The Federal Election- Ethics and Values are they missing?

We live in a world of great change, and it is amazing to me that concerns within Australia which were never considered previously are suddenly on the Political agenda, and money thrown around as a bribe to achieve votes. Where do Values, ethics, compassion for people and genuine concern and action for environment come into it? This election is critical for preventing any escalation Global Warming, and changing Australian Politics from fear driven negative energies, to creating positive change. What do you think?*

Values- Mick from Grafton.

Now that an election is drawing very near, it is probably a good time to reflect on our values, ethics and morals as a nation. What is it that Australia, and being an Australian, stands for or represents these days?
Have we become a nation of “I’m alright Jack” self centred individuals, who care nothing for the suffering going on all around the planet. Do we care about anything but ourselves and our immediate needs? We are happy to trade with China; it brings in billions of dollars to the economy and keeps a relatively small number of people in high paying mining jobs.
However, China invaded Tibet, killed large numbers of Tibetans, ruthlessly suppressed their religion, and lately has brought in large numbers of Chinese to Tibet, so that they now outnumber the Tibetans (ethnic cleansing). Also, China executes or imprisons political dissidents, and other “criminals”- such as practitioners of Falung Gong meditation. And some of the Chinese goods you buy are produced by slave labour in prison camps. But hey, trade is good for the economy, so who really cares how China treats its minorities and dissenters! Perhaps we will have cause to regret this trade down the track a few years – we exported scrap iron to Japan prior to World War 2, and had it re-exported in a form we did not appreciate during the war.

Another indicator of our rapidly declining standards (ethics and morals) is the fact that many political parties and politicians blatantly lie to the electorate, distort facts, or rely on fear and scare tactics to get re-elected, and the voting public are accepting of this behaviour. The Wheat Board got caught out paying bribe money to the Saddam Hussein regime to sell our wheat there. This regime was later considered so heinous that it was necessary to invade Iraq to get rid of the ruthless dictator who ran it. Yours and my tax dollars are being spent maintaining Australian troops in Iraq, when we were paying bribes to them before. Does this strike you as inconsistent? However, there are some in Australia who think that the only mistake made was in getting caught – it doesn’t matter who you deal with, as long as you are making money out of it! There is also much greed and unethical practices amongst our corporations and their management. Fraud, embezzlement and price fixing rear their ugly heads from time to time. Governments are reluctant to police many of these matters because it would mean offending those they take political donations from (e.g. Tobacco Companies which deliberately target children to get them addicted at an early age). Mark Twain commented that it was difficult to get someone to understand something when their pay packet depended on them not understanding it.

We also seem to have caught the scourge of materialism from America. Our lives seem to revolve around our possessions. We continually want more, bigger, better, the latest model, etc. We will often replace an item that is working satisfactorily just because we can. We define ourselves by our “status” in a materialistic world – how much we earn, how much “stuff” we have, do we have the right “look”, are we keeping up with the Joneses. Many of the financial pressures Australians are under at the moment are self created. Our parents and grandparents started out in small modest houses. Now we “want it all”, up front, with all of the bells and whistles - two car garage, en-suites, central heating and cooling, fully carpeted, huge rooms, in-ground swimming pool and spa.
The environment that sustains us is having to pay the cost for this crass and mindless materialism and greed.

Other signs of declining values in Australia are the return of racism, cruelty to animals, religious intolerance, zenophobia (fear of foreigners or anything “different”), homophobia, and the worrying rise of religious fundamentalist fanatics. These are all bad portents for the future of Australia as a tolerance, just and free society. Apathy is also a sign of our declining values, and unwillingness to take a stand on anything. Socrates made the famous statement that “the unexamined life is not worth living”. Unfortunately, today many people would not even understand what this statement means, as their thought processes and character are so shallow that they could adequately be replaced by a two dimensional cardboard cut out representation of themselves. Money and the economy are *_not_* all important! We are defined by what we do, and how we behave, and not by what we say (empty talk), or what we own.
It is time to make a stand, show courage and character, be prepared to stand apart from the mindless herd, as an individual of worth. Your survival _will_ depend on it!