Post Budget Blues

Two weeks after the Federal Budget the fur is still flying.
Are you surprised? I'm not after the effort Mr Abbott went to in Opposition making everything simple, sloganish and sooo negative.

Street Art: A sign of things to come perhaps?

They are now reaping the results of the 3 year intensive, misinformation and almost hate campaign against Labor.
Labor of course is somewhat hamstrung by its own problems, mainly having lost credibility they are still struggling to have any meaning except when behaving like Tony Abbott.

Its clear to me we will need to cut something
Its clear also that some form of taxation will need to rise to meet the outgoings, whether that is GST, Carbon Taxes, or levies.
We also face the positive tsunami of costs associated with an ageing population, expensive basics and movement of wealth offshore.
I'm happy to work, part-time til I'm 65, but by then the chronic conditions that already afflict me may be less easy to manage.
My employer may also not find me productive enough.

Attacking the most down and out is not really an efficient way of raising the funds. My observation of the people who come into my library looking for work shows me many are pretty unemployable, unless you forcibly pick them up and dump them in the outback to do hard physical labour, where personality 'quirks' may not be too important. Certainly, organisations that exist with customer service functions would not employ them.

My colleagues with disabled adult children tell me the sheltered workshops which employ them are being closed through withdrawal of funding from State and Commonwealth bodies. A retrograde step if I've ever heard one. These people actually work for what they produce, somewhat cheaper than the rest of us and are grateful for the job.

But lets face it, the poor will get much poorer with this budget.
Crime will rise, health will disimprove and an opportunity to invest in the next big thing - Carbon friendly business and jobs- is being squandered.
Apart from the deficit levy, the rich and big business are getting away with little impact on their bottom line.

So keep the Carbon Tax and Mining Tax Joe and Tony, and work on reducing the spending.
Attacking the poor, elderly and unemployed will get you sacked from Government, eventually.
Unless you produce the mother of all disinformation campaigns in the future.
A likely prospect.

The 48 Laws of Power: Sharpen Your Pencils!

This is the name of a book my Mad-Scientist husband bought some time ago. Given the overwhelming trouncing of the federal Labor/Green Government in the recent Federal Election, its time to look at these Power Laws.
Law 1: Never Outshine The Master:  

By Robert Greene, 1998

Something Malcolm Turnbull has had to manage, successfully it seems.
Major failing by Labor Party and reason they got chucked out - revolving door of leaderships peeves the people off, big time!

Law 2: Never Put too Much Trust In Friends, Learn How to Use Enemies.
Friends are easily aroused to envy - hence the rise of Julia Gillard and the backstabbing by Kevin Rudd. See her Guardian Essay.
Clive Palmer is interesting as he is certainly one who can use Enemies. His current success in Parliament and his performance on ABC TV, Q and A last night was fascinating to see.
I would imagine Tony Abbott knows all about this one also.

Law 3: Conceal Your Intentions
This was a major ploy by Tony Abbott and the Federal Liberals in the last 3 years with minimal policy details, costings at the last minute and 3 word sound bites.
Clive Palmer also looks to be guiding people down the wrong path, envelope them in enough red-herrings (ex-military conspiracy in the Australian Electoral Commission on Q and A perhaps?). Bring along a Pen next time you vote!
Federal Labor was open and overly transparent, except when back-stabbing, deal-making and back tracking!
So the Conservation Movement is in for a fight with Abbott intending to allow fishing in Marine Parks, Commercial development in National Parks and opening the Great Barrier Reef to oil drilling and huge development of Coal shipping facilities, roll back of World Heritage forests in Tasmania. All mentioned in the first week of power!
Leaving it up to State Governments to do the 'Conservation' after many years of state over-development, resource extraction, land-clearing, fracking in farming areas, water pollution and coral reef degradation.
Hand in Cookie Jar surely!

But that's enough Power for now. I'll go back to the birthday cake I need to start icing!!

Will the Liberals have Mandate after Tomorrow?

Now that the media has all but wiped off any chance of the Labor Party winning tomorrow's Federal Election, I ponder Tony Abbott's word "Mandate"
Mr Abbott claims to have a mandate to roll back the Carbon Tax and replace it with the Coalition's Direct Action Policy.
Polifacts Australia tested the statement "All Coalition policies are fully costed and fully funded." and gave it the  thumbs down, False rating, specifically noting that "On Direct Action, Abbott argues that the policy was looked at by Treasury following the 2010 election and they "found no fault with it".

Actually, a scathing Treasury note from July 2011 found that: "The economic costs of direct action would almost certainly be even larger because it would be less efficient than a market-based carbon price mechanism."

It also referenced Department of Climate Change and Energy Efficiency modelling which indicated Direct Action would only achieve a quarter of the abatement promised by the Coalition."

See also Polifacts on Emissions Intensity Falling issues

So does the Coalition have a mandate?

Unfortunately it probably does, which will make the remarkable achievement of the last few years, that of actually getting a Carbon Abatement Policy through the Federal Parliament and seeing it actually work, a sad historical accident in the overwhelming selfishness of Australian Politics.

If the Greens don't hold the balance of power in the Senate, as also seems likely, then we will have to absolutely blitz the Labor Party to hold onto this legislation in the Senate as well as persuade the 'kooky' right wing Senators to keep it in place. Not easy Jan!
But the Labor Party and Greens also had a Mandate in the last Federal Government. They were a Coalition who governed, just like Abbott will be tomorrow, no matter what Tony says or does. Labor & Greens had a mandate based on negotiating a Carbon Price!

But no matter if the worst befalls it - Australia will still go down the path of Global Warming. 

CO2 doesn't care if Kevin or Tony wins tomorrow. 

Our insurance premium's will go up as more of our fragile buildings experience climate extremes

Leptospermum scoparium 'Nanum Rubrum' flowers

, electricity prices will go up as we rack on the air-conditioning and the Renewable Energy industry will get crafty in obtaining investment and demonstrating to knowledgeable people that they are already cheaper than the current providers. If my local neighbours are telling me they will go off grid as soon as possible, then they will once storage technology becomes feasible.

Mark Diesendorf, Uni NSW & friends released a report showing the march towards renewable energy is almost unstoppable. Lets hope so for all our sakes.

Meanwhile my spring flowers are enjoying the record breaking above 20 degree start to September in Victoria! Lets hope the garden survives the coming hot summer.

Economics of Climate - Liberal Policy costings fail!

Yesterday the Climate Institute released a report undertaken by SKM-MMA and Monash University Centre for Policy Studies on the cost of the Coalition's Climate Policy. This report outlined a black hole of A$4 billion using the Coalitions Direct Action to combat Climate Change.
Setting aside whether the modelling done by the above groups is accurate, partially accurate or even if you believe its a complete fiction, one has to ask where and how the Federal Coalition will get the money to pay the big polluters to, pretty please, reduce their carbon emissions.

Coalition Climate Policy Report

The Conversation also has addressed the problem today.

When the recent Federal Labor party dropped its policy of paying owners to decommission old Coal Fired Power Station (which used to belong to us, the Victorian people a decade or so ago), there was a deep sigh of relief in our household.
It seemed incongruous, in a party who supposedly stood up for equity and working people, progressive social and environmental policies to be paying big business off.

Now we may have the Federal Liberal Party, who bats for individual choice, free markets and the ability of the rich to control even more of the common wealth pool, about to do the paying are we seriously expecting big business to do anything other than take our money (rent-seeking) and then do whatever they think is best for their bottom line and shareholders?? See this article by the Climate Spectator.

We just need to look at how well the free markets and big business in the car industry have managed to be innovative, cut costs and manage their business to make money and jobs for Australians.

The Climate Commission's infographic says it all and we are like the Ostrich sticking its head in the sand.
Roll on Election Day and the Government we deserve to have.

WA revisits its Feed In Tariff

Join them. I have!!

Congratulations to Solar Citizens and other groups who protested the West Australian State Government announcement it wished to change the Feed in Tariff for Solar house owners who were promised 40c. The announcement that they were going to reduce this to 20c was greeted with protests. People Power Lights up WA gives the full story.
As someone who purchased Solar Power a number of years ago I too am on a Feed In Tariff that is greater than the paltry 8c per kWh that is the current tariff. I hope the current Victorian State Government doesn't think to try and follow their West Australian brethren. However, I would personally prefer that Solar Power stands on its own feet, so to speak, and have most subsidies removed. Governments of all persuasions have bugger all credibility in this area with short-term thinking and swinging policies.

I think the tide has turned (sorry another metaphor) and so many people are now aware of the benefits, pitfalls and experience of solar power. I hope the current increases in electricity costs will continue to drive solar uptake and the current schemes to promote them are at arms length from all forms of government.

The Federal Liberals have promised to Cut the Carbon Tax and many of the various public service bodies, including the Climate Commission which are promoting the move to renewable industries.
Perhaps even the RET (Renewable energy Targets will be in the firing line, though supposedly both parties agree to the 5%  carbon reduction  reduction target.
"Election 2013 Issues: looking after Australia", by Andrew Campbell (The Conversation website) gives a good run-down on some of the problems of Government short-term thinking, unsatisfactory interference and general inability to have a bi-partisan approach to improving our environment, livability and climate problems.

If the current polling on the Federal Election is carried through to the actual Election Results then we had better be prepared for a steam roller (another metaphor!) over all sorts of things.
Perhaps I'd better get my protest shoes on and banners prepared.