DEPENDING where you stand, the federal election could hardly have arrived at a better, or worse, time.
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Western democracies have rarely faced such political upheaval as they are experiencing right now.
The outcome of the Brexit vote, a looming possibility of a Donald Trump presidency, and the rise of far-right populism across Europe is sending shock waves through the political establishment.
Whether you think the EU is an essential tool for maintaining peace and economic stability in Europe, or found it immensely undemocratic, the outcome of the Brexit vote pointed to something else altogether – a disconnect exists between the political class, and the ever growing number of people facing real hardship.
Nowhere was it more apparent than when the Philippines chose to elect Rodrigo Duterte. The country experiences endemic poverty and corruption, of course the people will eventually say: “no more”.
If you treat people with contempt, as politicians in these countries have done for decades, then how can politicians have the right to criticise the direction of a push back?
And it would be unwise to consider Australia immune.
Bill Shorten raised the sceptre of a similar political impasse in Australia in the near future. For political purposes, he sought to blame a future Coalition government.
But in the UK, both parties have traditionally sought to create hysteria around immigration for political purposes. That is increasingly happening in Australia.
In the UK, poverty combines with the dismantling of the National Health Service to create disharmony. In Australia, wages stagnate as the cost of living rises. Under-employment increases more and more.
And here in Bendigo, we hear of our local community health services shifting its focus to address the alarming rate of intergenerational poverty.
Inequality is the greatest precursor for political upheaval.
We now face a double dissolution election in which minor parties have never had a better chance at being elected, on platforms of anti-immigration, anti-multiculturalism and anti-establishment. It’s a bleak outlook.
For the rest of the world, our election will slip by virtually unnoticed. Its ramifications are hardly global.
But it could be a massive wake-up call for our political class before it’s too late.