The Illusion of Choice

Muammar Gaddafi is a madman no doubt, and one hell of a son-of-a-bitch. I’m one of many who welcomed the hail of 124 Tomahawk cruise missiles that signalled the end of his massacre of his own people (by some estimates, this kind of ‘freedom’ retails for only $186 million). Still, when reading Gaddafi’s political manifesto The Green Book the other day, I was struck by at least one semi-sane observation – Western democracy does not deal in freedom in the strictest sense, but merely provides the illusion of choice. His example of a referendum was most interesting: the people vote (providing the smoke and mirrors), while usually only two options are given (providing the stitch-up).

Now, reiterating that Gaddafi is madder than a hundred hatters – and emphasising that much of his Green Book is racist, impractical and at times downright offensive – in this particular instance I think his point is a valid one. Our recent shambles of a State election serves as a nice example. Dissatisfied with the corrupt and inept Labor Party, the people swept them aside and replaced them with Barry O’Farrell’s Liberals. If not for cardboard cut-out Peter Debnam, this would’ve happened 4 years ago. This issue is not that Labor got shafted, but that we have merely traded one bunch of do-nothing bullshit artists for another – and really what choice is that?

Commuting in the lead up to the elections I was frequently accosted by Liberal pamphlet-handlers looking to cover the considerable spread required to claim my seat. One particularly brave soul stopped me to ask the secret to winning my demographic – who he claimed were particularly reluctant to accept his paper propaganda. If I could name one thing that would make me vote Liberal, what would it be? Easy, I say. Make the fucken trains run on time. Make them run when it rains, and not sputter to a halt when it’s too hot. Put some millennium trains on the long trek to Campbelltown – and run some more services so that I don’t feel like I’m being crammed in enroute to Auswitch every day after work… mid rant it hit me then – not only had Labor let me down for nearly two decades, but there wasn’t a single thing the Libs could do to make a lick of difference. The trains are shit and will always be, until I gather the MX-deadened plebs and lead them to revolt.

In the meantime, what am I proposing? Certainly not Gaddafi’s popular committees (for direct democracy) – because try as I might they make almost zero sense. More likely I think we’d be better off disbanding State Government all together. The sole purpose they seem to serve is to antagonise their Federal counterparts (if from the opposite party) or blindly support them (if of the same). Oh, that and get completely drunk with the ‘power’ that only comes with the front bench of our State government – the power to sell of State owned assets, push through crooked land deals and abuse waiters at Iguana Joes. Wiping out state governments all together will see a sharp decline in the amount of pointless current affairs interviews I have to wade through, dramatically cut the percentage I’m lied to about improving my hospitals – and is just the kind of public sector job trimming that I can really get behind.

Raise My Taxes

We live in mediocre financial times. Thanks to the giant dicking handed out to us by bankers and Wall Street types, economies the world over are struggling – with even the might US economy hit hard. Discounting the fact for the time being that the mega-gambling that brought us here continues unabated (and not a single CEO was brought to trial) the GFC is the current go-to excuse to slash budgets and dodge investment projects. Budgetary considerations have provided cover for Republican Governor Scott Walker to dismantle teacher’s unions in Wisconsin, for national Republicans to de-fund Planned Parenthood, and even Obama to cut ‘socialist programs’ that provide food and heating oil to poor people. In short, budget deficits have signalled an all out assault on the all that the Left (I mean actual Left, Barrack) holds dear – and I fear that the Right are just getting warmed up.

The budget slashing bent that is so gripping the US is accentuated by the insistence of both parties to neither cut defence spending (over $700 Billion and ~20% of the total) – nor to raise taxes, even on those earning over $250k a year (the famed ‘Bush Tax Cuts’). The blind alley that this leads to is that ultimately, budgets are balanced on the backs of those can least afford it (the poor, minorities, single parents etc)– and that major public services like hospitals, police, teachers, roads etc suffer. While cuts (or ‘savings’ as the British press is trying to re-brand them as) provide short-term relief from outright bankruptcy (44 of 50 states are looking at deficits) the deteriorating infrastructure becomes more costly to repair, and skilled state workers leave to pursue greener pastures. The time then has come for politicians to stop pretending that there are no other options – and commit to increasing revenue by raising taxes.

Now US Republicans have formed a pseudo-religion in recent times based around continued tax cuts ‘smaller government’ (whatever the hell that is) and trickle down (fuck they have some fancy euphemisms) economics - despite their Messiah Ronald Reagan’s actual history of raising them. As is often the case, Australia has been largely spared the worst of both the GFC and of the necessity to slash public sector budgets – though the aversion to tax increase (of any kind) runs true in most of our politicians, but especially so in our conservatives. The Abbott Liberals (much like their Republican counterparts) are fast becoming the party of No. Their feet dragging and hand wringing on the Flood Levy, in the wake of Cyclone Yasi is indicative of their scare-first, think last mentality. Following such a biblically-sized flood event Gillard’s Labor proposed (and eventually secured) a $2.88/week contribution from someone earning $80K – and nothing from those earning under $50K. Given that Abbott was neither divinely tipped off prior to the flood, nor did he hammer a single nail in pursuit of an Ark – that seemed like a pretty reasonable thing for those of us unaffected to do.

So while my Presidency will herald an age of utopian socialism (where your higher taxes translate to actual health care, education and transport) we should strive in the meantime for the best maintenance of the common good. In contrast to the ‘every man for himself’ narrative crammed down our throats by TV we should be collectively happy to forgo our cup of coffee or can of Mother (I’m looking at you Bogans) if it helps a Queenslander have somewhere to live again. The same goes for the carbon tax – though I’ll get to that.