While in Oslo, we stumbled across this familiar face. The fearless girl. At first she seemed to be standing in the middle of the sidewalk, staring at nothing. Not facing off with the ferocious bull like in New York.
The plaque nearby added little to explain.
However, with a little more investigation, we discovered she was staring down something much bigger than a charging bull or even sexism. She was staring down the government, because she faces the Norwegian parliament, Stortinget.
We are seeing a rise in child activists around the world, teenagers doing what the adults should be doing. We ought to be ashamed.
The Norwegian Government, when it made it's wealth in oil, created a Sovereign Fund to look after it's people. It invests a mere 4% of it in the country each year. The Norwegian Government is also investing in preparing and adaptation for climate change, with the future safety of the people in mind. It is something we would do well to learn from.
Our government seems a little more focused on the well being of the MPs and less on the people of the nation. More alarmingly, there is damaging legislative and environmental changes heading our way which will alter and damage our way of life, quite possibly forever.
Perhaps we need to learn from this fearless Norwegian girl? Perhaps we need to take a stand against corruption or at least demand full transparency, even if we voted for their tax reform or some other policy? The tax paying people of Australia deserve better. We deserve our tax dollars to make Australia a better place to live, not just for the few in power, but for the many. Better schools, better hospitals, proper infrastructure, a well funded Medicare and so on.
With the state of the country and the economy both in rapid decline, it's now up to us to try to repair the damage. We need to put this government on notice that we won't turn a blind eye anymore. The apathetic Australian needs to state what is acceptable. People treat you the way you let them, we need to stop letting them treat us like fools.
You are still a loyal Liberal or National voter if you demand a Federal ICAC, for this is not aimed solely at the LNP. The rot won't stop with the next election. It won't stop with a change of power. It won't stop, unless we make it stop. Our politicians on both sides of the fence have shown us that they need someone to keep them in check. We are stupid if we think otherwise, as repeated behaviour only emboldens them all. Absolute power corrupts absolutely, as they say. There needs to be a non political body to keep watch with the tax payers interests at heart.
There is an old curse, usually referred to as a Chinese curse, though it's apparently not Chinese.
May you live in interesting times.
We are living it and perhaps we need to live a little more fearlessly. We need to let them know they are being watched and we expect more. Our future depends on it.
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