Rudd's Whaling Doublethink
Stuart Nettle February 24, 2010
I have to apologise for the continued non-surfing interlude. There just isn't much happening in the surf world for me to get worked up about. However, outrage and indignance is never far away so normal transmission will, as they say, resume shortly. But for the time being...
News this week from Kevin Rudd's Ministry of Truth:
1. Australia will take legal action against Japan if they don't cease whaling by the 1st November 2010.
2. Australia is part of an International Whaling Commission sub-group that is preparing a deal to remove the ban on commercial whaling
You needn't have read 1984 by George Orwell to understand the concept of doublethink. That being, to accept two mutually contradictory beliefs at the same time. The sentences above being excellent examples.
With those sentences, it appears that Kevin Rudd is engaging the public in his own piece of Orwellian doublethink. On Monday, after meeting with Japanese Foreign Minister, Katsuya Okada, Rudd announced he would take Tokyo to court unless they reduced their whale catch to zero.
"If that fails, then we will initiate that court action before the commencement of the whaling season in November 2010," said Rudd. In reply Okada called Rudd's threat of a legal stoush 'unfortunate' and reiterated that their whaling program is legal.
On Tuesday news broke that a sub-group of the IWC, consisting of ten nations (including Australia and Japan), have been drafting a proposal to reintroduce commercial whaling. If the plan were approved Japan would have no need of the 'scientific research' loophole and thus their program would gain a secure legal foothold.
Australia, supposedly, is set to reject the plan, though it's hard to avoid the perception of complicity, especially considering the secretive nature of the plan.
This however, isn't the issue that excites us Orwell fans.
The IWC sub-group has been drafting the plan since last October and Kevin Rudd must've known of it's existence.
On Monday came news of legal action to stop whaling. On Tuesday news that we are part of a group that will allow it to continue.
It does make you think twice about the politics of whaling.
Comments
Dunno Stu, sounds like a classic example of incompetence to me. Rudd would have delegated the management of both issues to seperate ministers - neither of who spoke to each other in the formulation of their final policies. Maybe Gillard signed of on one, Rudd on the other. Again though, the Japanese would be laughing up their sleeve at this..something about organising pissups in breweries comes to mind...
Perhaps Longi, but the IWC group has been meeting since October. Surely, I mean surely, Rudd must've been aware that there was a new plan being formulated.
Whatever the case, he surely looks silly chest-beating about legal action while we (Australia) are party to the IWC whaling plan.
True, perhaps this is the problem in him spending 45% of his time in office to date overseas...think maybe he didnt get the memo? Maybe it was in the same email that outlined the risk in fibrous ceiling insulation...that damn email junk box acting up again.
I believe it's a clever political ploy by Rudd. For one thing, Labor can call an election from August this year and I firmly believe that is what they'll do. The whaling card is then an option to use during the campaign. That is, if the electorate even raises the issue, the whaling issue always disappears during the middle of the year and Rudd will be hoping that is the case again.
FWIW Rudd campaigned to stopping whaling in 2007 and hasn't been held accountable for that promise.