2010 Federal Election

By now you should be aware that the nameless and faceless Labor Party back office had long ago made the ruthless political decison that the needs of the veteran community were irrelevant in terms of the larger economic and other issues that dominated the political debate and irrespective of previous promises the Labor party truculently refuses to assist with fair indexation

This of course has been endorsed by the Rudd kitchen cabinet and the rebadged leadership under Gillard... any dissent from this position has been flippantly ignored by reference to the Mathews Report even though the Labor Party is privately aware that the basic premises of the Mathews report are fundamentally flawed but will not publicly admit this...

It's forced me to adopt a political stance to urge youse to vote for the Coalition who have made the courageous decision to fairly index DFRB/DFRDB with an acknowledged flow on effect to other milsuper benefits... it is a once in a lifetime opportunity to end generations of suffering and I ask you to think carefully about our veteran community when you cast your vote

I have attached the latest Fair Go ! update for you here if you have not otherwise read same

I hope and pray that you will carefully consider the needs of the veteran community tomorrow - your future wellbeing and welfare depends on a vote for the Coalition

Australian National Debt Clock - watch the Labor Party increase your share of the National Debt in real time... vote the labor Party OUT so the Coalition can afford to give us fair indexation

And some facts and figures on unfair indexation for you to put the matter into perspective:

The table below details the dates and to whom submissions have been addressed in the period just prior to the last federal elections in 2007 up until late March 2010 and is a comparison between the superannuation benefit that I was receiving and the superannuation benefit that a soldier who retires (with exactly the same service background as myself) on each of those dates.

It will be noted that the value of the difference in superannuation benefit between the soldier who would have retired on each of those dates and myself has increased by a massive 466.5% since 10 October 2010. (In the period of time that the Labour party has been in power.)

As a serving soldier, myself and all other voluntary members of the Australian Defence forces, contributed to our own future retirement through a compulsory deduction from our wages for the duration of our service careers with the expectation that we would receive a retirement benefit that would provide a reasonable lifestyle in retirement.

The inequitable and downright unsuitable indexation of our superannuation benefits combined with the demonstrated rapid acceleration of the discrepancy between the superannuation benefit that a current serving defence would receive, indicates that within a very few short years Defence superannuants will be progressed to the most disadvantaged group in Australia. In a word, ex service people on in receipt of superannuation retirement pay, who have faithfully served their country are not receiving what we paid for and are rapidly being reduced to paupers.

I'd remind youse that the Labor Party only came to power with empty words and hollow promises to the veteran community and must be outed to repair the continuing damage to those who so unfairly suffer as they juggle whether to pay their electricity or grocery bills...

A thousand mbrs retire with MSBS pensions each year too and I urge youse to vote for the Coalition to protect your ongoing welfare and wellbeing otherwise you too will suffer death by a thousand cuts as you try and survive on unfair indexation and bread and dripping

This Saturday sees a once in a generation opportunity to right the wrongs that have so unfairly made hundreds of thousands of our veteran community suffer and I urge you to think of those who suffer when you cast your vote

This will probably be my last posting before the 2010 Federal Election which you are no doubt aware is only a week away

There is little to add to previous postings except to remind youse of the truculence of the Labor Party

You may not be aware of the failure of the Labor Party to reply to any of my emails - similarly any and all other significant pers in the debate have not received any reasonable reply either

The Labor Party and sitting members claim to have engaged the ESOs including DFWA but the simple answer is they have not done so indeed Mike KELLY and Kate LUNDY in particular fail to reply to email from myself and others across the debate

In hindsight, I would have to say that the Labor Party never intended to keep their 2007 Federal Election promises of fair indexation and the Mile KELLY and Kate LUNDY comments are merely a smokescreen to hide this fact from the veteran community

Given their pre 2007 Federal Election promises and the somewhat surprising realisation that the Labor party has done little if anything in the last 3 years to resolve fair indexation - I must urge that you vote for the Coalition to allow their courageous breakthrough commitment to fair indexation to take effect from 1 Jul 2011

I ask that you punish the Labor Party for their empty words and hollow promises at the last election together with their lack of action on any part of their promises - and ask that you encourage all to vote for the Coalition

Hopefully the Labor party will be outed and generations of despair can be swept aside and we can look forward to a new era where our veteran community is not harshly punished by unfair indexation

I've cut'n'pasted yet another email from the veteran forums that confirms the truculence of the Labor Party and ask that you look into your hearts and vote carefully for the veteran community next Saturday

I'll be back in hospital tomorrow for a few days so I had better share a few thoughts with youse...

I can see little changing in the political landscape whilst I am away... all sides of the political spectrum have reached their apogee and I consider it is now far too late for any backflip by the Labor Party

If youse read through my and the DFWA website you'll know that the Labor Party promised fair indexation as part of their 2007 election platform... in hindsight it's fair to say that these were hollow words and empty promises and that the Labor Party has embarked on a protracted campaign of reducing benefits to the veteran community

The recent FAIR GO! campaign update/s highlights that the Labor Party continues to promise that they will usher in a new era of fair indexation - however - Minister Griffin's comments below show that fair indexation of milsuper is not on the Labor Party agenda indeed he has come into an election without bringing anything to the table

The Labor Party has had three years to deliver their earlier promises and continues to stonewall at every twist and turn - if the Labor Party is re-elected I fear that we will have to re-begin negotiations from scratch as the incoming Government seeks to distance itself from the promises of it's predecessors. I can find little if any kind words about the performance of Minister Griffin but perhaps it can be summarised in this cutting from an email circulating the veteran community:

I have no choice but to urge youse to vote for the Coalition to resolve the milsuper debate once and for all... it is a once in a generation breakthrough that the Coalition has offered and must be seized with both hands otherwise our veteran community is doomed to another three years of hard labor. Far too many have suffered for far too long and any further hardship will cause irreparable damage to those who have suffered for so long

And another younger generation of MSBS beneficiaries will likewise spiral downwards towards poverty if youse do not vote for the Coalition... it's not good enough for the Labor Party to proclaim "they will never be forgotten" at the recent funerals of ADF mbrs and idly sit by as their widows and families suffer from the harsh realities of unfair indexation

I've also updated the OUT Mike KELLY webpage with his 2007 election promises and snippets from his maiden speech. Mike KELLY is another who only won his marginal seat because of his hollow words and empty promises to the veteran community

I'd urge you to vote KELLY out - that he as a uniformed mbr has so betrayed our veteran community is a very bitter pill to swallow and my emails tend to confirm he has done very little if anything to advocate fair indexation on behalf of the veteran community

Please read and understand this email but the key point you should note is that:

"On his recent tour to WA Minister Griffin was busy spruiking his usual SPIN when he was publicly challenged on this issue.
The best that could be said is that he was severely embarrassed by the exposure of his duplicity and his answers lacked any conviction or credibility whatsoever.
Any reading of various accounts of the event on the internet will tell you the very same story.
The danger is that if a dishonest Minister in a dishonest government gets away with treating disabled veterans like this then it will be a sorry day for the entire veteran community.
It is important that veterans let politicians know that they won’t stand for this type of betrayal.
All disabled ex-ADF personnel should make their feelings known at the forthcoming election."

I'd also like youse to think about the plight of our younger uniformed community, many of whom are medically discharged out of the Defence Force and who receive an invalidity MSBS pension

We all know some of them - young diggers at the top of their game unfortunately injured during their service and who will never be able to work again... They too are discovering the harsh realities of unfair indexation as their MSBS invalidity pension remains essentially static but their electricity and water and grocery bills rise far over the CPI - there is a human face to this which is represented by broken marriages, bankruptcies, debt, suicide and ill-health...

They are a un-noticed part of the milsuper debate largely because this process happens gradually with unfair indexation and the effects take time to hit hard

But you need to think about them and to realise that their salvation can only come from voting for the Coalition with the forseen flow-on effect of the DFRB/DFRDB breakthrough on fair indexation being extended to all milsuper beneficiaries

And... I know I have to upload Mike KELLY's press releases of his broken promises... soon...

There was high hopes that Minister Griffin's visit to Western Australia would result in some well deserved news on the Labor Party election policy platform

But -true to form, Minister Griffin has delivered another slap to the face to the veteran community which reflects the continued stonewalling against a background of the broken promises of the labor Party in the 2007 election

Unless Minister Griffin can proffer an olive branch or a major backflip during the remainder of his WA visit - it presages the fall of the current Government as the veteran community exacts their rightful revenge by voting for the Coalition in the marginal seats and elsewhere

Initially there were about two dozen people present, but a few more trickled in about an hour late. (I had been told by a Labor party supporter that they were expecting 300).

On each seat was a notice about the ANZAC Centenary, but of course no-one wanted to talk about that. One man (Jock O'Neil) stood up and became quite agitated about the issue of disability pensions. After a while a second man stood and also became quite vocal about Labor's continued stone-walling on this issue, despite promises to the contrary prior to the last election. Anyway, after a few minutes you could see Griffin was getting agitated, as nothing he could say would pacify these two men. Gary Gray was getting visibly disturbed too, and eventually he got up and "stormed" across the room, and nearly came to blows with second man. It was the very first time I have ever seen Gary Gray without his supercilious smirk! Not a pretty sight and not a good image for the Member for Brand! The term "Union Thug" sprang to mind!

Several points worthy of noting.

1. Labor will announce some sort of policy on Veteran Affairs in the coming days, but Griffin did say it was highly unlikely to include any fair indexation measures for those on military superannuation. He commentated that the Liberal's policy covered only 40% of mil super people, and did not take kindly to a comment from the floor that his party's policy covered 0%.

2. I think he also guaranteed that their soon to be announced policy will not include any changes to the current disability pensions.

3. When I asked him if Labor would match the Coalition's promise for free medical and dental care for service families, he said "no". He said that their "trial" already covered some 25% of service families, and did not take kindly to a comment that the Libs would cover 100%

4. He totally fluffed my question of Podger and any policy to fix anomalies in mil super schemes. Obviously he has no policy in this area. He would not answer my question about any introduction of a new scheme in the future, apart from saying more work was needed in that area.

5. When asked about out of date life expectancy tables he said this had been his responsibility for only 4 months and said if the problem were to be fixed now it would be unfair on those who have "suffered", and to fix the problem "historically" was too difficult. (I got the impression that he was vulnerable on this issue)

6. When asked about clawback in relation to fair indexation of mil super he said that Finance had calculated clawback to be in the region of 20% only.

7. He totally supported the new arrangements for the combined mil/civil super boards, but did mention that the Finance Minister could have handled the initial stages better.. He said that young MSBS people would be MUCH better off.

8. Taxation of Mil Super. Tough luck - it's taxed!

9. Exit strategy for our troops in Middle East. Fluffed the answer to this, as obviously it is outside his portfolio areas. Repeated the Government's resolve to keep our troops there. Did mention that multiple tours were made, but length of deployment was short when compared to Vietnam.

There were many more lesser topics, but I was left with the overwhelming opinion that Labor has NO significant policy for the service, the veteran and ex-service community. I also got the impression that those in the audience this morning were quite angry with Labor's attitude(and indifference) over the two key issues of military superannuation indexation and disability pensions.

Regards

Richard Usher

President of the DFWA WA Inc.

The News webpage has stolen most of the thunder about the 2010 Federal Election so I urge you to read the News webpage

I recall not being able to celebrate Christmas 2009 as I patrolled another Forward Operating Base so that others might

And of course we have Gillard and Faulker attending the funeral of the late Private Bewes:

The Labor party has repeatedly promised us fair indexation of our milsuper and to date has delivered NOTHING

The Labor Party continues to remind us that our military service is mission-critical to the defence and well-being of our great nation - that we are one of the pillars of society that provides the glue to holding the national interest together - that we will be amply rewarded for our service and that we will never be forgotten

Yet as soon as we are discharged or worse if we invalided from service or unfortunately die - we or our family are thrown out like dirty laundry and left to dry in the harsh light of day

Enough is enough and it is time to take the gloves off and remind them that we will harshly punish the Labor Party on election day if Minister Griffin delivers an election policy of yet more hollow words and empty promises

The Coalition has already promised fair indexation of our milsuper and unless the Labor Party mirrors this I must ask you to vote for the Coalition

Not such a bad idea to do a bit of googling - any googling of military superannuation shows no favours from the Labor Party but hundreds of articles relating to the courageous Coalition offer...

"Labor’s waste in so many ways means Australia is now borrowing $4m an hour - every hour"

I'd remind youse that a political campaign is damn hard work - just ask anyone who has been involved in even the fringes of a campaign...

Door knocking, canvassing, leafleting, meeting and greeting, public meetings, letterboxing, walking the neighbourhood, talking to all your friends and colleagues, photocopying, telephone calls, admin and logistics, passing the message on...

The FAIRGO4VETERANS Campaign urgently needs your support to resolve fair indexation for milsuper in the context of this once in a generation courageous offer by the Coalition

I urge youse to get in touch with the FAIR GO! CAMPAIGN here and here to offer whatever assistance you are able to ensure that hundreds of thousands of our veteran community can have a reasonable standard of living in their retirement

NATIONAL AFFAIRS: Julia Gillard's long-term agenda

"Julia Gillard has made light of her youthful radicalism, and has been painstakingly careful to present herself as a moderate.

It is worth remembering, however, what she once wrote for the Socialist Forum on how the extreme Left could advance its agenda by giving "strategic support for Labor governments".

She said: "We need to recognise the only possibility for major social change is under a long period of Labor administration. Within that administration the Left needs to be willing to participate to shape political outcomes, recognising the need to except (sic) often unpalatable compromises in the short term to bolster the prospect of future advance." (Quoted by Andrew Bolt, "Gillard's plan for power", Herald Sun, October 29, 2007)."

The google search results list hundreds of webpages summarising the hollow words and empty promises of the Labor Party

I'd remind you that the Labor party rode to victory at the 2007 election largely because of these hollow words and empty promises that won the marginal seats

What's more damning is that Labor's original policies have been taken off the Labour Party's website. If they had kept their promises then they would not have changed their website.

This is a blatant attempt by the Government to hide these broken promises that it said would be done if they were elected in 2007.

It has been said that Kevin Rudd said what he needed to say to get elected and it was all dumped the day after.

And don't think anything has changed with Gillard... I've said it before and I'll say it again that Gillard is a co-offender in the gang of four and this kitchen cabinet still exists with Swan so suddenly shifting his allegiances... at least Tanner has had the decency to not stand for re-election since he and Faulkner know that the kitchen cabinet were on the nose and still smell off today

The Coalition is the only way forward to resolve the misery of hundreds of thousands in our veteran community and I urge you to vote for the Coalition on election day

It's time I wrote to advise just how little time we have left to resolve the fair indexation campaign

We are so close to resolving this at the 2010 Federal Election with the Coalition offering a once in a generation opportunity to resolve much of the indexation campaign although lobbying is still being undertaken this to further the flow-on aspects

But then again it could swing the other way if the Labor Party wins and the current harsh realities remain in place

A win by the Coalition will end the death by a thousand cuts suffered by thousands of the veteran community as they flip a coin in their daily decision on whether to pay the electricity bill or buy groceries

I don't think readers realise the depths of despair that thousands of our veteran community find themselves in - nor do readers understand that it will happen to them tomorrow if they are unfortunate enough to be injured and retired on invalidity grounds... it will also happen to your widow tomorrow if you are unfortunate enough to die in the service of our great nation

Don't think it cannot happen to you - it has already happened to far too many this year who will also suffer hardship as their MSBS benefits fritter away with unfair indexation

You really have to take this to the streets - I call upon you to discuss this with all of your friends and relatives - I call upon you to discuss this at with every serving mbr that you know - the longer you do nothing risks the failure of the campaign and consigns more of our veteran community and perhaps you and your family to the scrapheap

If you haven't done anything just yet... I urge that you act before it affects you too !

I trust and pray that you will do the right thing by the veteran community come election day otherwise your decision may come back to haunt you and your family

Many of us lately have suffered some ill-informed personal attacks that we are becoming "political"

I'd gently remind readers that the often paltry benefits that we receive as a veteran community are enshrined in legislation and that the only way forwards is to join an organisation such as DFWA with the courage and determination to move forwards - that DFWA continues to lobby all political parties is NOT political posturing rather they have only sought to protect your interests and present the results of their lobbying to youse so that youse can make a decision to do the right thing by the veteran community on election day

I have felt concerned that the RSL has dropped the ball and is too busy rowing it's own boat which only dilutes our lobbying power whilst most other exservice organisations have formed partnerships that are actively achieving tangible results

You may not be aware that exservice organisations have presented an annual "wishlist" to the Minister's office for generations - the FAIRGO4 VETERANS campaign is merely a continuation of this continuing to and fro between the veteran community and the Government of the day

More updates soon - I'd like to focus on the unkept promises of the Labor Party stemming from their 2007 election commitments that stood to promise so much for the veteran community but delivered only hollow words and empty promises

I've seen little if anything about veteran community issues in the newspaper coverage of the 2010 Federal Election reporting and I'd ask that you continue to write emails and letters to the editor here

We do live in interesting times - the circus has come to town with the 2010 Federal Election advertising

No doubt you too will be amazed that the newspapers and the television report nothing about the hardships our veteran community suffers every day... The Labor Party has deemed us to be irrelevant to the outcome of the 2010 Federal Election because of the "larger" economic issues that they consider so dominate the election debate - and it is timely to remind them of the harsh consequences of their policies and their failure to meet their earlier promises as the marginal seats campaign heats up

I shudder every time that the television advertises the Labor Party's continued wasting of billions of dollars and reminds us that the Labor Party adds another hundred million dollars of debt to us every day... a fraction of what fair indexation would cost them

The Coalition is the only political party that offers a way forward to resolve entrenched and embedded problems that have hurt our veteran community for generations and I call upon youse to act in a meaningful way that best reflects the needs of our veteran community

I trust and pray that you will do the right thing by the veteran community on election day

I have to reiterate that the only solution to the fair indexation campaign is political and rests with your 2010 Federal Election vote

The Labor Party continues to renege on it's promises and further refuses to enter into any recent commitments for meaningful debate - read here and here

Unless the Labor Party commits to a major pre-election backflip to keep it's promises dating back prior to the 2007 Federal Election ! you have little if any choice but to vote for the Coalition in this once in a generation opportunity to resolve the fair indexation debate

I need to reiterate that many of us believe that the courageous Coalition commitment to introduce fair indexation to DFRB/DFRDB mbrs > 55 yo wef 1 Jul 2011 will have a flow-on effect to MSBS milsuper mbrs and I urge all serving ADF mbrs to pass this message on to other serving mbrs

I'd urge that youse continue to write to your elected representatives to remind them of the hardships our retired mbrs suffer under... I'd urge that youse write to the editors of your newspapers - some helpful hints and email addresses and webform submission hyperlinks here

Please read the (uploaded) letter from Wayne SWAN which so perfectly encapsulates the lack of any meaningful response from the Labor Party and which conveniently forgets to mention their 2007 election promises

I shouldn't have to dissect this letter to explain the foolishness of it's comments and the lack of any understanding of the history and context of milsuper but will do so if I have to...

And it likely predicts yet further poor outcomes with the yet to be released Podger Review...

It's timely to remind you that the sins of the Labor Party cannot all be blamed on the outgoing Kevin RUDD

All of the gang of four kitchen cabinet ie RUDD, GILLARD, SWAN & TANNER are equally responsible for the hollow words and empty promises at the last Federal election

That so many senior figures (TANNER & FAULKNER amongst others) are deserting the Labor Party like rats from a sinking ship reminds all that the current leadership are on the nose and youse would be well served by voting this entire cabal out into the wilderness

Youse cannot afford a Government run by faceless powerbrokers in nameless back offices and deserve a Government that can and will listen to the needs of the veteran community

I would take the opportunity to reiterate the pain and hardship suffered by the 80000 DFRB/DFRDB mbrs - many of whom have had to face continually depreciating pensions for 20 + years and whose day to day life is very much at risk with ever decreasing purchasing power

You should be well aware that this is a moral cancer that goes to the very heart of Government with successive Governments over the past 25-30 years ignoring the problem irrespective of the many reviews that have recommended using an index that reflects true purchasing power

It has been a courageous move forwards by the Coalition to offer fair indexation to DFRB/DFRDB mbrs over 55 yo from 1 Jul 2011 if they are returned to Government

Fair indexation was one of the election promises of the incoming Rudd Government in 2007 but it is clear that they have reneged on their earlier promises and must be punished for their hollow words and empty promises

That the Greens too support fair indexation rounds off that there is clear-cut bipartisan support across the political spectrum except for the Labor Party withdrawing it's earlier promises that it so misused to swing the veteran community's vote in it's favour at the last Federal election in 2007

I would reiterate that there has been generations of pain and hardship suffered by our veteran community and that you must take this once in a lifetime opportunity to vote for the Coalition to resolve the indexation debate once and for all

Failure to take this opportunity will mean not only another 3 years of suffering but also provides no way forward for our serving defence community most of whom are mbrs of the MSBS milsuper scheme

Fair indexation of MSBS is a logical outcome of policy lobbying and progression of the DFRB/DFRDB breakthrough and I have to remind you that not resolving fair indexation now dooms current MSBS mbrs to the same harsh fate suffered by DFRB/DFRDB mbrs

If you look through the MSBS website you will notice that there are tens of thousands of serving MSBS mbrs with thousands retiring on the grounds of age each year

It has never been more important for the serving defence community to vote for the Coalition because this provides the only opportunity for them to stave off the spectre of an uncertain wellbeing and welfare that has faced DFRB/DFRDB mbrs until now

There is still a lot that needs to be done and I ask that you lurch out of the comfort zone of your armchairs and act with deeds rather than thoughts...

Your active input into the campaign is vitally necessary to be able to win and my personal thoughts are that it will heal many wounds if youse yourselves are involved in the solution rather than just be bystanders who may otherwise miss out

I do need youse to SMS text with letters to the editor as well as other thoughts letters and comments to the newspapers

I do need youse to continue to write to your elected representatives to tell them just how much pain and suffering is endured by those DFRB/DFRDB mbrs who live under harsh and unjust indexed pensions and whose purchasing power has been eroded to the point of being unable to afford day to day necessities

I do need youse to light up the telephone switchboards at DFWA calling for them to organise picketing, placarding and leafleting at your local electorate offices and shopping centres - things are only going to happen if you stomp the accelerator pedal to the floor and time is running out !

I do need youse to spread the word up and down your streets and to all of your friends and acquaintances and to press the RSL to take some definitive action

I do particularly need you to spread the word through the serving uniformed Defence community to remind serving mbrs that all is not what it seems - far too many of our uniformed mbrs do not understand that their MSBS milsuper is far less than they might think and they must take heed of the fact that their future lifestyle and welfare is at the same risk that DFRB/DFRDB mbrs have suffered for the last 20 + years if they do not vote for the Coalition

Lastly - there are many in the Labor Party who only won their seats at the last Federal election because of their hollow words and empty promises... it can only be regarded as the right thing to do to vote the Labor Party out as a consequence thereof and I would ask that you particularly spread the word in electorates such as Eden-Monaro where we have been so bitterly betrayed by one who we thought was one of us

A gentle reminder to all that it serves no purpose indeed it is counter-productive to attack the Coalition following their historic announcement on their policy initiatives with DFRB/DFRDB indexation

Any attacks are having a negative effect and makes it more difficult as we move forwards to acknowledge this very positive move and at the same time to press the Coalition to include all members of the military superannuation schemes in their initiatives

MSBS is the milsuper scheme of the majority of serving ADF as well as those who have left our uniformed community and we must strive towards fair indexation of MSBS to protect our future well-being

And an attack on the Coalition does not help us as we continue to lobby Government for not only bipartisan support but also for their reply to this historic and once in a generation win on our behalf by DFWA and others

I ask that you not meddle or interfere with the important work that is going on in the background and I remind you that we live in interesting times given that this is an election year and to standby to expect a backflip from the Labor Party as the marginal seats campaign heats up and they are forced to reply on their election policy platform on the fair indexation issue

I ask that you continue to write to your elected representatives because this is reflected in the party rooms where the debate will be won or lost in this engine room of the election

And I ask that you pass the message along to all serving members of the ADF and ask that they do likewise - it has never been more important that ADF members understand that their future wellbeing is linked to the critical issue of fair indexation - far too many serving ADF members have no idea that their superannuation pension under MSBS is linked to CPI which means that they too will fall into the pit of ever decreasing purchasing power into a beggar's banquet of bread and dripping in their golden retirement years unless they put their hands up now to resolve this once and for all

There has been a generation of DFRB/DFRDB beneficiaries who have suffered badly with unfair indexation for decades to the point that they barely eke out their futures indeed they will never recover all of the benefits they have lost with unfair indexation - this too can and will happen to MSBS members if you do not step up to the plate indeed you should not think your retirement will be comfortable unless you help out your mates now

Pass the message to all serving ADF members and ask that they pass the message to all their serving colleagues - to not do otherwise will doom us to an uncertain and likely heart-broken future wellbeing in our golden years

Failure by the Labor Party to address fair indexation can only have harsh consequences for the marginal seats as the veteran community targets them in a manner designed to force the Government to sit up and take notice - an 8 seat loss predicted by the betting agencies can easily be doubled with worse to follow as the veteran community expresses their righteous anger on election day

Mike Kelly seems fair game to target in Eden-Monaro to make the Labor Party sit up and take notice of our claims but it is disheartening to sacrifice a good and true man - but if need be it is a necessary loss if we are to follow through on the ground breaking and once in a generation opportunity to resolve this following the Abbott commitments

Only ill-health and hospitalisation tomorrow prevents me from a e-mailout in Eden-Monaro this week - but I do ask that you keep abreast of the promises by each of the political parties and consider voting along the path that best answers the reasonable demands of the veteran community

It's still early days in the election campaign and as the temperature heats up stand by for further policy backflips

Ladies and gents - maintain the rage - continue to write to your elected members - join DFWA for the final lap to the finish line

I would reiterate my policy of not pointing readers in any political direction and that my policy is that readers must make up their own minds... I'd ask that you continue to watch the Defence Force Welfare Association website who will report the election platform policy directions of each political party for you to make up your own minds

But as below... a deafening silence from the Labor Party concerns me greatly - I privately fear they take the view that we are irrelevant in terms of the larger economic issues dominating the Federal election

As the Federal election draws nearer and the marginal seats campaign heats up - all political parties should heed our reasonable demands and thus avoid the political ambush awaiting them in the marginals... your continued support in a tangible manner is critical to the success of the marginal seats campaign

I ask that you maintain the rage and not get complacent following the historic breakthrough below

Much more needs to be done to mirror fair indexation to MSBS members particularly for our serving ADF

And Abbott has forgotten to mention what about fair indexation for those under 55...

The Labor Party has been strangely quiet in response to the joint coalition media release and I am privately concerned that they believe that the Federal election can be won on larger economic issues

I urge that you continue to write to your elected representatives highlighting the suffering experienced by our milsuper beneficiaries with pension purchasing power leaking with inadequate indexation

I urge that you join DFWA and volunteer your time and effort for the marginal seats campaign

Don't fall into the trap of sitting idly by and letting others do the hard yards on your behalf... I suspect that the election will be called at a moment's notice and your assistance for the necessary tasks that the final push entails is urgently needed

It's only just the other day that I said that a week is a long time in politics...

I have said that as the Federal election draws closer and the marginal seats campaign heats up, then all political parties would be well advised to heed the reasonable demands of the veteran community to fix the years of inattention given to the hurts besetting our little community

It's great to be in an election year... better when DFWA have the courage and determination to fight our issues to their rightful conclusion

This is truly a historic moment when DFWA announces that the coalition will fairly index DFRB/DFRDB if they are successful at the forthcoming election - DFWA media release here

I'd highlight that this must be mirrored by similar arrangements to MSBS and that the coalition has published little on what they intend to do about the other significant issues affecting our veteran community - but I am heartened by the joint coalition media release that they are committed to real action to support our veterans

This no doubt will cause new attention to our claims by the sitting Government and I would expect press releases from the Labor Party mirroring and extending these commitments

The Labor Party at the very least must offer bipartisan support and in terms of the marginal seats debate will likely try and be the first off the blocks with the prospect of changes before the election ! Watch this space on how they deal with indexation and the other issues hurting our veteran community

There's never been a more eloquent quote than "a week is a long time in politics"

It appears clear that Julia Gillard is our first female Prime Minister and within this historical context we should congratulate her

But she is a co-offender in the central cabal that Rudd surrounded himself with and this inner sanctum still exists with Swan so suddenly shifting his allegiances... no doubt the Liberal Party should and will attempt to tar and feather Gillard as one of the architects of the failings that the Labor Party will pray that disappear from the press and public scrutiny following the departure of Rudd and the hope that the voting public will not see that she carries as much of the baggage that Rudd leaves with

No political party has released any formal party election platform although it is rumoured there will yet be more backflips on policies perhaps including fair indexation of our milsuper...

The events of today can and must be leveraged to exploit the existing divisions within the political parties and the growing panic about the marginal seats within the party rooms

We do live in interesting times and it has never been more important that you contribute to the fair indexation campaign by joining DFWA, offering your time and effort to assist with moving the marginal seats campaign fowards and writing once more to your elected representatives to increase the momentum of the ongoing lobbying that DFWA is so busily engaged with

In hindsight I perhaps should have done this earlier but now is as good a time as any

I've had a lot of private emails and telephone conversations as no doubt have all of my readers

I dislike pointing readers in any political direction and my policy is that readers must make up their own minds... I'd ask that you continue to watch the Defence Force Welfare Association website who will report the policy directions of each political party for you to make up your own minds

But - I have privately expressed an opinion that we would do far better to force the Labor Party to perform rather than to trust the opposition

Those of you that subscribe to the usual veteran forums will no doubt see the concerns expressed about Tony Abbott's interference to squash the fair indexation motion earlier raised by one of our now newly independent politicians... and will also be aware of the distrust of the veteran community both in terms of his previous performance and the dubious historical performance of the Liberal Party... You'll also be aware that whilst there appears to be some support from the Liberal party - this has been expressed in terms of wait until we recover from the debt left to us by the Labor Party and by then of course it will be time for another election

Against the above I think it is also fair to mention that there may well be a shortly to come complete backflip as it becomes nearer to to all political parties releasing their election platforms

I've also privately expressed a concern that the economic issues headlining the upcoming election have meant that the political parties now feel they can ignore us as being a spent force in the election debate... In terms of the larger debate that centres upon who can best economically manage our fair country we seem to have dropped off the map in terms of political recognition of our fight for fair indexation

But the continued implosion of the sitting Government offers us unique opportunities to leverage and I am now hopeful that the marginal seats campaign will become recognised as a growing issue that can only be ignored by party rooms at their peril

There had been an earlier panic in the party rooms that seemed to diminish indeed I was concerned they were now unafraid of us - but it's now clear that the law of the jungle has re-established itself as our sitting members fight to survive

I now have a renewed hope that the Government will offer an olive branch of PBLCI indexation to stave off indexation becoming a burning political issue that will affect the marginal seats campaign

Write to your sitting members again - remind them of the suffering of our retired military members who are forced to eke out their future on a diminishing milsuper pension - these letters are forwarded to party central and can only help DFWA as they continue to lobby on our behalf

I ask that you join DFWA and offer your your shoulder to the wheel to share the workload of the few that fight so valiantly on your behalf

It's much the same as your days in uniform - help out your mates - nobody else will if you won't

If this is not resolved either now or at the upcoming election I fear it never will and I would repeat that it has never been more important to take action now rather than to sit idly by

Browse the DFWA and fairgo4veterans websites to understand the history and context of the milsuper indexation debate. Have a look at many of the other issues affecting the still-serving and exservice defence community and have your say on these issues too

Join DFWA and volunteer your time and effort to push through to the winning post. Look after your mates by joining DFWA. This is your last opportunity to win the fair and adequate milsuper indexation through the 2010 Federal election and the marginal seats campaign otherwise readers will drop out of the debate in despair

Write to your elected representatives NOW with your concerns on the indexation debate. Spare a thought for those who receive milsuper pensions and how their buying power has been eroded with inadequate indexation. Bread and dripping is your reward for a lifetime of service if you do not join the debate. Letters are a critically important means of informing the party rooms of the temperature of the water of the voting community and can provide a means of ensuring that these issues are included in the yet to be released party political platforms as well as provide an opportunity for the Government to offer an olive branch of fair and adequate indexation now to save this turning into a festering political sore that will affect the marginal seats and the outcome of the election

Lobby the RAR and Navy Associations to build their own fairgo4veterans websites with a particular focus on their members

And a reminder to those old and crusties just about to retire... the buying power of your milsuper pension will steadily decrease until you can only buy pet food unless you join the debate now

I hate to mention it - but a reminder to married with dependents serving members - if anything happens to you and pray to God it doesn't... then your families stand to have their quality of life steadily eroded by inadequate indexation and you need to enter the debate NOW as well

NATIONAL AFFAIRS: Julia Gillard's long-term agenda

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Last modified: 06/06/10