Happy New Year! With the turning of the calendar comes new opportunities and decisions. Some of these decisions – exercise more, lose weight, finish last year’s projects before embarking on new ones – typically last about as long as it takes to finish the Christmas leftovers. Others can be life-changing.
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For all of us, and regardless of our personal New Year’s resolutions, 2019 is going to be a year of decisions.
In the first half of this year we face two elections: the New South Wales election in March, and the federal election, most likely in May.
As usual, in the lead-up to these elections we will be showered with promises, mostly in the form of financial gain at an individual level. Voting with the hip-pocket is a cynical exercise, yet it has proven effective and governments and oppositions alike are disinclined to change any tactic that works.
Unfortunately, this approach results in giving us governments that are capable of only providing direction and policy for four years into the future. Anyone who has children or grandchildren, however, needs to know that there is strong and progressive policy in place to pave the way to a better future, not just more of the same.
The past decade has seen Australia slip backwards rather than take steps forward. Public policy in areas such as climate change, water management, energy and higher education have become mired in ideology and political points-scoring rather than building on the knowledge we have to provide a strong foundation for future growth. Short-term thinking and decision-making lead can only stunt that growth.
The recent news about the fish kills in the Murray is an example of how short-term policy for economic gain has resulted in long-term destruction. The same road is bring travelled now in regards to such potentially damaging activities as fracking in the New South Wales food bowl. Meanwhile, governments attempt to distract us with the smoke and mirrors of populist arguments and the sorcery of pulling money out of hats.
This is a year of decisions: whether we want a country that can nurture and feed future generations, or do we want to die with more money; whether we want governments that will put people first or bow to the demands of big corporations.
Social and political change is difficult. But at some point we need to short circuit the short-term approach to government and demand decisions for the future.
