Herald-Sun Letters (mostly unpublished) May-July 2019
Be Wary of Conservative Double Standards on Free Speech
“Kevin Donnelly (14/5) again makes a case for his version of
freedom of speech. Of course there are
problems with free speech as an ‘absolute’.
We cannot allow Holocaust Denial to lead to a culture of forgetting ; or
worse – to prepare the ground for future atrocities. But every time you dilute
free speech as an absolute you also contribute to a growing wedge with
increasing ramifications. Even as a
Christian I recognise that much scripture is at odds with modern thinking , and
its expression can be hurtful to various groups. At the same time faith is central to millions
of peoples’ lives ; and criminalisation will lead to repression and
polarisation. (Labor is not suggesting any such thing) But Donnelly needs to be
more consistent. ‘Free speech’ means
religious doctrines are open to criticism. ‘Free speech’ also means charities
and NGOs are not blackmailed to hold their tongues in criticism of government.
(as the Howard Government attempted) It
means an organisation with hundreds of thousands of members like GetUp! should
not find itself ‘in the crosshairs of government’ – with the intention of
silencing it at elections. By all means
campaign for freedom of speech – but be consistent.”
Social Insurance and Infrastructure
“A.Jensen (Your Say 30/5) attacks Labor for making social
(public) investments ; and condemns NBN and NDIS as ‘unfunded’. To begin with, Labor identified a series of
tax loopholes (mainly for the wealthy) which could have been closed ; saving
tens of billions. But the Liberals ran a scare campaign, including the threat
of some totally non-existent ‘death tax.’ Public investments often make sense
; and without them we run the risk of becoming a US-style society with enormous
classes of working poor and destitute. Welfare and social insurance provide a
safety net without which the unemployed, the mentally ill, the aged and so
on - would find themselves homeless and
desperate. Indeed, we need more money
for public housing. NDIS has the potential to greatly improve the lives of some
of our most vulnerable Australians. The
NBN, also, was to be the information infrastructure on which the industries of
the future arose. But the Coalition went for the cheaper option. Now we have
cost blow-outs and inferior technology.
Public investment in infrastructure and services, and collective consumption (eg: the
Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme) is often in all our interests ; providing a
‘better deal’ ; leaving us all better off at the end of the day. “
Women’s
Progress Welcome ; But Men are not ‘Essentially Bad’
“There has been welcome progress towards gender equality in
recent years ; with emphasis on women’s sport ; equal representation in
parliament ; debate about women’s disadvantage in the labour market, and
attempts by the ALP to subsidise child care wages to rectify this in part. But as Alan Barron (Your Say 3/6) appears to
recognise, there has been another side to this story whereby ‘maleness’ appears
to be ascribed a ‘bad essence’. Messages to the effect ‘girls can do
anything’ are positive ; but boys must not feel ‘left out’ ; as if less is
expected of them. And as if ‘maleness’
is ‘toxic’. Women must be encouraged to assert themselves: to assert that “no
means no” ; and men must be educated to respect this. And men and women must take special care to
be certain of consent where a couple are under the influence of alcohol. But
should we eliminate all spontaneity?
Also the cause of gender equality has advanced in leaps and bounds. But what about class-based inequality? The struggle for gender equality needs to be
but the first step in a much broader fight for equality.”
The Reality
behind ‘Class Warfare’ Rhetoric
“The Herald-Sun (YS 4/6) talks about an end to “retrograde”
“class warfare” from the ALP. But why is it not ‘class warfare’ when the
Conservatives cut Health, Education, Welfare, public infrastructure and Social
Insurance to pay for tax credits and tax cuts for the wealthy? And gradually there is a vicious cycle of
bracket creep and tax cuts for the well-off which is leading in the direction
of ‘flat tax’. Under which low and
middle income earners would suffer. The fact is that under the Conservatives
there is a constant state of class war ; which is gradually destroying our
egalitarian traditions and leading us along the path of the US model:
underclass, and great swathes of utterly destitute. Mixed economies with strong welfare states can
be strong economies as the Nordics (Sweden, Finland, Norway, Denmark) have
shown. The Herald-Sun may call it ‘class
warfare’ ; but if the ALP gives up on distributive justice for workers and the
disadvantaged it is giving up its core reason for being. What we need is a
responsible media that stops throwing around loaded language to convince people
to vote against their interests out of fear , and provides a balanced analysis instead.”
Labor and
Workers must reject ‘Aspirational’ Ideology
“Lou Coppola (Your Say 10/6) condemns a ‘non-Aspirational’
Left which “denigrates” Australia. All countries have events in their histories
they may now be less than proud of. But a strong democracy is capable of
recognising both the good and the bad ; putting things right ; and then moving
forward – our heads a bit higher. For
Australia’s part seminal moments include the granting of the suffrage for men
and women ; granting indigenous people the vote, and then the Keating
Government observing Land Rights ; and the establishment of Medicare as a more fair
and efficient alternative to a US style private health system. This does not
mean there’s not room to improve with a Treaty and further extension of
universal health care into areas like dental and prosthetics. Meanwhile: ‘aspirational’ Ideology around personal
enrichment is a ploy for working class Australians to turn against their own
interests for the sake of a pipe dream.
Most working class Australians see through it ; but even if the
Conservatives can convince a minority it can be electorally influential. Labor needs to confront this Ideology and
maintain that tax cuts for the rich and austerity are not in the interests of
workers.”
What’s at
stake with the CFMMEU and ‘Ensuring
Integrity’
“(14/6) “The John
Setka affair is being exploited as a pretext to push through hard-right-wing
anti union laws that are undemocratic and overrun citizens’ liberal
rights. The proposed laws would not only
see the prosecution of leaders ; but the dissolution of unions themselves,
leaving workers defenceless. So much
for freedom of association! (and what happens to workers' collectively-held assets via their unions?) Without
collective organisation in unions, workers have no defence of their rights and
interests but government. And government
definitely cannot always be relied upon.
Without unions and without a right to withdraw labour workers are
reduced to a condition somewhat similar to slavery. Whether in defence of wages and working
conditions ; or the promotion of safety ; or political industrial action to
protest against unjust laws : industrial liberties must be preserved if a society
is to honestly call itself liberal and democratic. The areas which are the responsibility of the
CFMMEU are also highly sensitive to the power of the broader labour movement to
defend workers interests’ ; and if it ever comes to it – to defend democracy
itself. The CFMMEU’s strength also
provides the opportunity to assist industrially weaker unions. If necessary the broad labour movement must
be willing to take action to render the ‘Ensuring Integrity ‘ legislation ‘the
dead letter of the law’. The case of
Clarrie O’Shea in 1969 is instructive here.
Theophanous should rethink Call for
Rightward Shift
“Theo Theophanous (17/6) urges Labor to ‘move to the Centre’.
But the ‘Centre’ is relative, and with the Conservatives dictating the terms,
it usually means shifting Right. He advocates passing the Coalition’s tax
legislation in full ; avoiding ‘tax and spend’ policies. With a Recession probably looming, that would
mean redistribution to the wealthy, and massive austerity down the track ;
making aged care reform impossible. Without social wage and social insurance
expansion ; without progressive tax ; Labor is no longer a Social Democratic
Party. Labor’s problems were confusion re: policy complexity; and scare
campaigns (eg: the ‘Death Tax’) which cut through ; supported by a $60 million
campaign by Clive Palmer which redirected preferences. That, and high
unemployment in Queensland, with the misassumption Adani would create many
jobs. Labor must be ‘progressively gradualist’, arguing for moderate increased
progressive taxes in the vicinity of 1% to 1.5% of GDP. (in addition to rescinding regressive Liberal Tax Cuts) It must be clear these
do no hurt lower to middle income earners ; and that voters get ‘value for
money’ in health, education, infrastructure, social insurance. If we accept the
Coalition’s terms of reference in tax we let the Conservatives impose a ‘policy
straight-jacket’ preventing social wage and social insurance expansion
indefinitely.”
Need to
Reforge Working Class as a “Class for Itself”
“Jeff Kennett argues that with widespread deindustrialisation
and the existence of some very high wage jobs that ‘the working class no longer
exists’. The working class has always included wage labourers exploited by
business ; but has been widely reinterpreted to include public sector workers
such as nurses and teachers. The most
important aspect of being ‘working class’ is not whether one is ‘blue collar’
or ‘white collar’, but that workers must sell their labour in order to
survive. What is true is that
consciousness of class is falling ; partly due to a fragmentation of class
identity with deindustrialisation. But
the reality is that ‘as a class in itself’ the working class still exists. And
the challenge for the labour movement is to restore a sense of shared identity
and interest amidst diversity. So the working class arises as 'a class for itself' in the broad sense. As for
the prosperity Kennett alludes to ; the median wage is about approximately $53,000. Which means half of all workers earn $53,000/year
or less. “
https://www.news.com.au/finance/work/how-much-do-you-need-to-earn-to-be-rich-in-australia/news-story/cd7e6647199773c56ad5a9270c7aab87
https://www.news.com.au/finance/work/how-much-do-you-need-to-earn-to-be-rich-in-australia/news-story/cd7e6647199773c56ad5a9270c7aab87
Left must
not Shrink Back from the True Reality of ‘Class Warfare’
“There’s an old saying on the Left: “they only call it class warfare when we
fight back”. To its discredit Labor during the election said little about the
massive austerity that would necessarily follow those tax cuts. (the Coalition
said nothing about this) Labor proposed
a traditional centre-left platform: closing tax loopholes to deliver a modest
windfall which would have enabled cancer and dental care, subsidised child
care, money for TAFE and more. This is labelled ‘class warfare’. But when the Coalition restructures the tax
system so workers on lower and middle incomes pay proportionately much more of
the burden (moving towards a ‘flat tax’) this is lauded as ‘reform’. And also
when it abolishes Penalty Rates. Labor
needs the focus and resolve to emphasise the coming austerity (on hospitals,
schools, aged care, infrastructure) all through this term of government. And so (in government) withdraw ‘phase 3’
which delivers $95 billion to the wealthy over only the first five years. Politics is a continual ‘tug of war’ between
labour, capital and citizens. If we
refuse to fight back for fear of the ‘class warfare’ label we have lost before
we even begin. That’s the point of it.”
Unemployed must
be Treated with Decency
“A recent Herald-Sun article was Opinion dressed up as
reporting. (A.Galloway, Insult to Taxpayers, Payments to Bludgers Withheld ;
31/7) The object of the article was to
inspire ‘outrage’ that job-seekers had missed appointments for possible
jobs) But as the article itself
concedes, mutual obligation is very severe when it comes to Newstart, and the
people in question had their payments suspended. Also, Newstart payments are only
approximately $40 a day ; imposing harsh conditions of poverty ; and are hardly
a ‘lifestyle choice’. Those on Newstart
are hard pressed to feed themselves and put a roof over their head, let alone
pay for smart clothes, a computer and so on – necessary in the modern world to
search for work. For many: disabled,
older unemployed, regional unemployed – the search for work is almost hopeless.
And yet we persist with promoting this loathing for the unemployed. The real point of this regime is to create a
‘whip of hunger and utter destitution’ so jobseekers are forced to take any job
no matter the pay and conditions. This ‘reserve
army of labour’ provides employers with ‘the whip hand’ and helps drive down
wages and conditions for hundreds of thousands of other jobseekers.”
‘The Age’ Letters May to July 2019
(Mostly unpublished)
Democracy
and the ‘Fair Go’ at Stake as Labor considers its Options
“(26/5) If Labor abandons distributive justice it more or less
abandons its reason for being. Labor
needs to commission research from a multiplicity of sources to minimise the
chances for error. Then it needs to actively campaign in order to restore
support for a traditional social democratic redistributive agenda; which
restores progressivity to the tax system with a focus on corporations and the
top 10%. And also full indexation of the
bottom few tax brackets. Issues like superannuation tax concessions remain
crucial for the Budget and distributive justice ; costing tens of billions
annually. Labor also needs to explain
how the mix of bracket creep and regressively-structured tax cuts make the
income tax system more and more unfair.
Labor needs a deep and broad policy agenda. But Morisson’s victory shows how a narrow and
negative message can ‘cut through’. As
well as the shallow but effective construction of the ‘ScoMo’ ‘everyman’
persona. But is democracy viable any
longer when the ‘Power Resources’ of the Right are overwhelming ; where a
billionaire can buy an election ; where the Murdoch monopoly mass print media has
so little effective competition ; and the Government is canvassing legislation
to ban GetUp! From campaigning?”
Why the
Anti-Union Stance at ‘The Drum’?
“The other night watching ‘The Drum’ on the ABC I was
appalled to see a virtual consensus that anti-union laws enabling the
deregistration of unions who take unprotected industrial action could be
justified. The line of argument seemed to be that since corporations should be
accountable if breaking the law, so too should unions. But what this all really begs is the question of whether or not workers should have a right to withdraw their labour – full
stop. This issue is now much bigger than John Setka and whatever indiscretions
he has made. The proposed laws could be
a weapon with which to break the labour movement in this country. As Sally McManus argued some time ago now –
laws are not necessarily right.
Sometimes civil disobedience is justified – including industrial
action. If unions cannot take industrial
action workers’ options are very limited to defend their interests. We cannot
let John Setka be used as a cover for union-busting legislation which will
weaken workers conditions, rights, strength and liberties in this country.”
‘The Age’ Shifts Right on Tax Debate
“The Age
(22/6) argues that middle and high income earners will pay some of the highest
income taxes in the world without the Conservatives’ $160 billion tax cut
plan. But ‘The Age’ has been unclear
what it means by ‘middle income’ in the past.
In fact the Median (ie: middle) income is approximately
$53,000/year. $120,000/year is actually
a very high income compared with most.
Also the gap between Australian and OECD average tax rates is almost 7
percentage points. (or approaching $119
billion/year) The Coalition’s tax cuts
would mean massive austerity (worse in a recession) ; and maybe some of the gap
would be made up by raising the GST (as in many European countries with their
VATs) and a negative distributive outcome for genuine low and middle income
earners. Raising the top threshold of the 32.5% tax bracket from $120,000 to
$200,000 would very significantly ‘flatten’ the overall system. Some other countries may also have inheritance taxes, wealth
taxes, strong land taxes ; but Australia has always depended highly on income
tax. The trend is towards less
equality. But we don’t HAVE to follow the trend. And there was a time I expected better from
‘The Age’.”
Welcome
Consideration on Civics Education in Victoria: But Stronger Action Necessary
“It was good to read that the Victorian
State Government is set to emphasise Civics education (17/7), partly in
response to the voices of students themselves. This must include
processes, parties and institutions: but it must be about more than this as
well. Education for active and critical citizenship must explore interests,
values and pathways to civic activism. That includes “ideological
literacy”: an appreciation of the political spectrum from far left to centre,
and to the far right. As well as libertarian and authoritarian influences.
Importantly: there need to be nuanced understandings. Political
categories like ‘social democracy’, ‘liberalism’, ‘democratic socialism’,
‘conservatism’ have historically meant different things to different
people. Opportunities for activism include parties, representative
democracy, and social movements. The aim is not to indoctrinate: but rather
this calls upon the professionalism of teachers to impart knowledge, wisdom and
understanding in an inclusive way. Students should go out into the world ready
to participate as active and informed citizens ; always ready to widen their
horizons and make informed political decisions and interventions. This is
about empowerment ; and that empowerment is good for democracy.”
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