When the Prime Minister announced the federal support for the dredging of Sydney Harbour, I wasn’t sure if the queasy feeling in my stomach was the result of the brazen shamelessness of spending our money on a useless and doomed project, or whether it was perhaps a reaction to the annual onslaught of obscene, blasphemous holiday Christmas commercialism (or perhaps an undigested bit of beef, a blot of mustard…). The saddest thing about the affair is that none of our politicians is brave enough to say that the emperor has no clothes. Despite the apparent unanimity of local political support for the project, no one can possibly believe that the dredging project will turn Cape Breton’s economy around, or that it is a “game-changer”. If there were any sign of real backing for a new container terminal in Sydney, maybe it would mean something other than gamesmanship. But there isn’t any such sign, and there won’t be in our lifetime. So what does it mean when all seem to agree with something that is patent foolishness? It means that politicians are happy to lie to us, and to waste large sums of money that they do not believe will do any good. (Afghanistan, anyone?). And we aren’t surprised, and that is even sadder.
Andy watt
North Shore
Harbour dredging link:
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