Politics is a dirty word

Voter apathy throughout Australia is nothing new but it will be more pronounced with the next election, following the performance of our politicians in Canberra. Why would anyone vote for a member of a political party? Parties subvert elected representatives to the point where they no longer act in the interests of their constituents or the community at large – their only concerns are for the party and their own benefit. There is scant voter choice between the ALP or the coalition. It will make little difference which forms Government after the election, the same bureaucrats will run the show anyway. We are voting for local members, not for a particular individual as Prime Minister. The only way for real change is to vote for representatives who work for us – not for their party. So we need far more independents in parliament, people who consider issues and fully debate them rather than just trot out party mantra and rhetoric. Before casting a vote, talk to the people seeking to rep...

The unfolding muddle in Canberra confirms the absurdity of our political system – we simply don’t need the draining cost of a Federal Parliament. The country would be more efficiently run by COAG – already made up by representatives of all states. We don’t vote for a Prime Minister, we vote for local members who then appoint a PM. That’s how it works so why go through the charade of Federal elections. Politicians put their parties before the interests of the community – so the problem could be solved by eliminating political parties, ensuring that candidates present their own views and intentions to their constituents.

Turkey’s proposed stealth fighter jet may gain wide sales throughout the world following Donald Trump’s decision to impose tariffs on Turkey. UK firms BAE Systems and Roll Royce are assisting Turkey with developing the fighter TFX programme. Britain and Turkey have signed a deal worth more than $140 million to develop the stealth fighter jet which is being designed as a weapons platform superior to the US F35 Joint Strike fighter. Pakistan is already interested in buying the plane for its airforce, and many other world sales are expected as confidence in the US declines. First test flights of the plane are scheduled for 2023 with already-designed turbofan engines but later models will be fitted with locally-produced engines.

The unfolding nonsense in Canberra within the Coalition Government demonstrates yet again the stupidity of our political system. For years, successive Governments have been enmeshed in internal party politics. Politicians owe more allegiance to their parties than to voters in their electorates. The people do not elect Prime Ministers – they elect local members to Parliament who appoint the PM. The best way forward is to dump preferential voting and go back to a ‘first past the post’ system for elections. That would eliminate the absurdity of candidates winning a seat (particularly in the Senate) when they only received a handful of votes. The next step would be to ban political parties – they corrupt our political representatives by imposing a duty on them which is seen as more important than governing the country for the benefit of the cdommunity. 00

Declining standards seem to be a factor in most facets of modern life – just look at the levels of corruption and misbehaviour in politics, the banking system and business generally. And then there’s the real test – free-to- air television with a plethora of reality shows for the brain-dead. Even the ABC gets in on the act with a programme like Q&A which masquerades as a serious discussion panel but usually is just a free opportunity for politicians to peddle their particular foibles and philosophies. The ABC’s breakfast show underwent a transformation to turn into pale copy of the Channel 7 show, Sunrise. There was a ray of hope for entertainment with the establishment of Channel 76 Flix which seemed to promise the escapism of endless movies. But what does it deliver – a churning of a handful of films like 'The Master Race', 'Tall in the Saddle', 'Trail Street, ' "The Navy comes Through," "Marine Raiders" and 'Action in Arabia...

The European Union has said it will protect businesses from US threats against therm if they continue to trade with Iran following the US decision to reimpose sanctions against Iran. The US decision follows President Trump’s repudiation of the nuclear deal negotiated by his predecessor, Barrack Obama to limit Iran’s nuclear programme. It’s time for other US allies, including Australia, to stand up against Trump’s belligerence. A start would be to cancel orders for the F35 joint strike fighter. Other options are available.