its part of the great dance of the media economy. If the media is supposed to represent to us the reality in which we are immersed, then it’ doing a very poor job. Rather than offer us insight, depth of argument and clarification, the media falls victim to its own power and in order to protect that power the media practitioners must protect their investment.
In the halls of power journalists dance with the politicians in a cycle that ensures both institutions remain on ‘friendly’ terms. Outside the house they mingle at clubs and pubs and at the same parties. In short, those at the top of the media food chain get to feed off the same sides of lamb and they realise that if they want to enjoy the finest they will have to forgo some of the pleasantries the rest us of must abide by.
These pleasantries include the ability to think critically, the ability to respond humanely and to feel injustice. Even more mundane pleasantries are left behind in the climb up the media food chain. These include the ability to understand the vast reality of human existence and the fact that not everyone will retire in comfort and luxury. While it may be hard for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven, there are quite a few who intend to enjoy what they have down here and to hell with the rest.
Amanda might have been a nice little kid before she was politicised. She may have even felt pity for the poor and the dispossessed. Who knows, she may have donated money to support the Vietnamese refugees who arrived here destitute and in fear when Malcolm Fraser was in power. However, some would say it’s good to see that these silly, provincial pleasantries have been knocked out of her by the realists in the big house.
It’s no surprise that we have the government we have. It’s a natural development in the race for wealth. We, as a community, have swallowed the rich myth and are now suffering from bout of compassion indigestion. The question facing us is are we prepared to swallow the bitter pill of justice and demand our rulers return to a rule based on basic human rights and a real demonstration of compassion