I'm told some animals, even non-human animals, dream to some extent. In fact, I've seen a video of a cat chasing an imaginary mouse while sleepwalking. But I think that it would be fair to say that non-humans dream of everyday stuff, like mice or other tasty treats or perhaps being chased by a predator. I doubt they dream of grand ideas like liberty or democracy. Only humans dare to dream beyond their everyday experience.
Take the people of Palestine for instance. They've not experienced real liberty in living memory, yet they dream of one day returning to their homeland that they believe is rightfully theirs. Why? Because it is the land in which their grandfathers, great-grandfathers, etc., were born.
Only one thing prevents their return; the dream of another people who believe that many thousands of years ago their God gave them the very same bit of this Earth.
They took their chance to return to their homeland at the end of the Second World War after two millennia living elsewhere. They organized themselves; they fundraised to buy arms; they formed militant groups which carried out terrorist activities against the Arab population (the Palestinians) and the British, who still had colonial control of Palestine; they mobilized World opinion and eventually the UN ratified their claim to the land of Palestine.
The Palestinians meanwhile were either forced to flee to refugee camps in neighbouring countries or live as second-class citizens in their (old) homeland.
Two peoples; each believing in rightful sole ownership of the same bit of dirt. Each with a dream of living peacefully in their homeland. It’s a real dilemma.
This brings us then to the thing that really sets us apart from the animals. We alone seem to have the ability to believe that our dreams can be authoritative statements of reality even when there is no supporting evidence or even evidence to the contrary. We can cross the line from imagination to delusion.
So let’s look at the Israeli/Palestinian issue with this distinction in mind. Whose dream is more real? Which is rooted more in reality? Which is more evidence-based and which is more fanciful? Who has more right to the bit of the Earth now comprising the State of Israel and the two Palestinian territories, the West Bank and Gaza.
Are the Palestinians delusional in their claim of ownership based on 2000 years of tenure or are the Israelis even more realistic and righteous in their belief that their God* gave the land to them? Does divine proclamation override legal title based on inheritance?
*Possibly the same God as the Palestinians’ God and if so, this begs the question- Why didn’t he tell the Palestinians he was dispossessing them at some point?
Friday, January 16, 2009
Thursday, November 22, 2007
Tampa II ?
Just when you thought it was safe to throw your children back in the water a lone boatload of 16 asylum seekers has sunk off NW Australia.
Independent candidate for Gilmore, Of None asks, “Could this be a Tampa Mk II situation all over again, with the PM and local Liberal pollies spruiking the “We’ll decide who’ll come here….” line to great effect.”
“Or have we, as a nation, grown up just that little bit in the last few years to the extent that we are a more compassionate people, willing to accept our share of the worldwide refugee problem that in some cases, such as for those refugees from Iraq and Afghanistan, we helped create.”
Mr. None muses that perhaps someone is testing us.
“Perhaps it’s fitting that this situation has occurred on the eve of the election. We all need the limits of our tolerance and compassion tested from time to time, he said”.
“On Saturday we might find out what sort of nation we are.”
Independent candidate for Gilmore, Of None asks, “Could this be a Tampa Mk II situation all over again, with the PM and local Liberal pollies spruiking the “We’ll decide who’ll come here….” line to great effect.”
“Or have we, as a nation, grown up just that little bit in the last few years to the extent that we are a more compassionate people, willing to accept our share of the worldwide refugee problem that in some cases, such as for those refugees from Iraq and Afghanistan, we helped create.”
Mr. None muses that perhaps someone is testing us.
“Perhaps it’s fitting that this situation has occurred on the eve of the election. We all need the limits of our tolerance and compassion tested from time to time, he said”.
“On Saturday we might find out what sort of nation we are.”
Sunday, November 11, 2007
10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4...
I'm holding a launch/get-together on Friday evening from about 7pm, in the rooms under the Grandstand of the Berry Showground. Lots of politically incorrect fun, some music and easy on the speeches.
Come along if you would like to join in. Bring a plate to share.
Less than two weeks to go
Things are hotting up and slowly the media are taking notice, although not always from around here. I did a radio interview with Red Symonds on ABC 774 Melbourne last Thursday and apparently was featured in the Melbourne Age last week.
Stephen Mayne from www.crikey.com.au has been in touch and will do something on me and the other Independents around the country next week. He is standing in Peter Costello's seat of Higgins.
Now is the time get it off your chest and write that letter to the Editor you've been bottling up. Send to editor.scregister@ruralpress.com
Stephen Mayne from www.crikey.com.au has been in touch and will do something on me and the other Independents around the country next week. He is standing in Peter Costello's seat of Higgins.
Now is the time get it off your chest and write that letter to the Editor you've been bottling up. Send to editor.scregister@ruralpress.com
Less Chatter, More Action on Dental Health
Independent candidate for Gilmore, Of None, has called for dental treatment to become part of mainstream health care by including it in the Medicare program.
“Why should the state of a person’s teeth be seen as a non-health issue when every other condition associated with the human body is?” he asks.
“For teeth to not be covered by Medicare is as silly as not including tonsils, when you think about it,” he said today.
Mr. None points to studies that link periodontal disease to a significantly higher incidence of heart disease, stroke and premature death.
“Numerous studies show that dental care is vital to minimising the risk of these causes of death. In fact most studies have shown that dental disease is a larger risk factor for heart disease than being overweight, having a high cholesterol level, not exercising or smoking,” he said.
Mr. None advocates that dental care for all Australians should be a priority of the next government, particularly at this time of economic prosperity.
“Cut back on the proposed tax cuts for higher income earners or increase the Medicare Levy, or both, as necessary to make dental health part of the regular health care system,” he replied when asked how his proposal should be funded.
“Millions are spent telling us to lose weight, not smoke, eat better etc to prevent heart disease and strokes but a seemingly far greater risk factor, the state of one’s teeth, is ‘your problem’, unless you’re privately insured of course. That’s not good enough; such a serious risk to health deserves a universal approach,” he concluded.
“Why should the state of a person’s teeth be seen as a non-health issue when every other condition associated with the human body is?” he asks.
“For teeth to not be covered by Medicare is as silly as not including tonsils, when you think about it,” he said today.
Mr. None points to studies that link periodontal disease to a significantly higher incidence of heart disease, stroke and premature death.
“Numerous studies show that dental care is vital to minimising the risk of these causes of death. In fact most studies have shown that dental disease is a larger risk factor for heart disease than being overweight, having a high cholesterol level, not exercising or smoking,” he said.
Mr. None advocates that dental care for all Australians should be a priority of the next government, particularly at this time of economic prosperity.
“Cut back on the proposed tax cuts for higher income earners or increase the Medicare Levy, or both, as necessary to make dental health part of the regular health care system,” he replied when asked how his proposal should be funded.
“Millions are spent telling us to lose weight, not smoke, eat better etc to prevent heart disease and strokes but a seemingly far greater risk factor, the state of one’s teeth, is ‘your problem’, unless you’re privately insured of course. That’s not good enough; such a serious risk to health deserves a universal approach,” he concluded.
None Of The Above in Centre of Field
The only Independent candidate for the seat of Gilmore drew the centre position on the ballot paper at Friday’s ballot for positions conducted in Nowra by the Australian Electoral Commission’s District Returning Officer, Peter Manley.
Mr. Of None whose full name will appear on the ballot paper as NONE, Of The Above said that whilst, for obvious reasons, he was hoping to draw the bottom position he was more than happy to be allocated 5th out of 9 candidates.
“I will be dead-centre of the nine candidates and, looking at the extreme views of some of the parties represented, that is about where I would consider myself to be on the left-right spectrum,” he said.
He cited the “whacko” policies of the Citizens Electoral Council, who base their beliefs on the works of the disgraced, self-promoting American demagogue Lyndon H. LaRouche, Jr. whose racist and homophobic teachings include that the federal (US) government allowed AIDS to spread because it didn't want to "estrange the votes of a bunch of faggots and cocaine sniffers, the organized gay lobby, as it's called in the United States. (I don't know why they're `gay,' they're the most miserable creatures I ever saw!)".
According to LaRouche, The Beatles (who "had no genuine musical talent") were created by the "British Psychological Warfare Division" and promoted "by agencies which are controlled by British intelligence." Furthermore, the Queen of England and the British royal family run the global drug trade.
In 1989 LaRouche was convicted and sentenced to 15 years in prison for federal conspiracy, mail fraud and tax law violations.
Pro-LaRouche publications have been at the forefront of denying the reality of global warming and have denounced Greenpeace and other ecology groups. One of the major planks of the LaRouche platform is the immediate construction of numerous nuclear power plants.
Mr. None is campaigning with ‘No Nuclear reactor at Jervis Bay’ as his major policy platform.
The other party that voters should be wary of, according to Mr. None, is the Liberty and Democracy Party whose beliefs centre around a “libertarian” lifestyle including almost unrestricted gun ownership. It believes speed limits should be determined by what most motorists regard as safe, not what public servants deem to be acceptable. It does not believe government should tell us to eat healthy foods, to not smoke, to wear a helmet when we ride a bicycle, to not use marijuana, how to discipline our children, whether we can renovate our houses and who we are permitted to marry.
“Voters should look beyond the names and slogans and more closely at the policies of candidates and parties before voting,” he advised.
Mr. Of None whose full name will appear on the ballot paper as NONE, Of The Above said that whilst, for obvious reasons, he was hoping to draw the bottom position he was more than happy to be allocated 5th out of 9 candidates.
“I will be dead-centre of the nine candidates and, looking at the extreme views of some of the parties represented, that is about where I would consider myself to be on the left-right spectrum,” he said.
He cited the “whacko” policies of the Citizens Electoral Council, who base their beliefs on the works of the disgraced, self-promoting American demagogue Lyndon H. LaRouche, Jr. whose racist and homophobic teachings include that the federal (US) government allowed AIDS to spread because it didn't want to "estrange the votes of a bunch of faggots and cocaine sniffers, the organized gay lobby, as it's called in the United States. (I don't know why they're `gay,' they're the most miserable creatures I ever saw!)".
According to LaRouche, The Beatles (who "had no genuine musical talent") were created by the "British Psychological Warfare Division" and promoted "by agencies which are controlled by British intelligence." Furthermore, the Queen of England and the British royal family run the global drug trade.
In 1989 LaRouche was convicted and sentenced to 15 years in prison for federal conspiracy, mail fraud and tax law violations.
Pro-LaRouche publications have been at the forefront of denying the reality of global warming and have denounced Greenpeace and other ecology groups. One of the major planks of the LaRouche platform is the immediate construction of numerous nuclear power plants.
Mr. None is campaigning with ‘No Nuclear reactor at Jervis Bay’ as his major policy platform.
The other party that voters should be wary of, according to Mr. None, is the Liberty and Democracy Party whose beliefs centre around a “libertarian” lifestyle including almost unrestricted gun ownership. It believes speed limits should be determined by what most motorists regard as safe, not what public servants deem to be acceptable. It does not believe government should tell us to eat healthy foods, to not smoke, to wear a helmet when we ride a bicycle, to not use marijuana, how to discipline our children, whether we can renovate our houses and who we are permitted to marry.
“Voters should look beyond the names and slogans and more closely at the policies of candidates and parties before voting,” he advised.
Saturday, October 27, 2007
MEDIA RELEASE 16.10.07 None says "NO" to tax cuts
Independent candidate for Gilmore, Of None, has rebuked the Prime Minister’s election promise of $34 billion in tax cuts, suggesting instead that the bulk of any budget surplus be spent on public infrastructure, government services and the environment.
Mr None made an interesting and thought provoking analogy.
"No parent would spend the family savings on a holiday if their child was sick and in need a lifesaving operation. Well, our country is sick; the rivers are drying, food production is falling and more and more of our country is becoming uninhabitable. We have the funds to do something about it but unfortunately the PM is going to splash it about in an effort to buy his way back into power. I think Australians expect better stewardship than that," he said.
On tax cuts, Mr. None remarked that under the present government middle and high-income earners have already done very well.
"If tax cuts are to be given at this time they should be to the bottom 30% of income earners only," he said.
Mr None made an interesting and thought provoking analogy.
"No parent would spend the family savings on a holiday if their child was sick and in need a lifesaving operation. Well, our country is sick; the rivers are drying, food production is falling and more and more of our country is becoming uninhabitable. We have the funds to do something about it but unfortunately the PM is going to splash it about in an effort to buy his way back into power. I think Australians expect better stewardship than that," he said.
On tax cuts, Mr. None remarked that under the present government middle and high-income earners have already done very well.
"If tax cuts are to be given at this time they should be to the bottom 30% of income earners only," he said.
MEDIA RELEASE 13/9/07 Candidate to Return Electoral Funding to Community
Independent candidate for the seat of Gilmore, Of None, has pledged to donate his entitlements under the Public Funding of Elections Act to various community groups should he receive the required minimum of 4% of the primary vote in the South Coast seat.
Public Funding of Elections legislation means that when you cast your vote, the candidate or party next to whom you place the coveted number 1, known as your primary vote, will receive $2.05 from taxpayer’s funds. This idea was originally introduced as being a way of assisting the small parties and independents but Mr. None pointed to the Australian Electoral Commission’s figures for the 2004 election as evidence that the reality is that the two major parties get most of the funds. (see below)
Mr. None claims, " Voting is an act which transfers millions of dollars* from schools and hospitals and reimburses political parties for all those slick party ads we are about to become so sick of".
"The catch for us little guys is that funding only kicks in if the candidate receives a minimum of 4% of the primary vote. In the case of Gilmore this is about 3500 votes. That means, should I be so lucky, I will receive about $7000 which I am under no obligation to part with," he said.
"However the idea that I should make a ‘profit’ from being a candidate is repugnant to me, so I have pledged to give any excess, over and above expenses, to a variety of community groups starting with $2000 to the Nowra Youth Centre," he added.
Mr. None says he would welcome suggestions as to what to do with the other $3000 he may have to distribute and muses that whether or not he receives electoral funding, a vote for him will benefit the community.
"Should I not receive the 4% minimum required under the Act, the voter’s $2.05 stays with a hospital or school. Either way, voting 1 NONE, Of The Above, can be seen as a win-win for the community." he concluded.
* Total election public funding paid for the 2004 Federal election was $41,926,158.91. including Liberal Party $17,956,326.48 , Labor Party $16,710,043.43 , Australian Greens $3,316,702.48 , National Party $2,966,531.27 , Pauline Hanson $199,886.77 (source: Australian Electoral Commission)
Public Funding of Elections legislation means that when you cast your vote, the candidate or party next to whom you place the coveted number 1, known as your primary vote, will receive $2.05 from taxpayer’s funds. This idea was originally introduced as being a way of assisting the small parties and independents but Mr. None pointed to the Australian Electoral Commission’s figures for the 2004 election as evidence that the reality is that the two major parties get most of the funds. (see below)
Mr. None claims, " Voting is an act which transfers millions of dollars* from schools and hospitals and reimburses political parties for all those slick party ads we are about to become so sick of".
"The catch for us little guys is that funding only kicks in if the candidate receives a minimum of 4% of the primary vote. In the case of Gilmore this is about 3500 votes. That means, should I be so lucky, I will receive about $7000 which I am under no obligation to part with," he said.
"However the idea that I should make a ‘profit’ from being a candidate is repugnant to me, so I have pledged to give any excess, over and above expenses, to a variety of community groups starting with $2000 to the Nowra Youth Centre," he added.
Mr. None says he would welcome suggestions as to what to do with the other $3000 he may have to distribute and muses that whether or not he receives electoral funding, a vote for him will benefit the community.
"Should I not receive the 4% minimum required under the Act, the voter’s $2.05 stays with a hospital or school. Either way, voting 1 NONE, Of The Above, can be seen as a win-win for the community." he concluded.
* Total election public funding paid for the 2004 Federal election was $41,926,158.91. including Liberal Party $17,956,326.48 , Labor Party $16,710,043.43 , Australian Greens $3,316,702.48 , National Party $2,966,531.27 , Pauline Hanson $199,886.77 (source: Australian Electoral Commission)
MEDIA RELEASE 23/8/07 A Reactor or a Referendum?
Independent candidate for the Federal seat of Gilmore, Mr. Of None, has challenged the Prime Minister to hold referenda concurrent with the coming Federal election on the vexed questions of a nuclear power industry and the locations of the Government’s proposed twenty five nuclear reactors.
This follows the PM’s announcement that any area where a reactor is proposed would have a binding, publicly funded plebiscite to determine the area’s acceptance of the idea.
"The PM has said that citizens of each area will have a plebiscite to determine whether they have a nuclear reactor built in their area but he didn’t say at what stage in the planning process such a vote would be taken and what constitutes an ‘area’. Is it just the surrounding streets, a suburb or is it a whole Federal electorate?" Mr. None asked.
"It’s obvious that this is just an attempt to defuse the issue of the locations of Mr. Howard’s twenty five nuclear reactors until after the election by lulling electors into a false sense of security that they will be in control of the process," he said.
"Also the concept of plebiscites on locations would seem to assume that Australians have accepted as fact the construction of reactors somewhere in Australia. This proposition has also never been tested," he remarked.
Mr. None believes that such referenda should ask two simple questions-
1. Do you agree to the building of nuclear reactors for power generation in Australia?
2. Do you agree that a nuclear reactor should be built within this Federal electorate?
Mr. None said referenda held with the Federal election will save an enormous amount of money in otherwise staging multiple plebiscites, trying to find an area that actually wants a reactor and in addition, companies wishing to construct reactors will have certainty as to which electorates would welcome them from as early as late this year.
Mr. None proposed that the results should be irrevocably binding for 25 years- ie approximately one generation- from the date of the election.
"Conducting referenda at the time of the next Federal election is the only way the electorate can know the Prime Minister is fair dinkum on the issue," he concluded.
This follows the PM’s announcement that any area where a reactor is proposed would have a binding, publicly funded plebiscite to determine the area’s acceptance of the idea.
"The PM has said that citizens of each area will have a plebiscite to determine whether they have a nuclear reactor built in their area but he didn’t say at what stage in the planning process such a vote would be taken and what constitutes an ‘area’. Is it just the surrounding streets, a suburb or is it a whole Federal electorate?" Mr. None asked.
"It’s obvious that this is just an attempt to defuse the issue of the locations of Mr. Howard’s twenty five nuclear reactors until after the election by lulling electors into a false sense of security that they will be in control of the process," he said.
"Also the concept of plebiscites on locations would seem to assume that Australians have accepted as fact the construction of reactors somewhere in Australia. This proposition has also never been tested," he remarked.
Mr. None believes that such referenda should ask two simple questions-
1. Do you agree to the building of nuclear reactors for power generation in Australia?
2. Do you agree that a nuclear reactor should be built within this Federal electorate?
Mr. None said referenda held with the Federal election will save an enormous amount of money in otherwise staging multiple plebiscites, trying to find an area that actually wants a reactor and in addition, companies wishing to construct reactors will have certainty as to which electorates would welcome them from as early as late this year.
Mr. None proposed that the results should be irrevocably binding for 25 years- ie approximately one generation- from the date of the election.
"Conducting referenda at the time of the next Federal election is the only way the electorate can know the Prime Minister is fair dinkum on the issue," he concluded.
MEDIA RELEASE 23/8/07 GREEN SEES IN BLACK AND WHITE- YOUR IN OR YOUR OUT
Of None, Independent candidate for Gilmore has reacted angrily to the statement by Christian Democratic Party Senate hopeful, Pastor Paul Green, that Muslim immigration be put on hold for ten years. In doing so Mr. Green likened Muslims to an advance of a deadly infectious agent such as bird flu and called for an Impact Statement on Muslim Immigration.
Mr. None said "Paul Green’s descent into the grubby world of race-based politics is disgraceful and an insult to every decent, tolerant Australian".
"The immigration of every racial/religious group has enriched Australian society far more than any negatives which have arisen. In most cases problems occur due to a lack of understanding and unwillingness to try on the part of a small minority of those of us already here," he said.
Mr. None pointed out that with the exception of the indigenous population we are all, by definition, immigrants or the descendents of relatively recent immigrants.
"Perhaps if the Aboriginal population of Sydney Cove had called for a White Fella Impact Statement in 1788 Australia could have avoided any immigration-based problems altogether," he remarked wryly.
Mr. None said "Paul Green’s descent into the grubby world of race-based politics is disgraceful and an insult to every decent, tolerant Australian".
"The immigration of every racial/religious group has enriched Australian society far more than any negatives which have arisen. In most cases problems occur due to a lack of understanding and unwillingness to try on the part of a small minority of those of us already here," he said.
Mr. None pointed out that with the exception of the indigenous population we are all, by definition, immigrants or the descendents of relatively recent immigrants.
"Perhaps if the Aboriginal population of Sydney Cove had called for a White Fella Impact Statement in 1788 Australia could have avoided any immigration-based problems altogether," he remarked wryly.
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