Compliant and Complacent

[Alan Wheeler]

We live in a world of catch 22's. We want better health care, so we pay taxes to provide health care. But the taxes don't meet the need. So we have to regulate what people eat or smoke because they are the ones chewing up 90% of the money going into health, resulting in the person waiting for a heart transplant dieing on the waiting list. And then somehow we blame the Govt.

[Mike Banks]

Politicians are the only ones vulnerable to a lobby group, because the bureaucrat hides from public view and is appointed by them. They are not usually democratically elected.

The figure of three hundred votes cited earlier is considerable power--because unless there is a huge political difference in the popularity of a party (in the Land of Oz the two major parties are seldom more than 5% of the vote apart--and that in a place where voting for one candidate or another is compulsory) this amount of votes may well spell victory or defeat for an electoral candidate.

Your 300 votes aforementioned might well mean winning or losing a seat in government to someone trying to get in, or trying to hold on to a seat. As long as the pollies are made to realise that--the more likely to listen to reason they become.

Would that three hundred have made any difference in the last election? If so--then you have someone ready to do as they are told whether in or out of government. If you can guarantee a block vote, you are home, hosed and dry. Do not trust them unless it becomes a policy objective--verbal promises to a person once elected do not mean much.

The more votes you can scrape up--the more your power grows--as all you need is the swinger to put someone in or keep them out.

Boatmen and women just have to get organised. Freedoms are easily lost while people debate them--and once lost are difficcult to regain. I can not remember ever having seen any government divest itself of unnecessary beaureacratic power. I only see them give up power to "privatise" or to abrogate its social or societal responsibilities or to sell off some public assets.

Boat people pay taxes--and are entitled to be heard about boating matters. In fact--they should be consulted first of all, not have policies enacted without their knowledge or input by some non-consultative legislative sleight-of-hand.