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Renewable Energy Party Candidate Condemns Adversarial PoliticsPeter Gardner, REP candidate in the seat of Gippsland, has spoken out against the use of adversarial politics on crucial issues of importance for all Australians. By news@gippsland - 14th June 2016 - Back to News Peter Gardner, REP candidate in the seat of Gippsland, has spoken out against the use of adversarial politics on crucial issues of importance for all Australians. He said: "The idea of opposing for opposition’s sake is absurd, bordering on madness. Imagine if one side of politics thought gravity was a good idea, then the other side must oppose it. But that is what is happening when the gravest issues facing us all are treated this way. It is all about one upmanship, of personal ambitions and vendettas, of tit for tat point scoring, and divisiveness whereas these issues concern us all and do not deserve to be treated in this manner."
"We are faced with a climate emergency" he added, "though few in the community, and definitely not our politicians, can see that. We should be working together on something that threatens us, not bandying around meaningless slogans and playing ‘wedge’ politics. On a personal note my family has twice been threatened by severe bushfires, events almost certainly influenced by climate change, this century - in 2003 and 2006/7. On both occasions it was a matter of preparing for the worst, I closed my shop and with my family worked hard around our home whilst my wife worked daily in our CFA shed. Fortunately both times the fires passed us by."
"The point of this is as a community when we recognise a threat we work together to combat it. We help and assist each other as best we can which is, incidentally one of the unrecognised benefits of small communities. Now we have a mammoth problem with global warming, and we are quarrelling about things that are, or should be, out of the political realm. Farmers and rural communities have the most to lose from political inaction on climate change, and conversely the most to gain from concerted action in the right direction."
"One area where the bush may benefit is community energy projects. I often use the Waubra wind project as an example of business and community cooperation that literally injects millions of dollars into the community along with an impressive number of jobs. This is a small step to combat climate change and a big win for the community. I have pointed out that there are many places in Gippsland, small and large, that could adopt similar projects. Especially if they have a bit of sympathy, guidance and interest from government."
He concluded that: "It is time to forget about our political differences and work together on this threat. In a worst case scenario this threatens the lives of us all and in the end the very existence of human beings on this planet. Can there be a bigger threat?"
Gardner is one of only 4 Renewable Energy Party lower house candidates in Victoria.
Contacts
Renewable Energy Party Organiser Peter Breen 02 6685 6813 mobile 0419 985 145
Website & Blog: http://petergardner.info/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/PeterDGardner
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/peter.gardner.9250
Bairnsdale Climate Change Activist
Gippsland regional historian Supporter Gippsland2020
Member Renewable Energy Party.
Peter Gardner
Source: www.gippsland.com Published by: news@gippsland.com

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