Friday, April 8, 2011

Climate Change....it's so hot right now.

The carbon tax is polarising our nation. Some are unconvinced that global warming is real. Some are opposed to any taxation. Some are worried about the price rises that will result from the tax. Some are convinced that the tax is a great initiative and essential for the future of our country.

So, the climate is changing? The seas are heating up and the polar caps are melting. Apparently the main cause of this is our carbon dioxide emissions. Really?

Lets pretend for a minute that this is actually a cyclical thing that has occurred since the beginning of time. That the cyclones, floods and droughts are simply repeating themselves every 30-50 years (ish).Forget for a moment that science is saying that global warming is real and just take a moment to think about what we all know for sure. Most households in Australia have an air-conditioner (or 5), large t.v's, dishwashers, dryers, computers, internet connection, two cars and many other appliances and conveniences. All of these items use electricity or petrol to use and most are manufactured using both.

Fifty years ago there were none of those items in any household, except the car. Is it really possible that we can be using all of those things while having absolutely no impact on our surrounding environment? No. Not a chance.

Is it likely that global warming is a myth and the truth is we are going through the usual repetitive process that has always existed here on earth? While it is likely that weather patterns can explain much of what is happening every year, it's also feasible that those patterns are getting stronger and lasting longer. The fact that our polar ice caps are melting and the sea level is rising will have little affect on the weather so lumping all global factors together is not going to get anyone a clear picture of what is going on.

It's also an extremely slow process and will be even slower to recover. Does that mean we shouldn't worry about it? I mean, it's not going to affect us...or our children. Should we care about what happens to our Great-Great-Grandchildren? We won't be around to see it.

The fact is, we are not doing our environment any favours. So, what should we do about it? Simple answer.....develop much better power sources and fuels. More efficient, safer for our environment and less toxic manufacturing processes.

The easiest way to do this is to encourage those with the most money to spend some of it on research and development. Lets say we FINE all big polluters in this country. We give that money to the rest of the population to cover any cost increases that result from the fines. This makes the Government no money. It costs the taxpayers no money. The companies paying the fine then start to look at ways to avoid paying it. The easiest way, pollute less. So, companies then invest in research and development of more sustainable and eco friendly fuel sources, that research produces products that the entire country can use, our carbon emissions are reduced and the fines are no longer required.

Take this example, remove the word FINE and replace it with Carbon Tax.

This message is not being understood. People are completely bamboozled by what a Carbon Tax is and what it's purpose is. Nobody seems sure about much of anything anymore....especially when related to the environment.

Is it a Green issue that has become a Labor issue because of the nature of a hung Parliament? Maybe. Do we really care where it came from? No. What we want is a simple explanation of the Tax and we want it repeated until the message is clear. Once the point has been made effectively (note the word, effectively) then the people can decide if they support it or not.

Right now, there is no clear message about this Tax. There is no concise, simple statement that explains what it is or what it's for. Most of us are not accountants, we are not environmental scientists and we are not big business. What we are though, are taxpayers. As such, we deserve to know what affect this Tax may have on our incomes and outgoings.

Much of what the Government has reformed, added, dissolved and proposed during the past year has been lacking the explanation, any explanation. Instead, we have been treated to a he said, she said diatribe that has done neither party any favours and left a hugely confused population in it's wake.

The job of Prime Minister is not to defend every quote, decision or hairstyle. It's to present the Australian public with a clear view of what is being done for us in Canberra. At the moment, that's not happening. Has Julia become obsessed with keeping her job and forgotten that there is an entire country that needs to be informed?

As for Tony....what is he doing? Apparently his sole purpose is to knock down and squash every single thing Labor. He appears to see this as the best way to force Australians back to the polling booths, as soon as possible. He also seems to have forgotten that there is an entire country out there who are confused about much of what is going on in our country and he is not offering any assistance to fix that. His priority is to outdo the Prime Minister in the insult department, which is a race he is winning by the way.

Time for them both to pull themselves away from the mirror and take a good look around. We, the people are out there, waiting. What we are waiting for is information. Time for some real Governing of this country.......any day now.......maybe......

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