A mate of mine asked me overnight if this period is worse than the Fraser Whitlam moment of 1975.
Definitely worse. Much, much worse.
The Fraser/Whitlam imbroglio was contained to Canberra. Red team versus blue team. It was very specific.
And at least in the Fraser years we had a functional and very competitive opposition with head kickers like Jim Killen, Doug Anthony and Peter Nixon.
Today what has people fired up is like wrestling with a column of smoke. It’s everywhere but nowhere and it all affects them personally.
They see a political mindset that is on a mission and determined to cripple Australia with a managed economic and social decline in both our collective and individual fortunes. (Now there’s talk of taxing spare bedrooms)
Today everyone has a camera and a microphone. And an opinion. They’re angry. And this is all manifesting itself in what could best be described as a state of impotent rage.
Anger at everything but no idea what to do about any of it.
From the political representation state and federal, the judiciary, the petty minded bureaucracy, to the corporate world to technology with uninvited email overload of stuff you didn’t ask for, even trying to find a contact number on a web page as they try to direct you to “chat” to some AI bot.
Loooking at you Westpac.
They’re angry and lashing out over immigration, energy costs and housing the problems of which are all caused by government. People are switched on and know they’re being conned and lied to and find themselves in a state of total and impotent rage.
They’re screaming into the void. No one is listening. That’s what yesterday’s marches across the country were all about.
That is, they’re angry about a lot but know that for now at least given the majority of Labor and the fecklessness of the pantiewaist Liberals, no one’s coming to save us.
The cavalry is not coming over the hill anytime soon..