Once upon a time, in city streets and in branch offices across the suburbs, people used to gather around with like-minded people who believed in the same things they did. Back then, these groups of people were called “political parties”.
Members of these “parties” would debate the big issues. Then they’d pick their most convincing and articulate to be their leaders. Their leaders would slug it out over their visions for the future with the leaders of other political parties. In Parliament, in the press, on the streets.
That’s all passé. In 2006, only 1.3 per cent of the adult population were members of political parties. Political parties and political leaders are so 20th century.
Nowadays, we’ve got plenty of groups of people who stand for things. For instance, GetUp stands for progressive causes, the Conservative Leadership Foundation and the Institute of Public Affairs for conservatives, the Australian Conservation Foundation for environmentalists, the Minerals Council of Australia for mining executives.
All of them drive the national debate on the big issues, but none of them are political parties. And none of them are led by politicians.
This isn’t a good thing.
The thing with politicians and parties is that they get pulled up when they make mistakes. When they do things that a majority of people don’t think is in the national interest they get voted out. They can be held accountable by the press and the voters.
These political groups can’t. Because unlike parties, with their political platforms and well-known agendas, your average voter has no real idea who’s leading these organisations and why they want us to move in a particular direction.
We saw plenty of this in the carbon tax debate.
As the debate raged on the airwaves and in protests, we saw groups pop up against the tax, like the “Conservative Action Network”, and for the tax, like “Say Yes Australia” (best known for the Carbon Cate advertisements).
Your average voter surely saw their websites or in the latter case, their ads. But few people had any idea who was behind them and why they were advocating what they were.
The reality is, there were some big, powerful, wealthy people driving these groups and the debate.
For instance, The Sun-Herald revealed on the weekend (although The Punch had already joined the dots months ago) that Liberal SA Senator Cory Bernardi was behind a bunch of supposedly grassroots anti-carbon tax websites, like the Conservative Action Network, some Facebook groups and conservative blog Menzies House. He’s provided the groups with resources and infrastructure through a foundation he runs. Your average voter would’ve thought the groups started in the community.
On the other side of things, you probably didn’t know that many of the country’s biggest green groups have been funded or provided with extensive resources by the same two wealthy philanthropists. Farmer Mark Wootton has provided the Australian Conservation Foundation, the Climate Institute and the Australian Youth Climate Coalition with extensive support. It’s the same story with another farmer, Robert Purves, and the Total Environment Centre, WWF and the Climate Group.
These examples raise a bunch of questions. Why couldn’t Bernardi have just started his groups through the Liberal Party, which he is a powerful member of? Why couldn’t the two farmers have just started a political party for climate action – instead of funding an umbrella coalition of groups that can only pressure politicians to create change?
Why do we have to create groups outside the system? What’s wrong with the system of political parties and Parliaments that we’ve already got?
At a time when we’re dissatisfied with the leaders of both major parties, it wouldn’t go astray to have some leaders with principles (right or wrong as they may be) out in the open, rather than behind the scenes.
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RT @toplitigator: @farrm51 Very difficult to believe the excitment of 'Water Efficiency Labelling and Standards Scheme' website doesn't have ppl all over it.
RT @toplitigator: @farrm51 As for the 'Intergovernmental Committee on Surveying and Mapping' website, just how do you contain your excitement?
RT @lynlinking: @farrm51 Well the links should be posted on Twitter more, by people that care about the Government. Perhaps the MSM could help cheers lyn
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