When Christian Is a Dirty Word

This won’t take long.
The Department of Home Affairs (“the Potatocracy”)  stirringly asserts that people love to come to Australia because: 

” ​​​​​​​​Australian values are based on freedom, respect, fairness and equality of opportunity are central to our community remaining a secure, prosperous and peaceful place to live . . .

Australian values include:

• equality of opportunity . . .
• a ‘fair go’ for all . . .

And that’s all good. We like that.

If only these were actual values held and supported and practised by actual politicians.

You might hope that a guy with a “christian” name like Christian might have been infected by nominative determinism, that ‘Christian’ had been an aptonym that suited Christian Porter, because he might have felt at least some moral pressure to consider the needs of the meek and struggling.

But sadly, it seems it is an inaptonym.

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Do you know what casuals dread the most?

Christmas.

Because most don’t work at Christmas/New Year and they can’t afford a proper Christmas, or gifts for their children or whoever. Or a holiday. And they still have to pay the rent. It’s demeaning and embarrassing. 

A Third of Workers in Australia Don’t Get Sick Leave

Victoria is looking at a scheme which would provide five days of paid sick leave and carers’ pay to some casual workers and people with insecure employment.

Five days a year.

Without holiday pay.

You would think this was the very least they could do, except that throughout Australia the standard government support for such people is:

the very least they can get away with. 

Aside:

In our social system all people are of equal value.  

In our political system all voters are of equal power.

The power is in the people, not in the politicians.

The power IS the People.

All the people.

Importantly:

Power does not emanate from the politicians. 

The People’s power does not go to the politicians.

The People’s power goes through the politicians.

  Keeping this in mind 

when a politician is managing the needs of all of the electors of whatever status. . . 

Christian Porter is, apart from Attorney General, the minister for Industrial Relations.

This apparently means that he is effectively the minister for industrialists.

We know this is who he is because he sees a tiny attempt to help people who need help as “a massive tax”, as “killing business”.

Casual work is inherently insecure.

Casual work tends to be poorly paid, without penalty rates and sometimes they’re not eligible for a trickle of Super.

If they’re Job Seekers any income reduces their Centrelink payments. Sometimes casual work is the only work they can get. Yes, they get paid more to ‘compensate’ for the uncertainty and the lack of benefits, but on the pay grade of most it’s an insult and not enough to assure against the unforeseen. They can be easily trashed when they’re not needed.  

And yet the economy depends on them and the low cost of their work. 

But forget about their problems. They’ve only got themselves to blame, They’re a nuisance and they can’t complain because they could lose their shitty job.

And let’s be blunt; they’re the peons of industry. They’re not nearly as valuable as the rich and powerful. If casuals cost a little bit more, business owners might have to spend hours less on the ski slopes.

Businesses would collapse—Collapse!—if casual workers were treated fairly.

And, according to ‘Christian’ Porter, employment would collapse—Collapse!—if workers were treated fairly and with equality as Australians (a core Australian value).

And yet business depends on casual workers and the low cost of their work. 

Christian Porter’s base salary is $357,247.50. His superannuation rate is 15.4% (while everyone else gets 9.5%), or a minimum of roughly $55,000 per year.

What is it about the far right (and the Christians) that they fight against help for those who struggle while supporting, and courting the favour of, those who need no help at all?