Its Time … to Vote.

Fifteen blog posts…

https://pruebatten.com/2016/05/15/fight-and-win/

https://pruebatten.com/2016/05/26/poo-n-stuff/

https://pruebatten.com/2016/05/30/where-else-in-the-world/

https://pruebatten.com/2016/06/05/licence-to-party/

https://pruebatten.com/2016/06/25/breathing-the-sea/

https://pruebatten.com/2016/07/23/name-calling/

https://pruebatten.com/2016/10/31/a-time-of-firsts/

https://pruebatten.com/2017/04/21/voter-backlash/

https://pruebatten.com/2017/05/22/counselling-the-council/

https://pruebatten.com/2017/05/30/inconvenient-truths/

https://pruebatten.com/2017/06/18/floating-my-boat/

https://pruebatten.com/2017/06/14/transparent-as-mud/

https://pruebatten.com/2017/06/18/floating-my-boat/

https://pruebatten.com/2017/08/05/four-twenty-blackbirds/

https://pruebatten.com/2017/09/14/art-spin-doctoring/

… countless hours of time, a few thousands of words, days spent in tactical talks with the powerhouse of the anti-fish farm movement, weeks spent on the phone raising a fighting fund in the early days, hours spent doing leaflet drops. Even sitting with politicians, talking, talking, talking…

And for what?

Ostensibly to try and protect our fine coastal environment from degradation by Tassal.

The result?

Those against the unmitigated forward march of Tassal, Huon Aquaculture and Petuna have been patronised.

The Liberal Government has not listened. They’ve ridden roughshod over the sensibilities of all those who attended public meetings and those who passed votes of no-confidence in local and state representatives.

They have ignored the 3000 yachtsmen, divers, professional fishermen, rec.fishers and boat owners who sailed in a protest flotilla as close to Parliament House as it was possible to manoeuvre a vessel.

 

The Labour Opposition has not listened and when asked to place a moratorium on expansion of the fin-fish industry, has created a platform that has no intention of doing that.

If nothing else, I’m grateful to have worked with the likes of my own family on this, especially my husband. And the Hopkins Family, Wayne Bell, inexhaustible Laura Kelly, Donald Paton and brave and vocal Craig Garland. But mostly I’m grateful to have worked with the indomitable Wilhelmina Rea who almost singlehandedly lifted the profile of the potential and actual degradation of our coastline to recognition on state, national and international levels.

She used her little black book of contacts and pressured and pushed until even internationally recognised chefs like Matt Moran  took notice. She put her heart and soul into attempting the redemption of a place she and I both love with the result that fish farming has been consistently under the scrutiny of Four Corners, The Project, national dailies and state newspapers and radio and news and current affairs programmes. She’s Bruny Island-bound now, and indirectly involved with King Island in an effort to protect those fine niche areas from the voracious jaws of fish- farms’ offshore investors.

The fish companies plan to expanding the industry without hardcore, statutory government controls and with love and kisses from the party in power. They have said it plainly to our faces.

But…

We vote next week.

We now have the chance to send a clear and unambiguous message to Liberal and Labour. And maybe to mayors who stand on hustings as if voters can forget they cheered a landslide vote of no-confidence in said mayor.

We can show we don’t care if we have a hung Parliament as long as governments realise that we are not ill-informed, that we will not be patronised, that we can’t be bought by pork-barrelling, that the world is merely an electronic click away and that transparency is all.

Vote well and vote for the longterm future of all that makes Tasmania unique, people. Our brand and our island once damaged is gone.

It’s up to you, and to me and anyone else who really cares where this state will be in twenty years!