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Young Lib Recommends, "Join the Greens"Alex Hawk, the National President of the Young Liberals, wants to cull the wets from the flock, and send them to Greener pasture. On the latter point, I think he's right. The left of the ALP should do the same. Actually, I'd be a bit more careful. I reckon those who believe in our market-driven capitalist society, but who want to have decent, tolerant social values at the same time, should join the Democrats. Those who are socially liberal and also are to the left on economic issues, should join the Greens. If these two parties could sort out this political territory they could be, together, a much clearer force in Australian politics, and could stand united on social, environmental and democracy issues. Just my opinion on that front. While I'm onto it, the ALP would be smaller but again much clearer if it became a genuine party for unionised workers, as is its origin, concentrating on representing that (very large) constituency and content itself with coalitions for government with Greens and Democrats. For god's sake if a political force can be based on a church then hang anyone who says one shouldn't be based on workplace organisations. The ALP Right should just be honest with themselves, partners and children, and join the bloody Liberal party. Again it's just my opinion, that part of the confusion in Australian politics is that people are choosing their allegiances on the basis of logo and theme song rather than philosophy. So every party, to the casual punter, looks a) the same, and b) incoherent. Here's the article in the SMH by Alan Mascarenhas: Young Lib taunts the wets: go to the Greens.
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A different take
I had a somewhat different take on this. Encouraging the wets to leave the party will only cause the Liberal Party to move further to the right, taking that section of the community that has some allegiance to the party (the barrackers, as I am known to call them) with them. That can't be a good thing for anybody.
The Democrats don't even appear to be viable as a minor party at the moment, let alone as a potential alternative government, so going there is likely to be counter-productive unless it occurs via a split in the Liberals.
Bear in mind that a split that occurs by way of the exodus of the wets would leave all of the resources of the Liberal party in the hands of the Right. Those resources - funds, assets and infrastructure built up over the years - are not likely to be replicated in the Democrats or anywhere else in the foreseeable future.
The E Party
Hamish, I saw the future of Oz politics on SBS Insight, May 17th.
A large, vocal, articulate group of well-to-do young people were advocating the regulated availability of mind-altering substances like ecstasy. There seemed to be a shared understanding that alcohol was something to be endured, heroin and speed were for losers, cannabis was risky (though OK in the right context), but the E family of droogs was definitely the focus of the Kool Klubbies. I didn't watch all of it, for the vacuous shit being espoused, so can't say if nicotine got a rating.
If politics starts to oscillate round small, hard objects like 'gay marriage', abortion and injecting rooms, then we are in for a period of upheaval like we've never seen before. If an overhaul is due, then I hope there are some pilots out there who will steer the ships around the icebergs.
The point of my analogy, is that something important was overlooked in the Party Drugs forum. There is a whole collection of people, club owners, wealthy kiddies, drug makers, drug sellers, etc, who are just as dedicated to their share of the market, as, say, the alcohol industry. Behind the bunch of clean-skinned, fresh-faced, non-yob and attractive mouthpieces for the Yoof, telling society what they want, is a faceless mob of much more sinister intention.
The Libs and the Labs look more and more like tools, to me. Unless we can see who is putting up the funding for the advertising, and the think-tanks, and who is feeding the pap into the mainstream media, we may indeed be better off with the Dems. Though I don't agree with Don Chipp's concept of happy families.
I think the marijuana war is not going to end for a long time.