THE COLOUR OF COWARDICE

When it comes to accusing governments of being environmental policy laughingstocks on the world stage the Australian Greens are always first out of the chute.

Regardless of any concessions made, the Greens want more, they want it faster and regardless of the short-term consequences they are absolutely committed to making tough decisions today, that will ensure the future for generations to come. 

At least that’s the line they peddle.

In truth, the Greens are a party of rebellious teens who crave popularity above all else. Oh they’ll back the hard decisions alright, but if the hard decisions are also unpopular the Greens’ silence is positively deafening.

Take for example, the Australian government’s recent and quite gutsy (if disappointingly minimalist) decision to address the nation's feral cat scourge.

In terms of their impact on rare and endangered native species, feral cats are public enemy number one.

While statistics are difficult to determine when it comes to discreet killers such as cats, it is generally agreed that the Australian continent and surrounding islands play host to 20+million feral cats. 

Between them they dispatch (eat or kill for sport) 75 million native animals every night—more than 20 billion mammals, reptiles, birds and even some vital insects species every year.

There are at least three areas in which the expert authorities are in accord:

1. As a ravenous introduced predator cats have no equal,

2. As a ravenous introduced predator cats have no place in the Australian environment, and

3. The Australian environment would benefit incomprehensibly from the absence of cats.

Here’s the interesting thing – the Greens agree with all 3 points. 

In fact the Australian Greens’ policy position on introduced species is that they should all be ‘removed’ from the environment, a process that would require the ‘removal’ of literally trillions of individuals.

In fact, because they generally oppose all forms of animal exploitation, any future Greens’ Utopia would be achieved only with the ‘removal’ of all non-indigenous species, including cows, sheep, chickens etc., in short, all species currently farmed for food or fibre.

Now I confess, the term ‘removed’ is a little indulgence of my own. The Greens prefer the term ‘control’ and they have listed, as a matter of policy, a number of approved ‘control’ measures. 

These include shooting by “professional shooters”, the deployment of humane poisoned baits, biological controls (e.g. the calicivirus also known as Rabbit haemorrhagic disease) and of course humane trapping, which naturally requires a little follow-up ‘control’ after the fact.

In short, the Greens policy of pest and feral animal ‘control’ consists of various means of killing animals in their hundreds of millions. This is not something the Greens will deny if pressed for confirmation, but it is certainly something they will not volunteer publically.

While the Greens oppose hunting, for instance, they do not oppose the killing aspect of the activity per se, oh no. What they oppose is the notion of people deriving satisfaction from hunting, or what the Greens refer to as the “thrill of killing”.

For instance, at present deer (family Cervidae) enjoy a certain level of protection from outright extermination due to their status as game animals. In essence, this means they may be hunted by licensed hunters and perhaps only during certain seasons, but not baited, trapped or exposed to the Cervidae equivalent of Ebola.

The Greens are not at all happy about this situation, which they are striving to end because they feel the preservation of deer as a public resource is hampering efforts to exterminate every last one of them.

But I began this article with the assertion that the Greens are nothing more than a party of petulant attention-seeking teens who crave popularity above all else and I confess I have digressed, if only in explanation. 

Here is my point...

Given their espoused commitment to making the hard decisions today in order that we might reap the benefits of a brighter tomorrow; given their avowed concern for our international image; given moreover that among the major political options the Greens alone have a Dalek-like commitment to extermination, why have they been so darn quiet lately?

I refer of course to the recent international furore fanned by the likes of Brigitte Bardot, Morrissey and PETA. They have each, in their turn and together, criticised Australia’s decision to act in a fairly decisive manner in relation to its feral cat scourge, referring to the plan as cruel, inhumane, ineffective, shameful, unethical and predictably etc., etc... 

Morrissey, who once advised he goes by a single moniker because all history's great men were known by but a single name - Beethoven, Einstein, Shakespeare (Plllease!) - even went so far as to call Australia a nation governed by, basically, sheep farmers.     

Regardless of the fact the Greens are not delivering the proposed feral cat 'control' program it is very much Greens’ policy to ‘control’ feral cats and by killing them to boot.

It would seem reasonable then to assume that being keenly concerned for Australia’s international image and as the political alternative with conservation at the very forefront of its raison d’etre, the Greens might want to defend Australia just a wee bit by telling Bardot, Morrissey, PETA and all the other bleating hearts to pull their heads in?

Instead there has been silence, and why? 

Because the Greens’ very existence depends on people believing, falsely, that a vote for the Greens means immortality for all the cute and defenceless kitties. 

In short, to stand up and be counted with Australians willing to make hard decisions in the national interest would be political suicide for the Greens and they value their popularity even more than their Utopian ideals.

The term “un-Australian” is bandied about a lot these days, but for me it has always proved hard to define succinctly. Until that joysome day arrives, I suppose I have little choice but to resort  to symbolism...  

Greens Senator and Environment spokesperson Larissa Waters

Anyway, I’ll get outaya way now...

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