I have done another activism email which I consider may be worth publishing as an example, so here 'tis (note that I consider these emails should have content warnings when necessary - they are read by humans who may have particular reason to be triggered; these warnings are not so the contents can be avoided so much as read when they are able to cope):
Subject: Two causes of death by s__cide [Content Warning - discussion of self harm; email is NOT urgent - read when you are OK to do so)
Dear Member for [my electorate],
I have been planning on writing to you regarding the following article:
- “Dead before 50: The Australians dying young at the edge of the system” https://www.sbs.com.au/news/article/the-australians-dying-young-at-the-edge-of-the-system/ibp1l37zu “There are “devastatingly common” reasons behind many of the deaths, an advocate says.”
The first time I came across this was probably when researching Will Cuppy, author of a book titled “The Decline and Fall of Practically Everybody”, which my adoptive father (and I) loved.
This terrible issue reminds us all that there are important issues about housing as a right, not a way to get
wealthy shown by that - and the perils of "landlordism", which I consider an evil outcome of neoliberalism and the harm John Howard did to Australia's collective psyche.
There is an understandable, very human response to focus on mental health issues when looking at such matters, but the primary cause is the struggle to access affordable housing, and focusing on mental health is a cop out much as the "Keep Australia beautiful" campaign was, in part, a cop out that enable corporations to avoid realistic action such as refundable deposits (now reintroduced here in Victoria). The Victorian and Australian governments are now addressing the supply side problems of housing affordability, after probably six decades of neglect - some of which was dressed up in the "the market will provide" ridiculousness (which was critiqued recently at https://www.taxresearch.org.uk/Blog/2025/10/30/the-market-is-not-the-solution-to-our-housing-problems/).
However, I consider more action needs to be at least considered.
In brief, those include:
- Making sure the APS is free of bias towards neoliberal market solutions. Where such solutions genuinely stack up, OK, but the use of market-solutions to housing has been a classist approach that only benefits the wealthy;
- Ensure reviews are not limited. Even if an issue is beyond the reasonable control of the government (e.g., [arguably] landlordism), include it to make sure decisions are properly informed;
- Adapt planning to include those who have not lived an ideal life cycle. As an example, I have experienced major disruptions as a result of being trans, neurodivergent, a member of the Lost Generations, and being a progressive female in a conservative, patriarchal/toxic male profession. In addition, I have taken on several sets of step/foster kids when my preference was not to have children (they were, however, part of the package with people I fell in love with, or situations i entered for the benefit of others [such as the young person we helped through Uni in Africa]), and the devastating impacts of prolonged family illnesses - including my own. The "standard" life cycle for my generation of get a job, marry, have a family, retire comfortably, then die has mostly not applied to me - but it feels like government planning has, until recent years, largely assumed it did. This feels, at times, almost that it is a field that needs a campaign to get acceptance of of the sort of "nothing about us without us" that has been advocated for in the LGBTQIASB+, disability, and First Peoples fields (with notable success in the latter, given yesterday's passage of the Treaty Bill through the Victorian Parliament) - but that would have to exclude all NIMBY / landlordism and the like, as well as including the realistic consequences of preferences (regular surveys on what ideals people would like with regard to bedrooms etc are so divorced from the reality of paying for such features that they are (a) useless, (b) strongly indicative of egregious incompetence on the part of whoever has been running them for the last two or three decades);
- Exclude all Members who have residential investment properties from votes and debates on housing affordability, as there is a major perceived conflict of interest - especially amongst younger people, IMO, who are not only the future of Australia, but also - provided we can attract enough of them - the future and basis for survival of our party.
The main action I was contemplating however, was a way to restore the balance of power between the vested interests of the housing construction industry and the people of Australia. I was thinking of perhaps anti-monopoly laws, such as those recommended with regard to supermarkets (see https://www.abc.net.au/news/2024-05-07/supermarkets-inquiry-urges-mandatory-code-divestiture-powers/103816252), or what the USA had done during the 1890s to 1910s (the links I found on that were fascinating, and I have included those after my signature block), and was going to ask for some assistance accessing Parliamentary library information on the topic (I am aware there is a little of excellent research done by our various Parliamentary libraries), but then I came across the following news article, published yesterday:
- “‘Unimaginable tragedy’: Inquiry launched into s__cide related to domestic and sexual violence” https://www.sbs.com.au/news/article/inquiry-s__cide-domestic-family-sexual-violence-plibersek/h705mqg1k “Plibersek, whose own daughter is a victim-survivor of an abusive relationship, said the "tragically common story" of gender-based violence can't be the norm for the next generation. She said the inquiry was vital to understanding the full picture of domestic violence.”
As a victim-survivor myself, with people close to me or who I have known over my life who have also been victim-survivors (a couple of whom I have helped move out from dangerous situations), I endorse and support this announced inquiry.
I particularly appreciate that it seeks to understand the "full picture" - which is what I am stumbling towards with regard to housing.
Although I consider we need to restore the balance of power in Australia away from corporations back to Australian citizens and residents, I suspect a comprehensive enquiry, one going beyond corporate interests and including the problems of landlordism and good faith lives that do no follow the "expected" path for good, valid reasons, would be a better way to ensure all the other aspects of housing are addressed.
Should you have an opportunity to pursue such, I urge you to do so.
As always, no reply to this email is necessary, but I am happy to discuss any aspect of this further (and for you to use this content as may be appropriate).
Regards
US anti-monopoly actions 1890s to 1910s: https://www.standrewslawreview.com/post/united-states-v-monopoly-the-rise-fall-and-revival-of-antitrust-law ; https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_United_States_antitrust_law ; https://www.politico.com/story/2018/12/03/this-day-in-politics-december-3-1027800 ; https://www.britannica.com/place/United-States/The-Sherman-Antitrust-Act ; https://auditingaccounting.com/breaking-up-existing-monopolies-economic-rationale-policy-mechanisms-and-global-debates ; https://www.theodorerooseveltcenter.org/Learn-About-TR/TR-Encyclopedia/Capitalism-and-Labor/The-Sherman-Act.aspx
Possible flaws
Where I can, I will try to highlight possible flaws / issues you should consider:
- there may be flawed logical arguments in the above: to find out more about such flaws and thinking generally, I recommend Brendan Myers’ free online course “Clear and Present Thinking”;
- I could be wrong - so keep your thinking caps on, and make up your own minds for yourself.
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Remember: we generally need to be more human being rather than human doing, to mind our Mӕgan, and to acknowledge that all misgendering is an act of active transphobia/transmisia that puts trans+ lives at risk & accept that all insistence on the use of “trans” as a descriptor comes with commensurate use of “cis” as a descriptor to prevent “othering” (just as binary gendered [men’s and women’s] sporting teams are either both given the gender descriptor, or neither).
#PsychicABetterWorld and may all that I do be of value and actively BPM used for and by the nonphysical BPM because #KindnessIsThePoint
Note that I am cutting back on aspects of my posts - see here, and Gnwmythr is pronounced new-MYTH-ear
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