I feel lied to and betrayed by the Labor government’s contempt for the environment and voters. During the election campaign Rudd kept telling us that Labor would improve Australia’s record on the environment. He told us how bad the Coalition was mistreating the environment with not signing Kyoto. Every second Labor press release took place in front of a bank of solar panels. What did this say to voters? Maybe that Labor would indeed be a party for the environment.

Now we have this budget. Means testing of the $8,000 solar panel rebate – those lying scum. What these Labor Party morons don’t understand is that this rebate was designed to help the environment not help rich people or poor people or ‘working families’. Another thing is, I don’t know anyone who earns under $100,000 who is contemplating installing solar panels. With rising fuel and grocery prices and higher interest rates, anyone who earns less than that just doesn’t have the spare cash to even think about solar panels. The $8,000 rebate made all the difference for so-called rich people to actually get solar panels installed.

Add to this the $57,000 luxury car tax – fuel-efficient vehicles are not exempt. This means the next generation of hybrid SUVs and vans will be slapped with a 25% tax. If Labor was really concerned about the environment they would tax cars on the amount of fuel they consume and maybe, heaven forbid, give us a subsidy for fuel-efficient vehicles.

And what does Peter Garrett have to say about this? That bald headed freak has finally flushed what was left of his credibility down the toilet. He has betrayed anything related to his previous life and is now every bit the filthy politician.

The Labor Party holds us voters in contempt – even more so than the previous government. Lied to us and betrayed us. A large percentage of people would have switched their vote over to Labor purely out of concern for the environment. The Labor Party’s ‘green’ actions and words during the election campaign and the adoption of Peter Garrett as their environment Minister lured many Australians into voting Labor. Now they spit in our face.

What is happening in Burma at the moment brings images for me of the massacre in Rwanda the killing fields in Cambodia and the Holocaust. The Burmese government is using the cyclone as an opportunity to kill off their enemies. They are doing this by severely limiting international aid efforts. Killing is still killing it doesn’t matter how you do it the result will still be the same.

We can prevent this crime against humanity getting any worse than it has already. We should be giving the Burmese people aid whether there government likes it or not. The world has not had the courage in the past to prevent these massive man-made tragedies. Human beings are capable of incredibly brutal crimes on a massive scale. I believe human beings can be better than this. It is time we grow up as a race, and act with speed coverage, determination, and the will that we can do better.

Please for humanity sake, Don’t Let It Happen Again.

This morning I was asked to update the website of the Melbourne based Victims Of Chernobyl National Relief Fund. This organisation brings children that are from the irradiated area to give them a well needed holiday over seven weeks.

Unfortunately, the relief fund still needs several host families to look after children aged between 10 and 13 years of age.

If you are interested visit the website:
http://www.victimsofchernobyl.org.au/childrensvisit.php

I was watching 9 a.m. with David and Kim this morning. One of their segments was about whether or not to tell your child when they are diagnosed with Asperger’s syndrome. This set me thinking about when I was told that I had Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy.

I wish to talk about parents telling their kids that they have been diagnosed with serious conditions, such as cancer, muscular dystrophy, autism and others.

It is an enormous shock to parents when their child receives a serious diagnosis. Many immediately think about how hard it will be to tell their children. Some parents wish to shield their child from the shock of the diagnosis and refuse to let them know. I believe it is the worst thing you can do to your child is not to tell them. Can you imagine how bad it would be to the undergoing treatment and not knowing what you are being treated for? Or be suffering painful symptoms and not knowing why?

Children are a lot tougher than their parents believe. Luckily my parents always kept my brother and I informed on everything that was going on medically. It was a very long time till we were diagnosed. My brother and I knew that something was wrong with us. We weren’t as strong as our friends. In under six basketball we couldn’t throw the ball through the hoop – or even halfway to the hoop. Every other boy and girl I knew my age could at least hit the ring. We weren’t diagnosed for another year.

When we finally were diagnosed our parents told us straight away. My brother and I were immensely relieved we finally knew what was wrong with us. When someone accused me of being weak or lazy I just told them – I have muscular dystrophy. I told all my classmates and they were all very understanding even at the age of eight. I told them it was a genetic disease that you can’t catch.

I believe it is always beneficial to tell your children, of all ages, what is going on. You may think it will be difficult, but children are tougher and smarter than many adults believe. Paediatric doctors and nurses are able to help parents explain a diagnosis at a level the child understands. One thing I’ve noticed (at least with muscular dystrophy) is the younger the child often the better they cope. I believe this might have something to do with young brains being more flexible and able to adapt to new circumstances. In many cases it will be easier to tell your children than it will be to tell the grandparents.