And Even More Silly Politics...

I forgot to memtion that our local municipal government elections are being held tomorrow (Saturday). Voting is compulsory, which means one is required to turn up, scribble something on the ballot paper (like "None Of The Above), fold the ballot up and stuff it in a big cardboard box.

I'm going to be elsewhere, so I took the opportunity, while on a walk with Zac this morning, to drop into the Council offices and vote.

Surprisingly, there was a gaggle of candidates outside jostling to thrust a "How To Vote" card into my spare hand. Of course, in these more environmentally conscious times, it isn't card any more but rather a very thin "recycled" piece of paper. Recycled is politically correct, apparently, and somehow makes wasting resources on this nonsense ok. It clearly doesn't occur to them that recycled paper is also a finite resource.

One of tha candidates was from The Greens... which is the party you vote for if you want everyone else to think you're young, hip, in-touch, and are concerned about "global warming".

Oh oh. Regular readers will know my views on that. I politely listened to the Green candidate tell me her party was determined to make our municipality "carbon neutral" by 2012.

I then told her I didn't believe in anthropomorphic global warming and she started to sprout the party line about carbon, and greenhouses, and other less interesting things.

You can probably predict the outcome... I opened fire (metaphorically, of course). I gave her both barrels.

"Well we'll have to agree to disagree on that, but really, this election is about local issues", she said.

"No it isn't. You just told me you want to do the carbon neutral thing. Global warming's about as far away from as local issue as it gets."

"But we're opposed to selling the local bowling club", she quickly added.

It was at this point that another candidate joined the fray. "But there is no proposal to sell the bowling club", he said.

"Yes, but we're opposed to its sale anyway", replied the Green.

It reminded me of a wonderful scene from one of my top 3 fave films, "Wag The Dog", which is really a documentary and ought to be compulsory study in any political science degree.

In the scene, the "Political Consultant", Conrad Breen (played brilliantly by Robert DeNero) is planning a diversion from a breaking story that the President had been caught having sex with a girl scout in the Oval Office. He points at one of the President's staffers and says "You, call the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs, General Scott. Get him on an aeroplane to Seattle tonight."

He points to another and says "You, I want a press release saying General Scott has not gone to Seattle to talk to Boeing about premature deployment of the B3 Bomber."

The first aid says "But there is no B3 Bomber".

And Breen replies "which is exactly why General Scott has not gone to Boeing to talk about it."

Brilliant. And so, today, life reflected art.

On a more serious note, I was offended that they wouldn't let Zac vote. He lives here too, and some of the decisions our Council will make will effect him directly. It's an outrage.