16/10/2020
This is a long post.
Go to the loo and grab a cuppa before you sit down to read it.
As a candidate you get a lot of emails, some requiring a very simple short answer, some needing you to go into detail.
Here is the response I provided to one such email only this morning, that according to the sender it was sent to every candidate. I have no idea what responses they were looking for, or, if my responses will put me down at #13 (I'm sure the big party players are hoping so) for them, but I believe in being honest.
I wonder, who else asking you to vote for them is prepared to really let you discover what sort of person they are before you vote?
Good morning (Name withheld) ,
Thank you for your email.
Being a first time candidate for anything, and standing for council elections this has been an interesting journey.
I decided to put my hand up due to a couple of pressing issues that I believe the council was not managing in a way that took our needs and desires for the future of our lovely little part of the world into account, but since announcing my candidacy the number of issues that have been brought to my attention has been astounding and I appreciate these challenges and issues are as important to my neighbours raising them as were the ones that motivated me to run in the first place.
I will try and be as frank as I can with all of your questions, and encourage you to reach out at any time if there is anything else vexing you with local council or you just need some clarity around the answers I have provided you. I promise...no spin.
1: Where do you stand in relation to the Labour Party?
I am not the greatest fan of the Labor party.
As it stands today there is much to criticize. But as an operator of a small business I cannot endorse their policies which always bring about higher taxes and greater burdens on business, whilst taking away incentives and motivations that encourage investment and trade.
2: Where do you stand in relation to the Greens Party?
The Greens Party started by Bob Brown on the banks of the Franklin River in Tasmania to protect the natural beauty of our bush is not the same party today. As an avid recreational camper I love the bush and have enjoyed it with my family for years. We take a very simple "take nothing but photos, leave nothing but footprints" approach, and a big part of my campaign platform is to re-green Glen Eira as we have lost over 50% of our tree canopy since 2002, in spite of all of the Greens Party members on council in that time.
The Greens Party today is all about installing a New World Order, that views the free markets that have given rise to the lifestyles that we can enjoy in a country like Australia including advances in medical and communications technology as evil and wish to pervade every aspect of our lives under the guise of caring for the planet. It is this ruse that makes them arguably the most dangerous political party in Australia currently, as they lure our children into a false sense of virtuous activism long before they can grasp the tyranny of socialism.
3: Where did you stand in relation to the Curfew?
I hated the curfew. My wife and I will often go for a walk after 8pm even 9pm. By the time we spent time with the kids, having dinner, cleaning up, taking care of anything else 8pm is very early for us, so it did create a bit of stress.
I must admit, I did not encourage anyone to undertake acts of civil disobedience, but by the same token there may have been a couple of nights when I was prepared to take a risk to get some fresh air and clear my head after a long day. The curfew and other measures (ring of steel, 5k radius restrictions, work permits) are all signs that the Andrews' Government is more about managing the people, than managing the challenges of a disease with a 99.96% survival rate, and even closer to 100% if you have no co-morbidities and are under the age of 80 (the numbers just do not lie)
4: Where did you stand in relation to the 5km limit?
The 5k limit is ridiculous. The Chief Health Officer and the Police Commissioner have both said that they did not ask for it, it was purely a "captain's call" by the premier that has done nothing but provide a greater level of inconvenience to all of our lives with no evidence to support its introduction.
5: How did you vote/support/fight against the closure of Elsternwick Golf Course?
Firstly, this is not a Glen Eira issue, but I'm happy to discuss.
I'm not a golfer, I suppose that's a big second.
I must admit, at the time it was of no priority to me, however it has now been languishing for over 2 years and I would love to see the area turned into a public space. In my mind it is a wonderful opportunity for an urban forest with walking tracks and clearings for people to be able to experience the serenity provided by being detached from the hustle and bustle for a short while and a nice spot to enjoy a quiet picnic with family and friends.
I have been quite disappointed with treatments of open spaces around us, Booran Reserve could have been so much nicer. It would be nice to just have places of retreat within a short distance from where we live that can give you a feeling of inner peace that can only come from a space that is uncontrived and natural.
6: Do you support/fight against the lockdown by Daniel Andrews?
I have never supported the lock down measures and they have had devastating effects on so many of us.
Due to the industry my wife and I work in, all operations ceased on March 12 this year. Now that we are in the middle of October, even if all restrictions were removed this Sunday, due to lead times we would probably not see any real work coming through till February 2021.
What we do cannot be done online. My wife may start picking up local clients if restrictions are lifted to allow for the training we do to recommence, but until such time as the relevant authorities bring the departments that she works with back on line, business opportunities will still be thin on the ground.
Now that the WHO has released a statement against lock downs, any support for these measures must have evaporated and the mob must now stand down and let us get back to living our lives.
The lockdowns have robbed my kids of having the lives they should be enjoying, as young adults, one (as have all of them) has had their VCE severely interrupted and all the enjoyment that comes with your last year of school (formals, graduation celebrations and ceremonies) have been cancelled. One as a first year university student has not had the opportunities to meet new and interesting people and explore the world as a young man, relegated to studying in his room and sitting in the park down the road on his own or with his brother for a couple of hours a day. They have all had their social lives torn apart, lost their jobs and experienced a level of social isolation that, regardless of how many times the ads on TV tell them are keeping them together they are feeling more and more alone.
We are very fortunate as a family to enjoy each other's company and be able to make the best of a bad situation. We do whatever outreach work we can, making calls and sending emails, and chatting with our elderly neighbours but they haven't seen their own families for months now, as have my father and in-laws and I am certain that there a huge number of people who have been totally isolated doing it much harder than we are. I have had collogues and associates I work with commit su***de and friends that are struggling to keep their heads above water, battling to stave off bankruptcy after running successful businesses for over 20 years now.
The cost of the lockdowns will never be able to be measured, but we will be paying the price in mental health, social isolation and communal dislocation for decades. I do not believe that these will be things any level of government can fix, they just have to stay out of the way of those doing the fixing and end the lockdowns ASAP so this work can start.
7: Where do you stand on extinction rebellion protest in society?
Extinction Rebellion...They are no different to the greens, with the exception of screaming louder in the vein hope that it makes them seem more relevant. At the end of the day they are militant socialists who believe that the only way to "fix the world" is by smashing down everything we have built, handing out the spoils in a fashion that suits their narrative and controlling the way we perceive the world declaring anyone that does not share their world view as a heretic.
8: Where do you stand in relation to BLM?
BLM is a activist organization similar to the Greens and Extinction Rebellion requiring the need to perpetuate an issue that was recognized as an issue some time ago (1960's) and has been continually addressed to the point that it is no longer an issue, so that some more sinister socialist regime can rise. The biggest distinction I have been able to make between BLM and others like the Greens or Extinction Rebellion is that BLM only want POC's in charge, making it a fascist movement.
I have asked many people over the years to demonstrate to me where systemic racism exists, for that matter, where systemic persecution of any marginalized group or minority exists in Australia and I will take up the fight and stand shoulder to shoulder with them to ensure that any injustices perpetrated against them are dealt with, rectified and the perpetrators held to account.
I believe there is still a place for activism in this area, but Australia or the US or UK or Western Europe are not the places for it.
As opportunities arise we need to speak out against the Iranian regime for hanging gay men on cranes in the street We need to speak out against the tyrannical Islamic regimes that are persecuting Christians in the Middle East and North Africa, or suppressing the rights of women to learn to read and write or just to walk down the street without a chaperone.
We need to speak out against the CCP for their treatment of Uiger Muslims in China and the concentration (sorry re-education) camps they are holding them in or Mahmoud Abbas and the boot he keeps on the neck of the people living under his rule in Gaza whilst becoming one of the world's richest men as he rifles aid money from the UN and others into his own coffers.
There are real injustices happening in this world and I thank G-d that I won the genetic lottery and ended up growing up and living in one of the most free, open, pluralistic societies on the planet. Unfortunately many people here don't really appreciate how good we have it. It is unfortunate that we now have to fight to keep it as these groups try harder and harder to convince us that the lives we lead are not worthy enough by their standards and their's is the only way forward.
Again, thank you for asking these questions. It is important, even at the local council level that you know who you are voting and for what they stand. An individual's ideology guides every decision they make, which is why I have been so outspoken about the big party members trying to secure your vote. They signed up and pledged allegiance to the party's ideology which has guided their policies long before they came and asked you to vote for them.
As an Independent I can honestly say my only allegiance is to you and all of my neighbours in Camden Ward.
Please stay in touch, if you would like to know anything else about where I stand. I'm an open book and happy to share and totally comfortable with you sharing this with your friends and neighbours to help you make the most informed decision you can and the right choice for you. Even if it isn't me.
Kind regards
HARRY GRAEVE
Independent Candidate for Camden Ward0447 599 588
