Deputy Prime Minister, Michael McCormack has slammed “raving inner-city lunatics” for raising climate change concerns in response to the catastrophic bushfires burning across rural and regional NSW.
Mr McCormack appeared on ABC Radio National on Monday and was asked a series of questions about climate change, which led to him getting fired up over the “woke, enlightened, capital city greenies” blaming climate change for the infernos destroying NSW towns.
“We’ve had fires in Australia since time began, and what people need now is a little bit of sympathy, understanding and real assistance – they need help, they need shelter,” he said.
“They don’t need the ravings of some pure, enlightened and woke capital city greenies at this time, when they’re trying to save their homes, when in fact they’re going out in many cases saving other peoples’ homes and leaving their own homes at risk.”
But he isn’t denying Australia is drying up. He’s actually not dismissing climate change concerns. In fact, he affirmed that the government was taking “real and meaningful action to reduce global emissions without shutting down all our industries.”
He just doesn’t want us to bring it up.
His Coalition Pals Want You To Shuch Your Concerns Too.
That same morning, NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian said drought had indeed contributed to the tragic conditions but doesn’t think it’s “appropriate to get into a political argument as to what the causes are at this stage.”
Meanwhile, Prime Minister Scott Morrison, was touring in the devastated mid-north coast regions on Sunday and was deflecting questions about climate change. Instead, he says his motley Coalition crew are focused on the immediate needs of the locals.
“You’ve got firefighters out there saving someone else’s house while their own house is burning down. And when we’re in that sort of a situation, that’s where our attention must be.”
But McCormack Should Know Better.
Let’s take a brief look at his resume:
Mr McCormack is the Deputy Prime Minister, the Leader of the Nationals, the Minister for Infrastructure, Transport and regional development, and the Member for the Riverina.
And before anyone @’s me for being one of the inner-city greenies, lol, try again. I, just like Mr. McCormack, was born and raised in Wagga Wagga. In the Riverina. A region whose local councils, including Wagga’s might I add, moved to declare a climate emergency earlier this year.
So his comments probably come as a nasty surprise to more than just the locals who protesting outside his Wagga office, and high school kids joining the climate strikes in the now less-conservative country-town.
The seat of Riverina faces drought, water shortages and quality, rising energy costs due to a lack of settled energy policy. But it’s oh so much easier to do to the “inner city” blah blah than the policy work on climate.
— Gabrielle Chan (@gabriellechan) November 10, 2019
Local councilors, too, have stated the need to plan for the regions future. To accept the reality of cliamte change and actively try to protect and prevent its potential dangers (exhibit A: these fires).
But, I guess, our Federal MP won’t change his tune.
And His Logic Is Seriously Flawed.
I mean, just because we have had fires in the past doesn’t mean these fires are a new thing.
What is new is the duration of the fire season and the consistent severity of warnings (seems like there’s a fire ban a week at home). Surely, Mick’s realised this when he goes back to the country?
And yes, he’s acknowledged that the “situation in parts are getting very, very warm,” and surely he’s aware we’re getting less rain. And science (and logic) tells us that dry things (read: dry leaves) catch fire very easily.
And the bush is full of leaves. It’s full of very, very dry leaves.
Someone please explain to me how that isn’t the result of a changing climate? Especially when the brains at the Australian Academy of Science say it’s climate change causing increased average temperatures and the “fuel dryness”.
But, according to Mr McCormack’s logic, discussing contributing factors is #cancelled.
We can’t talk about how driver-related factors in road accidents. Or about substance abuse in overdoses or ‘fuelled’ violence. And we can’t talk about lifestyle factors in disease rates.
We can’t discuss how climate change is increasing temperatures and drying up the land.
But we can’t deny climate change is a contributing factor. The science is there. The logic is there.
But instead, his outburst is driving a wedge between the city and the country on the most important issue that we all face.
Especially for those in his own constituency.
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