Posts Tagged government
Glass houses
Posted by eN0ch in Letters, Politics and society, The Age, World on October 25th, 2009
The Rudd government is under heavy fire from it’s own constituency on many fronts, most prominently asylum seekers and climate change. Ultimately the two are united by the question of lifestyle. How thinly can a finite pool of resources be spread before the general populace considers itself deprived and cries foul? And as day follows night, any such discontent will surely find its fullest voice on election day.
And there’s the rub, not just for the government but for all Australians. It’s easy to label the PM as “Howard lite” and charge Government and Opposition alike with gross moral relativism, driven by electoral self-interest. “Vote buying!” cry some. “In bed with the coal industry!” say others.
But at least some of the righteous protesters might well live in glass condominiums. Compassionate largesse and serious community action to slow climate change must eventually cost us all in lifestyle, reducing all our options at home, at work, and in leisure.
Our politicians may be vote-driven. But with 3-year terms and a very comfortable electorate, who’d be surprised?
None so intolerant
Posted by eN0ch in Faith, Letters, Politics and society, The Age on July 29th, 2009
Peter Costello is right (Opinion, 29/7) – not a statement I’ve commonly made. “According to these (state government) lawyers, a religious conscience leads to prejudice.” This surely is the fundamental absurdity of the entire so-called “anti-discrimination” proposition currently levelled at the religious school sector. When in the history of this nation have Christian schools proven to be training grounds for young sociopaths? Where is the practical evidence that children educated at such schools turn into intolerant adults? With no evidence on offer, we face the real possibility of legislated social change on the basis of unsubstantiated theory. Did someone mention blind ideological prejudice?
More might be said. For instance, there’s the crafted use of charged language. What was once freedom of choice – a pillar of liberal democracy – is now cast as “discrimination” if exercised by the wrong crowd. If applicants for a position are screened according to their commitment to a company’s culture and values, that’s good management. If a religious body does the same, that’s prejudice.
The inanity might be highlighted by some parallel propositions:
- Let’s call it “discrimination” when a major political party declines to endorse a candidate of contrary political persuasion.
- Let’s call it “prejudice” when the ADF refuses to grant field command to a confessing pacifist.
None so intolerant as tolerance crusaders.