post-mortem

literally, almost. maybe it's not quite that bad, but alan ramsey expresses my sentiments exactly (Nothing will save us from gullibility and greedy self-interest).

this was a triumph of negative campaigning and fear-mongering, a victory for short-sightedness, selfishness and greed, as clive hamilton, executive director of The Australia Institute, also writes in today's smh (Self-absorption wins the day). we've made the dollar god, and we're blindly prostrating ourselves before the altar. may god (the real one) help us, because the dollar is a mean and fickle mistress, with a history of enslaving her lovers and crippling their souls. what we reap we certainly shall sow.

one thing i can't understand is how so many of my fellow australians bought the interest rates lie. forget the fact that house affordability is at an all-time low, or that job security is so low - or maybe these were part of the tactic: deliver property prices that mean the mortgage takes up at least 50% of the average household's disposable income, then deliver job insecurity, and it's a sure bet that the "higher interest rates" scare tactic will hit home.

it only gets worse. there's a very good chance that the coalition will also have a majority in the senate (39 seats - they'll definitely have at least 38), so legislation will pass through unhindered and un-amended. that really is the most frightening result of this election.

the only silver lining i can think of is that the last time any leader has controlled both chambers was malcolm fraser between 1976 and 1981, which directly preceded the hawke/keating dynasty, and that is a hopeful precedent. i think it's more than likely that the 'mandate' (aka power) will go to the government's head and they'll screw us over (sale of remaining 51% of telstra, even-more-business-friendly-employee-exploiting industrial relations laws, removal of cross-media ownership rules) to such an extent that we'll finally see the light and get rid of them for a good long while. but Labor still has to play it right, and rowen atkinson's gratuitous advice is right on the money.

it seems that the trend in australia (similarly to the u.s.) is towards the conservative. this may be linked (in australia at least) with a resurgence in church-going, or it could just be a reflection of an increase in the upper-middle income demographic, which is where churches draw most of their members from. it really angers me, though, that there is such a strong perception that 'conservative' is more 'christian'. you'd be hard-pressed to find conservative or so-called family values in the gospels. on the contrary, you'd almost think jesus was anti-family by some of the things he said, and he made it pretty clear that the kingdom of god is a higher priority than the family. in fact, jesus was saying is that the kingdom, not the traditional, nuclear conception, is the real family, that it is to be open and organic, not closed, rigidly defined and self-protecting.

moreover, the conservative agenda tends towards increasing inequality in society, rewarding the 'haves' and leaving the 'have-nots' further behind (with the arrogant, superior, admonition that "if you just tried harder you could become a 'have' too"). many christians would implicitly, if not explicitly, agree with this attitude of 'god helps those who help themselves', not least those who hold to the 'blessing' or 'prosperity' doctrine so common in charismatic and pentecostal churches. but this is completely contrary to the kingdom values of equality for all, of giving a voice and place of honour to the exploited, the marginalised and disenfranchised, of the last being first and the first last.

ultimately, no matter what the government, believers are called to live according to the radical, society-transforming agenda of the kingdom. there is a grave danger, though, that christians in this country will become complacent in a political environment which they are told is in line with their values, or even worse, think that the government's agenda is basically 'christian' so nothing else needs to be done. is it foolish to hope that the opposite can happen, that a soul-less, materialistic society will drive believers back to their true values of compassion and justice?