catch28

So the Howard government is finally gone…

I’ve lived all my adult life under the Howard government. They came to power in ‘96 when I was 17 and in my final year of highschool. I went from comfortably expecting to get a place at uni, to wondering if I could afford to go, as they immediately raised HECS and slashed Austudy for students starting in ‘97. Remember when Austudy was for students going to uni, what ever your age? No? Well, it was a long time ago, and I was among the first people to miss out with the introduction to youth allowance. I was in the first lot of students to recieve no government living assistance. Supposedly my parents were to support me during study, which they could not as all their money was tied up in running their small business. Luckily for me my cousin got me a job in the city which meant I could afford to pay for transport and books and food, although I spent the next 2 and a half years getting up at 4.30am for my one hour commute to the city. I couldn’t afford to move out of my parent’s house in the suburbs. This was my introduction to the Howard Government, and it all went down hill from there.

Over the next eleven years things steadily declined as I protested against all manner of things. VSU, mandatory detention, cuts to university funding, the war on terror, the war in iraq, the denial of Australia’s black history and black present, APEC, the homophobic changes to the marriage act, work choices, etc etc etc.

I’ve watched as Australia became more selfish and inward looking, our society’s worst impulses and prejudices legitimised by the state. I’ve watched as friends have struggled to survive, and I’ve watched as friends have failed to survive. I’ve watched this country grow and grow imbalanced, I’ve watched it grow unhappy with it’s material wealth. I’ve watched as we’ve "prospered" with longer working hours, less rights, greater surveillance, and less job security, all in the name of productivity, while the rich get disproportionately richer, and the working poor gets disproportionately larger. I’ve watched as the rates of depression have sky-rocked, and the mentally ill have become homeless. I’ve watched as secret blacklists, holding people without charge or access to legal advice, surveillance orders, and deportation, without any substantial evidence backed up by court proceedings, have all become standard police practice.

This country has become a terrible place, a heartless souless place, all in the name of economic prosperity. The money we’ve gained has been paid for in broken lives, the effects of which will be felt long after we’ve gone (climate change anyone?). I don’t know if the Rudd government will be any better, but for the first time in all my adult life, there’s a chance that things might be different.