2017 Didge Digest Yearly Yap (Part VII)

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Good morning and welcome back all! AussieDidge here with the latest volume in the massive recap of 2017; the highlights, low-lights and bright lights that we experienced throughout!

Now that we got the positives out of the way, I'd best get serious for a moment.

This next section will prove to be a controversial one. Now I know what you're thinking: "It's politics, OF COURSE there has to be some problems!"

But as I examine what made 2017 an interesting year for politicians and governments around the world, focusing more on Australia and the United States, I have to take an aside to mention that Donald Trump is going to be mentioned quite a bit in this examination of mine.

It's also likely that NONE of it will be any positive. As I wrote some time before, I gave him a chance to surprise us all. I figured "Hey, he might very well do a complete 180 and become the best President."

That goodwill lasted all of a month, if I'm being generous.

In amongst a cavalcade of lies, aggressive blustering, provocation, constant need for validation and a clear lack of empathy towards both his and international citizens through various policies, he has proven himself to be every bit the problem a lot of us thought he would be.

Strap yourselves in folks, and look, if you support Trump, by all means feel free to comment, as long as you keep it civil and constructive. I've tried my best on my end, I only ask the same of you.

All the warnings and yapping out of the way, let us begin:

The Political Plunge:
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When it came to politics, I thought we had reached our nadir from a worldwide point of view. Now while I’ll try to balance moments from my own Australia, the United States and internationally, I must give fair warning.

Due to the nature, or at least ambition, of his and his team’s various policies, most of this will focus on Donald Trump and the resulting reactions. How could it not?

Overall, in my existence, no man has tried to benefit himself and/or his high-powered friends so blatantly and obviously as Trump, at the expense of countless millions of his own citizens, many of whom probably supported his campaign, his Presidency, and still, himself on the whole.

In addition, his attitude and handling of the job over the last year has been concerning, to say the least.

Now I won’t pretend that I’m more capable than he is to run the country (as an Australian citizen, I couldn’t anyway, under their Constitution), but I’ve never seen someone so blatantly unready, or unqualified, to take such a commanding position.

I'll also make it clear that I’m not naïve to think that no politician is pure of heart and purely serves the will of the people. They’re out for themselves, and their cronies, under the façade of serving the people’s will.

But is this how far our governments have fallen?

I cannot believe that; in the midst of power grabs, campaign donations, nudge-nudge-wink-wink support and more corrupt behind-the-scenes acts, across both parties, you have to strip away the thought of being nice and considerate.

I get it; the people will support you, but they don’t pay for your advertising. They’ll volunteer for you, but all the man-hours in the world can’t fight a slick attack campaign.

Hell, they may even have brilliant ideas, but not the connections to see them through.

Kind of makes me wish for a presidential candidate who uses online funding or donation services, like as a grassroots campaign. That could become an interesting ride with intriguing results.

I’ll try to refrain from personal insults and other derogatory slings (since others have already proven more vicious and more truthful than I could ever be) but know that these next sections won’t take any mercy on him either.

We first begin in January as Trump called up our Prime Minister, Malcolm Turnbull (and we’ll get to him and Canberra soon.)

While things began very cordially, with greetings, best wishes to mutual friends and compliments on their similar backgrounds, things quickly tail-spun out of control when Turnbull brought up border control, and his program to bring in 12,000 Syrian refugees, majority of whom were Christian.

Trump continued to ramble in several cases; first about the statistics of Syrians who came to the United States, him justifying the total Syrian immigrant ban, complaining about the U.S. being a dumping ground, and seemingly getting angrier and angrier even as Turnbull explained, carefully, the process of vetting and discretion that Trump and his country would have in taking on those citizens.

Even as Trump slung insults, complained, interrupted, stereotyped and even seemed prepared to back out of previous obligations, Turnbull kept his cool and tried, in vain, to tell the whole story. Calling it “the most unpleasant call” he had all day, Trump just had enough, and the call lasted less than half an hour.

Perhaps it was a sign of things to come… A 24/7 “My way or the highway” situation, with an easily-angered leader (or a massive nuclear arsenal) to face if we didn’t comply.

January wouldn’t even finish before Trump:
  1. Fired AG Sally Yates for ordering her DOJ employees to not enforce his travel ban due to doubts on its legality (EO 13769);

  2. Asked former FBI Director James Comey in a one-on-one dinner to pledge his loyalty to him (Didn’t know General Zod inspired him so much), and;

  3. Began signing other Executive Orders that would expedite environmental reviews and approvals, scaling back the Affordable Care Act (oh we’ll get to that one), beginning construction on the Mexican border wall, and reducing the number of federal regulations.

So fire someone for wanting to perform checks and balances, have someone of considerable pull swear loyalty to him, and sign orders to begin the process of screwing with as many people as possible. Did I read those right, or rather, in some way accurately?

Oh boy, this is going to be a long, long trek to get through.

February rolled around, and we had the swearing in of rather questionable choices for cabinet positions; Betsy DeVos as Secretary of Education, and Jeff Sessions as AG.

Further to that, he would enlist Linda McMahon as Administrator of Small Business (since WWE was a struggling, grassroots company after all. :unimpressed:).

We also had the beginning of a months-long campaign to discredit the mainstream media, which only grew more brazen and crazy as time rolled on.

Barrings from press briefings, insults, attacks and what have you, as he tried his best to ‘take to task’ the “dishonest” media. My implied words, not his.

March, and we had a public accusation of Obama wire-tapping him, a revised Travel Ban, a formal repeal draft of the ACA, a release of Trump’s 2005 tax returns showing a serious loss that year, and his Vice President would cast a 2nd tie-breaker vote to defund Planned Parenthood.

And that was just the first three months. Other ‘highlights’, if you will, over the nine months after included these little gems:
  1. Withdrawing from the Paris Agreement in June, an almost entirely worldwide agreement that dealt with greenhouse gas emissions mitigation, adaptation and finance that would begin in 2020.

  2. Removing James Comey from his position as FBI Director, and disclosing classified information to the Russian Foreign Minister and Ambassador, just in May. One already sounded suspicious given what happened before, but the next one just seemed to dig the hole further.

  3. States in July that he cannot accept or allow transgender individuals to serve in any capacity in the U.S. military… Not that Trump could tell from personal experience, but hey, he just can’t have those with bigger spines and hearts outshining him all the time, right?

  4. That shiveringly frightening “fire and fury” speech given in August, in relation to North Korea’s consistent threats, and his “good people on both sides” argument relating to the Charlottesville protests that same month… One side were neo-Nazis, the other were anti neo-Nazis. We’ve got to this point, have we?

  5. Continues pressing threats against North Korea in September at the UN General Assembly, indicating possible further action against the Venezualan president, and calling the Iranian nuclear deal an “embarrassment.”

  6. Very poorly treated the disaster relief efforts in Puerto Rico, by action and speech, following the horrific Hurricane Maria which caused almost $100 billion in damage, and is considered by far the worst natural disaster on record within those nations.

  7. Passing the expensive ‘Tax Cut and Jobs Act’ which abolished particular credits and estate taxes, and drastically sliced corporate tax by almost half, 35% to 20%. $1.4 TRILLION more in debt, and who do you think THAT will benefit more?

Now some may argue that Trump did SOME good work while being President, after all, surely no man could run on an ENTIRE list of cons with no pros given, and there is a full Wikipedia timeline of his presidency available for each quarter, with the notable events that occurred.

Maybe, he's actually benefited your life in some way or another. I mean, hopefully something more concrete and long-term than "sticking it to those snowflakes and libtards."

Just remember, they're not the only ones in Trump's crosshairs... You are too.

Sometimes, those cons can heavily outweigh the pros, and as much as I gave him a chance to dance, to see if he could surprise us all, I only grew older and wearier of his bullshit. As far as I’m concerned, he and his Congress can take a long, long walk out of the White House, out of the United States and out in the middle of the ocean.

But though there was the bad news; the things that should’ve alarmed or at least concerned any being of conscience and thought, there were some quite positive things to take from 2017 that perhaps showed the will of the people in ways we hadn’t seen in decades.

Though the damage might be lasting, regardless of how long the show lasts, there were pockets of resistance everywhere you could look, and protests far as the eye could see. For all the posturing, taunting and Tweeting Donald Trump did, it would seem that, as far as actual legislation went, he got next to absolutely nothing through.

Whether blocked by the justice system, repeatedly frustrated in some way or completely thwarted in other ways, which thankfully included a number of situations I described above, most of the man's ambitions went completely unheeded.

It gives me a great sense of relief to type that, dreading what could’ve happened had the opposite been true.

And it wasn’t just the legislators who struck down his new laws or the Appeals judges who denied request after request of his, it was the common people who stood up to him too.

In fact, the Women’s March directly after his Inauguration Parade would outnumber him 12.5 to 1 (at least, if we go by 5 million versus 400,000 people) in one of the largest political demonstrations for the country.

April was the Tax March, pressuring Trump to release his current tax returns. A mere week after that was the March for Science.

Those three protests alone were just the organised events. How ‘bout the thousands of people who gathered in quick time at the airports, following the signing of an Executive Order called the Muslim ban?

Neo-Nazi rallies in Boston and Charlottesville were met with equal and sometimes overwhelming resistance from counter-protesters.

We’re talking those who refused to dignify that just because Trump was president, off the back of a horrible, hateful campaign, that they would stand idle and watch those dark souls be emboldened and empowered.

Speaking of those dark souls, the campaign of #MeToo would begin with the downfall of Harvey Weinstein and spread like a forest fire across the realm of powerful people and influential celebrities all around the world.

It would continue spreading with impunity and claiming those who thought they got away with everything. It would even reject a would-be guaranteed Republican election in Alabama, via Senator Roy Moore, as sexual accusations were levelled against him (and that’s to say nothing of his other backwards thoughts and behaviours.)

To say the least, for a year that could’ve proven as extremely concerning for a lot of parties involved, whether that involved policy, blustering threats or otherwise, it was also a year where resistance and courage reached levels that defied and beggared my previous beliefs.

It was something I had never seen a collected population do with such frequency and such ferocity. I can only hope that level of resistance continues well into the reign of Trump and the Republican Congress, to serve as both lessons to him AND to future Presidents.

That the inscription of “Of The People, By The People, For The People” will never be ignored again.

We now move a few thousand miles to my side of the globe, and how advanced Australia fared in the world of 2017 politics. At least, as far as being a decent nation goes, I guess.

We had some very moving and particularly powerful moments which we could proudly lay our hats on, but we also had very puzzling or questionable moments that made a big mess in Parliament.

Let’s get the bad things out of the way first. Stormy seas must be navigated before approaching pristine waters.

There was the ‘important discovery’ of Scott Ludlam, a Greens senator who called a press conference and declared he would resign after a public tip-off that he was still a New Zealand citizen (and therefore, ineligible to sit in Parliament.)

Because of dual citizenship laws outlined in our Constitution, and specifically, allegiance to a foreign power (make of that what you will), we had several names over the year’s course plummet overboard as their citizenships were discovered and brought to light.

In just one month and perhaps change, we lost a staggering SEVEN members of Parliament due to this discovery; co-deputy leaders and their co-deputies, the Resources Minister, the Deputy Prime Minister, a minor party leader and other important names.

And that was just the warning swell of a massive tide that would sweep the nation.

Following the High Court’s decision (via Sykes v. Cleary) in November, another four or five members bit the bullet and resigned. President of the Senate, an MP with majority pull, and more.

And that doesn’t even begin to mention the other parts of Section 44 that could have members in hot water.

Something tells me we’ve only heard the beginning of this hot mess, and that 2018 may plan on claiming a lot more victims yet.

We also had particular members of Parliament face demotion and eventually resignation over dealings with foreign powers, particularly Sam Dastyari of Labor. The powerbroker and wunderkind from New South Wales, who’d only been in federal Parliament for four years, was forced to resign.

Asking his businessman friend to cover political costs, speaking at a number of Chinese-held conferences, contradicting territorial disputes on the South China Sea, and more only hammered additional nails in his political coffin, and even now, there are petitions with thousands of signatures calling for him to be charged with treason.

Perhaps an awfully strong message comparing to what was done, but nonetheless one that certain other political figures need to consider as they run their parts of the world.

We even had a flouting of parliamentary rules as Treasurer Scott Morrison brought a lump of coal into the chamber (props are banned in there) as he taunted Labor with it:

“This is coal. Don’t be afraid, don’t be scared. It won’t hurt you!”

Morrison, you’re kidding me right? Hasn’t anyone taught you that sometimes, it’s not the thing ITSELF that harms you, it’s how it’s used?

I could bring an untouched cigarette, a bottle of alcohol, or even a fully-loaded gun into Parliament, by your reasoning. They cannot possibly harm you by themselves!

But if I were to start lighting up and poisoning the chamber’s air (while ingesting thousands of cancer-causing chemicals, to boot?)

If I were to down the entire bottle of Scotch or single-malt whiskey and fly into a drunken rage during a debate, possibly threatening the safety of its members?

What if I were to suddenly snap and just BLAM BLAM BLAM with no purpose or reason, possibly KILLING someone?

Let me make this clear; coal as an item in itself doesn’t harm anybody. It’s a piece of blackened rock; might be sharp on some edges, but aside from that, nothing.

But you start burning it, processing it, generating power from it… That use will spew forth toxic by-products that continue to affect our planet, and in larger quantities, may even cause irreversible damage.

As power prices continue to rise and blackouts become an ever-present threat, a new energy policy had to be on the horizon, a contingency plan if you will. Of course, as the Coalition (in the name I guess) teared itself to shreds over it, nothing seemed to get done.

Of course I already mentioned that phone-call with Trump from Malcolm Turnbull, so you can scroll back for that lot.

There were some severe crises that reared their heads in 2017, and political in-fighting and mud-slinging was a very common sight both in the news and within the very chambers they resided in.

But there was one piece of incredible, society-defining news in 2017 when late November rolled around. Following an expensive, and some argue worthless, same-sex plebiscite to determine whether it should be legal or not, and then the postal vote a month or so after, Australia raised their collective voices, and made it happen.

Same-sex marriage was now made legal in Australia, passing both houses of Parliament with a significant 61.6 percent vote of support. Celebrations were everywhere; in the political spectrum, out on the streets, in the public galleries and in the dozens of protests and gatherings that formed when the news first broke.

Now of course, there were quite a few pockets of resistance and even sneaky tactics that were utilised to retain the status quo of marriage remaining traditional. But clearly, no amount of finagling, screaming, threatening or fear-mongering would help as Australia made their opinions clear.

I personally voted “YES” to allow same-sex marriage to happen. Seriously, what the fuck do I care whether you love a man or a woman, regardless of who you are?

There’s a difference between something becoming legal, and becoming mandatory, and I don’t think in a society like Australia that same-sex marriage becomes mandatory.

Long as you don’t force me into your lifestyle, I say screw, marry, love whoever you want. It’s not my business, and I’m sure not going to rely on a storybook, playing the longest game of Chinese Whispers in history, to make rational decisions on everyone’s lives.

In other news around the world, we had of course the looming nuclear crisis in North Korea as Kim Jong Un approved and oversaw various missile tests, the entire Brexit deal as the United Kingdom considered and later began withdrawing from the EU, we had so many high-profile resignations from every nation we could name, and so on.

We had the long-reigning penis potato Robert Mugabe succeeded after a military coup, after years of ruling Zimbabwe with an iron fist. Millions killed or displaced, as well as famines, violence, severe economic decline and sanctions defined his 30-year tenure as President, and most men and women both there and in Western culture must be glad to see him go.

Northern Ireland struggled without a government for almost the entirety of 2017.

There were Spanish secessions, indictments, more.

Make no mistake, 2017 for the political spectrum was one doozy of a year. And I can imagine that in 2018, it’s going to get even more interesting from here.

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Well, we sure plunged the depths of the political world in 2017, and good news for everybody, there’s just one more section to go! Part Seven will explore my personal experiences with 2017, what I can look forward to in 2018, and perhaps beyond that as well.

What are my dreams and ambitions for this particular year? Can I see myself achieving them, or at least working in that direction?

Find out in the final chapter of my marvellous annual manifesto. Or meandering yearly yap-fest, I guess. Wouldn’t blame you after all these words I’ve written. ;p
© 2018 - 2024 AussieDidge
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