This is as close as I can get to owning a campervan at the moment
I have always loved campervans. In 1984, we hired one for 9 weeks around the UK and Europe and had an absolute ball driving into dream locations and having a baguette with some delectable deli items from the local gastronomia / epicurie / delicatessen. We strangely never finished the end of the baguette which Bob then proceeded to stick on the end of his nose and posed for a photo in the van. Happy days.
It was our little home away from home – even though thanks to me being a part of a world-wide food poisoning event from a British Airways pâté – I did spend a greater part of the first 10 days lying ill in the back of the van whenever we got to a tourist destination.
I did love my Greek jumper which I bought in Athens on Day1. No one told me Athens could be so cold!
Little did we know that this was actually a nudist colony camp site- there was no hot water because it was so cold that the pipes were frozen.
Thinking of digging out those pink tracky daks- very fashionable!
Fast forward almost 40 years and we would love to buy a campervan of our own, so we can have little weekend sojourns looking for dark skies to enjoy the starry night vistas through the telescope. I have never stopped looking (and dreaming) over the years. But of course now there is a giant sticking point to contemplating buying a campervan – and that is you can only get a diesel engine in the campervan and we were determined that our next car was going to be at least a hybrid, but maybe even an electric.
We all know that finally our government (definitely with a small g) has come around (kicking and screaming) – agreeing to net zero emissions target by 2050. So I thought that at last the overseas car companies (that have electric and hybrid cars and vans coming out of their eyeballs – mainly because petrol and diesel internal combustion engines will be outlawed come 2030 to 2035 in the UK and Europe) will start sending EVs our way here in the colonies.
But the VW salesman put me straight last Saturday.
Because Australia refused to set a 2030 target,the car companies won’t be bothering to bring out EVs any time soon.
I am very annoyed, as well as feeling utterly powerless and extremely depressed for our children and grandchildren.
Einstein has often been attributed as saying the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results. While there is debate as to whether Einstein actually said this, it certainly is an apt description of our reluctance to accept the science of global warming, to embrace renewable energy and ditch fossil fuels immediately – to do our bit to save the planet. This Australian Way Climate (Non) Policy that our prime minister took to Glasgow COP26 was embarrassing and a complete fabrication.
It is a disgrace and I am embarrassed about how Australia was represented in Glascow at COP26. There have been a number of recent polls that say that 75% of Australians WANT a proper Climate Policy. They want to be a part of the amazing economic benefits that will happen if we join the green bandwagon. But most importantly they can see that our planet has no future if we don’t make drastic changes ……….immediately.
The thing that is annoying me most is the outrageous gaslighting that is suddenly happening.
For decades Liberal/National Party governments have been trashing any mention of strategies to introduce climate change measures- dismantling structures like the Clean Energy Bill (set up in 2011 by Labor and torn down in 2014 by Tony Abbott). Many economists are now actually backing the reintroduction of a carbon tax as one of the best measures to help our position. For decades News Corp newspapers run by Rupert Murdoch – a purveyor of climate science denial and a faithful backer of fossil fuels – has run virulent campaigns against anything remotely green.
And yet literally overnight these climate change deniers would have us suddenly believe they have turned over a fresh green leaf. Sadly to this point Labor is doing no better.
All our leaders need to be brave and lead. That’s what they are paid to do. They have access to amazingly smart people who have the figures, the research and the innovations that are happening everywhere in this country. Just watch Landline on ‘Our ABC’ and see all the amazing technological and environmental changes that farmers are bringing to their businesses that are reducing their footprint on this earth and improving their bottom line.
Farmers actually get it. Many entrepreneurs get it. Big and small businesses get it.
But our politicians are doing what politicians do. They play politics.
What amazes me is how they can go to COP26 and listen to Sir David Attenborough and not feel ashamed and embarrassed about their greed, their lack of leadership and their self-indulgence. I challenge you to look at his presentation and not feel inspired by his words.
Finally we need to harness all our collective energies to try and change the narrative in Australia. Money won’t really matter much if our planet is killing us.
For goodness sake – hurry up kids and grow up and take over what’s left of this world before it’s too late.
And for posterity on this amazing day, when our news is so often blighted with tragedy, I witnessed live a news flash that I will never forget – that little Cleo Smith had been found alive 18 days after she had been abducted. I heard the country collectively crying with joy. What an amazing feat by the West Australian police and well done to Mark McGowan and the WA Government for offering a $1 million reward so promptly. I now hope that she and her family are well supported to assist Cleo’s recovery from her terrible ordeal and that the media give them space to do so.
