Tuesday, June 15, 2004
GREEEEEEEEEN with envy: Pulp equals popularity
Peter Garrett has joined the ALP, and will win a safe seat in Kingsford Smith. He'll finally be a politician, and he's not afraid to compromise some of his standards to make that dream a reality.
The problem is that Peter's strength is his idealism, a man unafraid to make a statement even when his actions are at odds with the opinions of both of the major parties. To quote from 'How can we sleep when our beds are burning:'
The time has come
To say fair's fair
To pay the rent
To pay our share
The time has come
A fact's a fact
It belongs to them
Let's give it back
(Isn't it interesting that PM John Howard's favourite Oils song is one based on reconciliation and returning what the white man stole, when that is precisely what makes this OLD white man is most afraid.)
If Peter is prepared to water down some of his principles, is he the same man that wore 'sorry' on his t shirt at the 2000 Olympics, regardless of the public outcry? Will he wilt under pressure on reconciliation, or reparation through a regional ATSI funding body? Will he collapse under pressure on the issues for which his activism has earnt him the most respect?
His support of a Tasmanian pulp mill is extraordinary. Peter must understand the reality of the arguments for a pulp mill. There is a glut of pulp supply hitting the market presently, most due to the recent addition of Chinese and South African production. Tasmania will soon be producing Hundreds and thousands of tonnes surplus pulp.
Supply exceeds demand, and prices drop, leaving a surplus. What better way to deal with the excess pulp than creating a new market for the pulp which will sustain production levels. The Tasmanian timber lobby is so strong, completely under-regulated, lacks any formal accountability and is in the pockets of the Lenin Labor Government. The regulation body, the Forest Practises Board, employs more lumberjacks than it does environmentalists, and operates under the guise of independence. All the while the old growth forests like the Tarkine and Styx Valley are under serious threat from a greedy Forestry Tasmania, whose clearfelling agenda remains unchecked by the generous Regional Forestry Agreement.
Will Peter tow the line on Tasmania, even as the last old growth forest is burning?
The ridiculous argument for a pulp mill in Tasmania is that the mill will be 'environmentally friendly', as it is energy from a supposedly sustainable and renewable source. Isn't it ironic that the government will be able to claim carbon credits from the destruction of a unique resource from an international protocol that it hasn't yet signed.
If Garrett is to retain his integrity, he must choose what he will not compromise before he begins compromising on what he will. I fear that for Garrett, this process of compromising values and ideals has already begun.
The problem is that Peter's strength is his idealism, a man unafraid to make a statement even when his actions are at odds with the opinions of both of the major parties. To quote from 'How can we sleep when our beds are burning:'
The time has come
To say fair's fair
To pay the rent
To pay our share
The time has come
A fact's a fact
It belongs to them
Let's give it back
(Isn't it interesting that PM John Howard's favourite Oils song is one based on reconciliation and returning what the white man stole, when that is precisely what makes this OLD white man is most afraid.)
If Peter is prepared to water down some of his principles, is he the same man that wore 'sorry' on his t shirt at the 2000 Olympics, regardless of the public outcry? Will he wilt under pressure on reconciliation, or reparation through a regional ATSI funding body? Will he collapse under pressure on the issues for which his activism has earnt him the most respect?
His support of a Tasmanian pulp mill is extraordinary. Peter must understand the reality of the arguments for a pulp mill. There is a glut of pulp supply hitting the market presently, most due to the recent addition of Chinese and South African production. Tasmania will soon be producing Hundreds and thousands of tonnes surplus pulp.
Supply exceeds demand, and prices drop, leaving a surplus. What better way to deal with the excess pulp than creating a new market for the pulp which will sustain production levels. The Tasmanian timber lobby is so strong, completely under-regulated, lacks any formal accountability and is in the pockets of the Lenin Labor Government. The regulation body, the Forest Practises Board, employs more lumberjacks than it does environmentalists, and operates under the guise of independence. All the while the old growth forests like the Tarkine and Styx Valley are under serious threat from a greedy Forestry Tasmania, whose clearfelling agenda remains unchecked by the generous Regional Forestry Agreement.
Will Peter tow the line on Tasmania, even as the last old growth forest is burning?
The ridiculous argument for a pulp mill in Tasmania is that the mill will be 'environmentally friendly', as it is energy from a supposedly sustainable and renewable source. Isn't it ironic that the government will be able to claim carbon credits from the destruction of a unique resource from an international protocol that it hasn't yet signed.
If Garrett is to retain his integrity, he must choose what he will not compromise before he begins compromising on what he will. I fear that for Garrett, this process of compromising values and ideals has already begun.
