COMMENT, Global – Today we are coming into a world where the ability to yell loudest counts for more than the structuring of logic in an argument.
Australia is having an Election on November 24. The rhetoric is thick and fast.
The Australian televised political debate, and subsequent wrap-up; has been full of the usual political shenanigans.
Respected veteran Australian journalist Ray Martin put forward that the Conservative Party pulled the plug on the debate TV feed when it was not going their way.
Despite this the content of political debate was very high quality. The ideas and the choices between candidates were clear.
Unfortunately the bias of many mainstream media proprietors towards the incumbent government meant that they bent over to make Howard look good, after a clear victory by Labor’s Rudd in most people’s eyes.
3 Beliefs You May not Know Australians Hold
If you are reading this from elsewhere (and 90%+ of you are), here’s 3 facts you may not know about Australians:
1) Against Iraq: According to accepted polling, the majority of Australians believe being in Iraq was a mistake, and that it has made us more vulnerable to terrorism
2) Climate Change Believers: Majority of Australians, according to some polls, view climate change as a bigger threat than terrorism
3) Non-Conservative Youth: According to many polls, 3 in 4 of the citizens under 30 hate the conservative government of Howard
The zeitgeist of the times in Australia’s is with Labor’s Kevin Rudd, who will win. As I previously predicted. (See 3 Predictions for Australia in 07/08 )
A Conservative Loss…
Except… that Howard will try to pull a trick out of his hat. He seems obviously so out of touch that the success of these tricks are unlikely.
A lot of overseas people can’t understand how a conservative government overseeing a long period of economic growth can be kicked out.
Howard, the conservative, can’t believe Australians are so ungrateful. He is taking it personally. And that is leading to arrogance.
As I write this, I am watching ABC TV, with pro-Conservative talking heads (both from the Murdoch newspaper rags) being wheeled out to talk favorably and cast doubt on the debate result. It’s spin. Slippery spin.
The pro-conservative talking heads are now as I write attacking the debate result. More spin.
You can take from that that traditional media is becoming less relevant, and Citizen Media, such as blogs and Web 2.0 media is going to move up the Innovation Diffusion Curve to increasing relevance.
People know traditional media is biased towards the entrenched incumbent. Power likes power. But Australians aren’t all in agreement with the powerful, this time.
A Left Win… Leading to Innovation
There are some areas here that will change after a Kevin Rudd victory.
- Education spending will rise again
- Kyoto will be ratified
- Greenhouse Gas targets will be set
- Employment law will shift back to the employee
- Inequality may be reduced thanks to guys like Greg Combet
- Infrastructure spending may increase
- Broadband Quality and IT infrastructure will improve
Inevitably some Socialist baggage may creep into government again. Australia’s Left is very Left at times. If you are from overseas, please remember the Left in each country is different.
But Australians do care about the environment, about education and the future.
Yes they care about economics, but they know that without infrastructure, education and environment a modern Australia cannot continue to grow.
So like many US citizens who did not vote for Bush, most Australians view Howard now with disdain. And he can’t understand it. Because it’s not the economy, this time.
It’s a vision for innovation.
Take care,
Christopher
Why Australians Do Care.
COMMENT, Global – Today we are coming into a world where the ability to yell loudest counts for more than the structuring of logic in an argument.
Australia is having an Election on November 24. The rhetoric is thick and fast.
The Australian televised political debate, and subsequent wrap-up; has been full of the usual political shenanigans.
Respected veteran Australian journalist Ray Martin put forward that the Conservative Party pulled the plug on the debate TV feed when it was not going their way.
Despite this the content of political debate was very high quality. The ideas and the choices between candidates were clear.
Unfortunately the bias of many mainstream media proprietors towards the incumbent government meant that they bent over to make Howard look good, after a clear victory by Labor’s Rudd in most people’s eyes.
3 Beliefs You May not Know Australians Hold
If you are reading this from elsewhere (and 90%+ of you are), here’s 3 facts you may not know about Australians:
1) Against Iraq: According to accepted polling, the majority of Australians believe being in Iraq was a mistake, and that it has made us more vulnerable to terrorism
2) Climate Change Believers: Majority of Australians, according to some polls, view climate change as a bigger threat than terrorism
3) Non-Conservative Youth: According to many polls, 3 in 4 of the citizens under 30 hate the conservative government of Howard
The zeitgeist of the times in Australia’s is with Labor’s Kevin Rudd, who will win. As I previously predicted. (See 3 Predictions for Australia in 07/08 )
A Conservative Loss…
Except… that Howard will try to pull a trick out of his hat. He seems obviously so out of touch that the success of these tricks are unlikely.
A lot of overseas people can’t understand how a conservative government overseeing a long period of economic growth can be kicked out.
Howard, the conservative, can’t believe Australians are so ungrateful. He is taking it personally. And that is leading to arrogance.
As I write this, I am watching ABC TV, with pro-Conservative talking heads (both from the Murdoch newspaper rags) being wheeled out to talk favorably and cast doubt on the debate result. It’s spin. Slippery spin.
The pro-conservative talking heads are now as I write attacking the debate result. More spin.
You can take from that that traditional media is becoming less relevant, and Citizen Media, such as blogs and Web 2.0 media is going to move up the Innovation Diffusion Curve to increasing relevance.
People know traditional media is biased towards the entrenched incumbent. Power likes power. But Australians aren’t all in agreement with the powerful, this time.
A Left Win… Leading to Innovation
There are some areas here that will change after a Kevin Rudd victory.
Inevitably some Socialist baggage may creep into government again. Australia’s Left is very Left at times. If you are from overseas, please remember the Left in each country is different.
But Australians do care about the environment, about education and the future.
Yes they care about economics, but they know that without infrastructure, education and environment a modern Australia cannot continue to grow.
So like many US citizens who did not vote for Bush, most Australians view Howard now with disdain. And he can’t understand it. Because it’s not the economy, this time.
It’s a vision for innovation.
Take care,
Christopher
Executive Director of Innovation, at 2thinknow. Expert on Innovation Cities and innovation analyst. An experienced data analyst to business and government for over 13 years.
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Filed under: Asia, COMMENT, Innovation Cities, INNOVATION Vault Tagged: 2THINKNOW, Australia, Australian elections, eco-friendly, elections, environment, Featured, green, John Howard, Kevin Rudd, Kyoto, Melbourne & Victoria, News & Media, Perth & WA, politics, Politics & Foreign Policy, Sydney & NSW |