Melbourne by-election 2012

Adrian Whitehead: Another population aware Melbourne By-Election Candidate

Fri, 2012-07-20 14:32 by Sheila Newman

I've just been made aware that there is another population aware candidate in the Melbourne by-election tomorrow. The relevant part of his policy is to "Reduce population to sustainable levels by allowing birth rates to decline naturally (remove the baby bonus) and reduce immigration rates; Accept regional climate refugees and commence migration of drowning pacific island communities; Transition to a non growth based economy, continue knowledge growth and service and technological improvements." Inside is his full platform.

Adrian writes,

Hi my name is Adrian Whitehead. I am running in the Melbourne by-election as a climate emergency independent. One of my leading 11 policies includes the issue of reducing our population to sustainable levels. This could be done by allowing birth rates to decline naturally (remove the baby bonus) and reduce immigration rates to a level that ensures we have a population reduction. Our planet is under massive ecological and climatic stress, reducing population is one key way we can help reduce this problem as we as maintaining the quality of life in our cities which are becoming over crowded, congested and spreading ever further into surrounding farm land. I have a back ground in ecology and environmental activism and currently research climate change solutions in the Land Use sector as part of a joint project between Melbourne University and Beyond Zero Emissions.

Adrian's website is at http://www.voteadrian.com/bio.html

Policies

Climate Change

Rapid ten year emergency transition to a net negative emission society
support workers, communities, companies and disadvantaged in transition
100% renewable based electricity grid and large energy efficiency roll out
large and small scale diverse renewable based grid systems including demand management
solar access rights
energy efficiency retrofit of homes and businesses
high energy efficiency standards for new buildings and energy using products
fund low income energy efficiency home upgrades
new minimum standards for rental buildings
no nuclear energy
end fossil fuel use - close the dirtiest power plants first
Transport system based on renewable electricity
massive roll out and upgrade of walking and cycling infrastructure and electrified rail (light, heavy, super fast, and freight)
expand rail in rural Victoria
light rail in for rural towns
support electric car infrastructure
limited sustainably grown bio fuels for remote applications
End native forest logging and broad scale land clearing
compensate land owners
allowed logged area to recover as carbon sinks
increase minimum area of native vegetation for each bioregion to 20%
move fibre need to hemp and agro, restorative, and analogue forestry on already cleared or damaged lands
pay farmers for storing carbon
Create a global cooling
reducing methane production by encouraging a reduction in sheep and cattle consumption
sequestering atmospheric CO2 in soil, reforestation, and biochar
use safe and reversible geo-engineering options such as painting roofs white to speed cooling
return to 300 ppm CO2 or less
Limit growth of cities and towns
create urban boundaries
protect and expand urban open and green space
protect suburban back yards
reduce car use and dependency
Support organic agriculture
support urban agriculture and farmers markets
ban suspect chemicals or chemicals already banned in other countries
chemical free water catchments
Build community resilience to climate change
re-build community connections
support localised food production
extreme weather safety strategies for flood, fires and heat wave
ensure vulnerable members of the community are looked after
Reduce population to sustainable levels by allowing birth rates to decline naturally (remove the baby bonus)
and reduce immigration rates
Accept regional climate refugees and commence migration of drowning pacific island communities
Make climate criminals pay
Transition to a non growth based economy, continue knowledge growth and service and technological improvements

Sustainability

Biodiversity
increase no take marine parks to 15% of our coast line and coastal waters
a minimum of 20% native vegetation in each bioregion
fund restoration and revegetation projects
implement ecological burning regimes

Agriculture
support organic agriculture
support urban agriculture and farmers markets
pay farmers for storing carbon
ban harmful chemicals or chemicals already banned in other countries
users of biocides will be held liable for contamination or drift
support grazing and cropping systems that build soil carbon.
chemical free water catchments
recapture nutrients from the urban waste stream

Waste
ban plastic carry bags
container deposit legislation
introduce requirement for compostable packaging
introduce requirement for compostable eating utensils etc at festivals
enforce a return to manufacturer of electronic waste
Pollution
ban industrial release of carcinogens or highly toxic material
move car fleet to zero emissions over ten years
restrict smoking in public places to designated areas
no nuclear industry
Genetic Engineering
make GE seed and plant sellers responsible for the cost of any genetic pollution and removal of any GE modified organisms that escape into the environment
ensure rights of people to use and access open source plant varieties
government funding of open source plant varieties only

Economy
transition away from a material growth the based economy and monetary system, while maintaining knowledge and service growth and technological improvements
reduce corporate power and influence while creating a social and environmental responsibility as part of their corporate charter
promoting global equity
fair trade not free trade

Politics

Clean politics
hold candidates and parties accountable for action on climate change
no political deals: preference on policies and track record
Secular Politics
remove religious institutions, practices and ceremony form our political institutions, public education system and military

Topic:

Joe Toscano's Radical Independent platform for the Melbourne By-Election

Fri, 2012-07-20 12:27 by Sheila Newman

"There is not one independent in the Victorian Legislative Assembly or the Victorian Legislative Council, let alone a RADICAL INDEPENDENT. Power in a democratic society should rest in the hands of the people, not the State, corporate boardrooms or the Government of the day. Real power no longer resides in Parliament, it lies in the hands of unaccountable corporations that increasingly dictate the Legislative agenda. As we move from a period of relative abundance to scarcity as a consequence of the domination of the world economy by corporate capitalism an economic system based on the creation of ever increasing profits irrespective of the human, social and environmental costs, the ever increasing consumption of finite resources, increasing population growth and increasing greenhouse emissions as a result of human activity, we require radical changes to the way we govern ourselves, what we produce, how we produce it and how we live." - Joe Toscano

TOSCANO'S PLATFORM

“In a time of universal deceit, telling the truth is a revolutionary act” – George Orwell
There is not one independent in the Victorian Legislative Assembly or the Victorian Legislative Council, let alone a RADICAL INDEPENDENT. Power in a democratic society should rest in the hands of the people, not the State, corporate boardrooms or the Government of the day.
Real power no longer resides in Parliament, it lies in the hands of unaccountable corporations that increasingly dictate the Legislative agenda.
As we move from a period of relative abundance to scarcity as a consequence of the domination of the world economy by corporate capitalism an economic system based on the creation of ever increasing profits irrespective of the human, social and environmental costs, the ever increasing consumption of finite resources, increasing population growth and increasing greenhouse emissions as a result of human activity, we require radical changes to the way we govern ourselves, what we produce, how we produce it and how we live.

IF ELECTED

- I would use my position in the Legislative Assembly to encourage people to take DIRECT ACTION – protests, occupations, strikes, sit-ins, consumer boycotts, to ensure their interests are put before the interests of the parliamentary puppet masters, that small section of society that currently owns the means of production, distribution, exchange and communication.
- I would fight to ensure affordable housing is a universal right by defending and extending the public housing sector.
- I would use Parliamentary Privilege to raise in the public arena serious issues that are currently ignored because of the threat of legal action if they are raised outside parliament.
- I would support legislation that protects the individual from the arbitrary exercise of State power and protects internet freedom.
- I would agitate to ensure 1% of Victoria’s GST revenue is used to provide seeding funding to set up collectives and cooperatives that would form the basis of an alternative economic system based on co-operation and the satisfaction of real, not manufactured, human needs.
- I would call for a Royal Commission into corruption in Victoria.
- I would agitate for the introduction of a 1% stockmarket turnover tax to ensure the tax base is widened so that sections of society that currently pay voluntary taxation, pay their fair share of tax, so as a society we have enough resources to pay for public education, public health, public infrastructure and public housing.
- I would fight for the establishment of a New People’s State owned Bank to reintroduce competition in the banking sector.
We need to replace Representative Democracy with Direct Democratic institutions where the people make the decisions and elect or appoint recallable delegates to co-ordinate those decisions at a local, regional and Federal level so the collective wisdom of the population as whole can be harvested.

Help needed

HELP NEEDED

40 OR SO SOULS WITH NOTHING BETTER TO DO FROM 8:00am to 6:00pm on
SATURDAY 21st JULY 2012

I'm launching the “Set the Cat Among the Parliamentary Pigeons” campaign. This innovative campaign is
directed at the people participating in the Melbourne By-election which will be held on the 21st July 2012. The
main purpose of the campaign is to engage with people on one of the few days Australians think of politics.
The enclosed/attached leaflet outlines the position I'm putting across during the Melbourne By-election
campaign.

The Melbourne By-election covers the suburbs of Carlton, Melbourne, Kensington, Parkville, North Melbourne,
Flemington, East Melbourne and Docklands. There are 14 polling booths which need to be covered on the
day:

. Carlton Primary School
cnr Palmerston and Drummond Streets
Carlton AWA

. Kensington Primary School
McCracken Street
Kensington AWA

. Carlton North Primary School
Lee Street
Carlton North AWA

. Victoria University - City Flinders Campus
L12/300 Flinders Street
Melbourne AWA

. St. Michael's Anglican Church Hall
14 McIlwraith Street
Princes Hill FWA

. RMIT (Canteen)
Building 8 Bowen Street
Melbourne AWA

. The Hub @ Docklands
80 Harbour Esplanade
Docklands AWA

. North Melbourne Primary School
210 Errol Street
North Melbourne AWA

. Dallas Brooks Centre
cnr Albert and Eades Streets
East Melbourne FWA

. St. Joseph's Flexible Learning Centre
385 Queensberry Street
North Melbourne AWA

. Mt Alexander College
167-175 Mount Alexander Road
Flemington AWA

. University High School - Performance Centre
Story Street
Parkville AWA

. North Melbourne Community Centre
Buncle Street
North Melbourne AWA

. Kensington Community Recreation Centre
cnr Kensington Road and Altona Street
Kensington AWA

AWA - Wheelchair accessible with assistance FWA - Fully wheelchair accessible

If you are interested in helping by distributing the leaflet at one of the polling booths;

Email: [email protected]

Write: PO Box 5035, Alphington VIC 3078

Phone: 0439 395 489

to discuss what polling booth you want to cover, the time frame you can cover (hours between 8:00am-
6:00pm) and when and where I can drop off the leaflets to you.

It’s important I'm able to finalise these arrangements BEFORE POLLING DAY on SATURDAY 21st JULY.

This is one way you can directly bring new ideas to a significant number of people on the one day and have an impact on their thinking. I look forward to you contacting me ASAP

Joseph Toscano

Topic:

Vote for Joe Toscano in Melbourne by-election 2012

Wed, 2012-07-18 12:19 by Sheila Newman

In fortuitous collision of pique, the Greens and Labor have preferenced Radical Independent Dr Joe Toscano ahead of each other in this Melbourne by-election. Toscano has his finger on the political pulse of this nation because he has an in depth knowledge of Australian history and what we have all lost through corporatisation, privatisation, overpopulation and a corrupt public and commercial media. Hopefully many of the public will actually put Joe first. Although Your ABC Radio has shamefully refused to include Joe Toscano or other alternatives in its by-election broadcast from the Victoria Markets on Friday, a parallel but democratic gathering 8.30 to 12pm at corner of Therry and Queen Street, Victoria Markets will give publicity and information about other candidates. Please join it. As the writer of this article and with a strong acquaintance with Joe, I can make no higher recommendation than Vote 1 for Joe Toscano! See below for Joe's platform and how you can help and contact details.

Shameful discrimination against candidates on ABC radio

Amazingly, Your ABC Radio has actually denied Victorians the democratic opportunity to hear Joe or any other alternatives to Greens, Libs and Labor, speak at an ABC organised by-election broadcast from the Victoria Markets on Friday. This writer's surmise is because the powers that be are afraid that the already well-loved long-standing political activist has a good chance of getting in if they just allow the ABC dependent electorate to find out about his existence.

Let's face it; the only reason we are reduced to the pseudo-choice of Lib/Lab/Greens is because of the corrupt media machine that most of us still depend on. Candobetter and other alternatives are so important to break down this monopoly of political messaging.

Two days ago Joe had yet another ABC interview cancelled. Yet Joe is an interviewer's gift. Joe is a medical doctor who visits severely paralysed patients all over Melbourne. He is a leader in events to take back public land, secure housing as a right, and fight the growing economic divide between the poor and the rich in Australia.

Melbourne By-Election Event vital to media democracy

Please therefore come along to the parallel gathering that Joe's supporters will be organizing for 8am to 12pm this Friday 20 July 2012 at the corner of Therry and Queen Street, Victoria Markets. This should be The Melbourne Political Event of the Year but you and I could make it The Melbourne Political Event of the Decade by attending and covering it on every form of alternative media, as well as ringing up the ABC and writing to the papers protesting about their exclusion of a major political force from public coverage.

The title of this parallel gathering is "Government Gelded ABC Sheltered Workshop for the Institute of Public Affairs". If you want to know more about the circumstances that led to this gathering, download today's Joe Toscano podcast. [Check when you go on the site that the podcast is dated July 18; I am writing this as Joe's weekly show goes to air. You may have to wait until later today for the podcast to go up.]

You can verify for yourself Joe's oratorial skills, brains and humour by listening to him on the Anarchist show on 3CR. Anarchism is, as many of our well-educated readers would know, just another name for relocalisation. Joe must be one of few Australian political figures who has an understanding of the importance of different land-use planning systems to democratic and social outcomes.

PLATFORM