TRUTH AND FREEDOM

by Eric D. Butler
While it is true that Truth is a basic requirement for genuine freedom, Truth of itself does not result in freedom. Faced with the claim by Christ that He represented the Truth and that Truth could make man free, the jesting Pontius Pilate blatantly asked, "What is Truth?" and then washed his hands of the business of judging Christ, Whose fate was decided by the mob, who shouted for crucifixion. One of the greatest of the many superstitions afflicting mankind today is that Science is a type of new god with answers to all man's problems. The true scientist is a person of proper humility, grasping the reality that science can only discover that which already exists.

"In Whose Service is Perfect Freedom," means that if man accepts the authority of God the way is paved for the advance of true freedom. But having discovered Truth, man must then incarnate that Truth. The discovery of the law of thermo-dynamics does not of itself provide power and movement. The appropriate mechanics must be devised so that man can do what otherwise would be impossible.

"Faith without works is death." Faith can move mountains. But it is a big help if a number of truths are incarnated into a bulldozer, fueled by oil which man has discovered and learned to use. The greatest baffler to freedom today is a financial system, which reflects, not truth, but falsehood. There will be no regeneration of Christianity until sufficient Christians understand what is involved. The Christmas Season is an appropriate time to ponder deeply on these matters.

GATT AND THE GLOBAL STATE

Despite the sabre-rattling from Congressional conservatives, like the much-maligned Senator Jesse Helms, the United States Congress has now ratified the Uraguay Round of the General Agreement on Trade and Tariffs (GATT). However, the debate highlighted the deep divisions in the U.S. concerning the wisdom of GATT and its effect on any form of national economic self-sufficiency. Helms made the telling point that while he is in favour of world trade, he is against world government. Clearly, he sees some correlation.

At the height of the debate, The Washington Times published an interview with Anglo-French financial, Sir James Goldsmith on December 6th, 1994. Goldsmith warned that GATT will mean much social upheaval, and political instability bringing far worse global consequences than the Bolshevik revolution. The following are extracts from the Goldsmith interview:

"Global free trade will force the poor of the rich countries to subsidise the rich in the poor countries. What GATT means is that our national wealth, accumulated over centuries, will be transferred from a developed country like Britain. . . to developing countries like China, now building its first ocean going navy in 500 years. China, with its 1.2 billion people, three Indochinese states with 900 million, the former Soviet republics with some 300 million, and many more can supply skilled labor for a fraction of Western costs. Five dollars in China is the equivalent of a $US100 wage in Europe.
It is quite amazing that GATT is sowing the seeds for global social upheaval and that it is not even the subject of debate in America... If the masses understood the truth about GATT, there would be blood in the streets of many capitals. A healthy national economy has to produce a large part of its own needs. It cannot simply import what it needs and use its labor force to provide services for other countries. We have to re-think from top to bottom why we have elevated global free trade to the status of sacred cow, or moral dogma. It is a fatally flawed concept that will impoverish and destabilise the industrialised world while cruelly ravaging the Third World."

As GATT comes into effect, Australian trade arrangements will be affected. Even now, regulations concerning marketing of dairy produces are being reviewed, opening up the Australian dairy market to foreign competition. It is clear that to the extent that the global market is adopted, so will the global state follow, as Senator Helm's fears.

JUSTIFYING THE CARBON TAX

With near-depression economic conditions having eased slightly, a burst of economic "growth" in the Australian economy has produced renewed fear of inflation. Under conventional economic rules, under which any credit expansion takes place as a financial debt, this is inevitable, but rather than treat the cause of the problem (debt finance) the economic wizards propose to continue to meddle with other factors to the detriment of all.

The economy is now "over heating" and must be slowed down, before it "boils over". For this reason, debate now centres on what might be the best way to prevent consumers spending - raise interest rates, or raise taxation? Either measure will produce electoral damage for the A.L.P., especially the prospect of increased taxation following the Prime Minister's derisive claim during the last election campaign that tax cuts were L-A-W- law. But an answer to the A.L.P. dilemma appears to have arrived - a new international tax demanded by the "international community" of all good international citizens to preserve the environment.

As a signatory to the U.N's. Basel Convention on hazardous wastes, Australia is being accused of having made no appreciable impact on its emission of greenhouse gases. In order to reduce greenhouse gases, mainly carbon dioxide, advisors to the Prime Minister are proposing the introduction of a carbon tax. Any industry that burns fossil fuels would be affected, with the most immediate effect to the individual being increased fuel prices.

To date, no convincing evidence has been produced that indicates that global warming is taking place as a result of man's activities. If the atmosphere is warming at all (and even this is not universally agreed) it could well be due to entirely natural factors, as it has been in past ages. Any new carbon tax can only be based on the assumption that the atmosphere is heating up, and on the assumption that man is responsible. Such doubts, however, will have no restraining effect on either bureaucrats or politicians who need something to justify a new tax in order to further "dampen down" an economy that was just beginning to provide hope for thousands of families forced to live in poverty until economic experts can find ways of introducing new credits into the economy free of debt.

The new tax will be "sold" as an eminently responsible measure, as it will help to protect the environment, and enhance Australia's reputation as good "international citizens". The fact that the vast majority of other countries routinely sign such treaties as the Basel Convention, and then flout them if they do not serve the national interest, seems lost on zealous Australian bureaucrats living in ivory towers in Canberra.

CONSTITUTIONAL PROPAGANDA AIMED AT CHILDREN?

The Chairman of Prime Minister Keating's Republican Advisory Committee, Mr. Malcolm Turnbull, has called for the immediate introduction of "civics" lessons into all schools. This follow survey results that indicate that only 50 percent of the population understood the role of federal, state and local government, 70 percent had little idea of the history of federation, and only 38 percent felt they were reasonably informed about proposals for a republic. The Civics Expert Group, headed by Professor Stuart McIntyre, which commissioned the report, is suggesting a large-scale programme of public education on the Constitution, parliamentary structure and citizenship ranking with the teaching of English.

The results of this report are bad news particularly for the republican movement, since the history of referendums is that an issue, which is not well understood, is one that Australians always vote against. Of the two-thirds of people who did understand something of the effects of moving to a republic, the clear majority stressed the disadvantages.

This report from the Civics Expert Group provides the basis for a demand for educational material in schools, with the objective being to equip future voters to make informed decisions on the republican proposal. As the report indicated that 17 percent of people had never heard of the Constitution, and 87 percent not knowing what the Constitution says, it is clear that the educational system has failed to equip Australians with an understanding of their heritage.

The main question concerning the new educational programmes, is who will write the curricular material? What will it teach about the Constitution, federation, the role of the States, the Crown, etc?

DEMOCRATS CALL FOR QUEENSLAND SENATE

BRIEF COMMENTS

While the media generally paint a picture of President Nelson Mandela of South Africa presiding over a country pregnant with encouraging prospects for the future, there is a darker side of the picture, which receives no publicity. The following is an extract from a report by Mr. Denis Walker of the "Rhodesia Christian Group"

"We are concerned that in just two months in Johannesburg, 6,048 motorists were robbed of their vehicles by direct threat to their lives. Between January and August, 3,159 people were murdered and 3,695 rapes were reported to the police, which is believed to be only a shadow of the real number. Statistics from the Police Institute for Behavioural Science showed that more than 150 policemen have killed themselves this year - 12 times the rate for the South African population as a whole - compared with 65 for the whole of 1991 and 106 for 1992 and 134 for 1993. Apparently more than 22 policemen had been killed on duty by September."

Denis Walker sends Christmas greetings to all those Australians he met with during his Australian tour this year.

RUSSIANS FLEECING FARMERS

from The Australian, October 12th
The current euphoria over the wool price recovery should not be decried, but its pattern continues to demonstrate crucial policy weaknesses from the past which continue. "These policies all but killed our historic 'golden goose', the product that built Australia and upon which a large part of our exports and rural heartland still depends.

"The pattern of today's wool prices shows a dramatic dip in micron areas that are now available from Russia. "I am reliably informed that in Europe and elsewhere huge amounts of Russian memo wool in the 21.5 to 24 micron range are being blended with Australian wool, being called Australian, and are benefiting from Australian-financed wool promotion. This is costing Australian woolgrowers millions of dollars of lost income every day. After billions of dollars spent on general advertising for wool by Australia's farmers, the farmers of Kazakhstan, Georgia and Western Siberia are now triumphant beneficiaries of Australian government policy, which has allowed our studs to supply all the necessary genetic material and management expertise for Russians to be able to usurp this market.

"This is another glaring example of short sighted mismanagement which insults the drought stricken rural sector daily. We continue to export our rams, genetic material and expertise for the sake of a few dollars, when this is now clearly costing our farmers dearly. We continue to pay millions of dollars of farmers' money in promotion so that those in other parts of the world can undercut them and reap the reward. Yet the current management asks for more!

"Memo wool is the only product Australia makes that is unique. It has the potential to return to being our largest export and the driving force of the bush. Yet those who manage it continue to be shortsighted, apathetic and lack any semblance of vision. This industry deserves better."
(Graeme Campbell, Labor Member for Kalgoorlie, Parliament House, Canberra)