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Greens Senator Scott Ludlam aka S-Ludz. Pic is by Katie – how rad is the pic?

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We start off this episode with a recap of the results of the recent Western Australian Senate by-election. There was a big swing away from both major parties, while the Greens and the Palmer United Party were the big winners. We argue Senator Scott Ludlam or “S-Ludz” and the Greens got their highest number of votes yet because of the their grassroots campaign and the clear alternative they provided to the Liberals agenda. The Palmer United Party attracted votes due to their massive advertising campaign, despite offering no polices (besides cheap chips). Also covered is Labor politician and right-wing dick “Joe Bollocks” winning a seat over progressive Louise Pratt, due to dodgy deals in the Labor party. It was good to see Pratt winning more below-the-line votes than Bollocks, but it wasn’t enough for her.

In the second part we discuss two separate studies – one from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change and one sponsored by NASA – that both predict the end is nigh. We use these studies to argue that “green” capitalism will not save us and is also not intersectional – unlike “eco-development” it doesn’t take into account issues like workers’ rights and economic equality. We also draw on Antony Loewenstein on Left and Correct podcast (14/12/2012 episode) to talk about pragmatism in the Greens. Other stuff featured on the episode is another Austin Powers moment in Australian politics and a great comedy video by A Rational Fear parodying Victoria’s new anti-protest laws – which we covered on episode 51.

This episode is brought to you by “Caroline Fools Day”. Thanks a lot to Caroline for becoming a member of our show – you can become a member and sponsor an episode too!

Clips:

Mad as Hell ‘Series 3, Episode 9’, Ludapalooza – Senator Scott Ludlam DJs at Capitol, Simpsons ‘Hi everybody’, Austin Powers, The Hamster Wheel ‘The Turkey Slap’, Katie’s interview with someone handing out how-to-votes for the Greens, Fresh Meat ‘Series 3, Episode 8’, Austin Powers, A Rational Fear ‘How to Protest Properly in Victoria’, Propagandhi ‘Rock for Sustainable Capitalism’, Dead Prez ‘A New Beginning’.

You can listen to a short (6 minute) version of this episode, which features our discussion on the Intergovernmental Panel Report on Climate Change showing that we are not doing enough to address the problem, here: Green Capitalism Won’t Save Us. You can subscribe to these short versions of our episodes through Omny.