One of the most horrible things about Australian politics at the moment is the plunge to the bottom. At the moment we have two political leaders (Julia Gillard of the ALP and Tony Abbott of the Liberal Party) who are committed to appealing to the fears and insecurities of the electorate. This is writ large in the discussion over what to do about people who come to Australia to seek asylum. Both parties seem to be trying to outdo one another to be as inhumane as possible, by ‘processing’ those who attempt to arrive in Australia by boat in places outside Australia.
I understand that this is probably not because of deep ideological commitment, as I suspect neither of them are, by nature, cruel or inhumane people.
It is, in a way, worse: they think they are hearing the voice of Australia saying ‘we don’t want these people here.’
Maybe the majority of Australians do think that.
However, that does not make it right, and it does not make it the right thing to do.
Political leaders need to, at times, tell the nation when we need to look at ourselves, and choose a new path. Sometimes, they need to tell us the truth about our obligations, and our commitments. And about our prejudices and fears. What saddens me about many contemporary politicians is their failure to lead, responding instead to our base fears and desires. The asylum seeker ‘debate’ is one example – carbon emission reduction is another.
As I grow older I am more and more convinced that our current systems and institutions (of all kinds) are breaking or broken, probably beyond repair. A new way needs to be found.





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