TO MY SITTING MEMBER

[Vic Jefferies]

The Right Honourable Mr. I. Fibsabit, MP.
Minister for Large White Cars,
International Travel and Odious Gasses.

TO MY SITTING MEMBER

Now, I don’t know how you feel,
But I think you may agree -
Something’s wrong with our country,
It’s not the land it used to be.
No longer is it the Australia
that I was raised to know
and Mr. Politician
could you tell me why that’s so?

I don’t remember voting
to give the place away
to anyone who had a boat
or had enough dough to pay
and I don’t believe I voted
to send our farmers broke
by importing food from places
that think hygiene is a joke!

Dear Mr Sitting Member,
between your overseas flights
could you re-explain to me
that bit about criminal’s rights?
Could you tell me once again
how the bloke who robbed me blind
was really forced to do it
because his Dad was so unkind!

Now everyday it’s harder
To find a product made in Oz
and I wonder why that is
or maybe it’s is because
you think that it is easier
just to sell our iron and coal,
but what do you suggest we do
when we reach the bottom of the hole?

I don’t suppose it matters
now we have these “Green House Gasses”
but Sir, will there be any jobs
for our coming lads and lasses
or will they all just be miners
excavating our coal and ore?
Mate, it’s very hard to believe,
It’s what the Diggers were fighting for!
Vic Jefferies (2011)

[Vic Jefferies]

Just saw a bloke in supermarket (that will remain unnamed) change the sign on oranges from Product of the USA to Product of Australia!
Seems the Australian season has started!

[manfredvijars]

Good one Vic. Local produce markets get my support.
I refuse to buy from those countries where, the faeces of our species fertilise what goes in our mouth ...

[Vic Jefferies]

G'day Manfred,

As I said in the poem "Now everyday it's getting harder to find a product made in Oz."
The Australian made content in supermarkets is getting harder and harder to find. I check just out all the labels when shopping and am constantly amazed at the known brands that have very quietly changed from being Australian grown and produced to being of foreign origin almost on a daily basis. Don't presume the Oz product that you bought last week is till made here this week. John West canned fish is a great example of this.
Worst example I know of is that 70 to 80 per cent of pork products come from overseas. However they are not allowed to import pork or ham bones. So they import the ham and then wrap it around Australian grown ham bones and sell it as leg ham! Absolutely true! Are we altogether nuts?

[Vic Jefferies]

Just heard that Heinz who now own Golden Circle brand will be sourcing beetroot in New Zealand and closing their sauce factory in Melbourne. Means the beetroot growers in Queensland are just about all finished!

[Dave Smith]

Hi Vic we were in Cairns a couple of weeks ago and strolling through the markets we came across a stall selling stuffed toys for the tourist trade, Koala’s, Kangaroo’s and other odds and sods, all made from genuine kangaroo skin and of course “Made in China”. But it’s not only Cairns you can find them any where in Australia that has a tourists.

And all this foreign owned foodstuff it’s enough to turn you off “Vegemite”

TTFN

[Vic Jefferies]

G'day Dave,

Went to buy a jar of gherkins the other day and of course zeroed in on the jar with the map of Australia displayed on the front. Wrong! On reading the label carefully at the back turned out to be made in India. Rang the company to complain and the owner told me that he was entitled to display the flag because his is an Aussie company and anyway we don't grow gherkins here anymore. Too expensive and time consuming. So if you are like me and enjoy a gherkin you will be eating imported stuff, like it or not!
Was also appalled to see the shirts now being sold (for exorbitant sums I made add) by our most iconic Australian boot and clothes brand are made in China. How they then justify the prices is beyond me. Only a matter of time before their boots are made overseas too.
"I don't remember voting to give the place away..."

Vic

[Maureen K Clifford]

Shock horror Vic you are right - I went and checked my big jar of gherkins - packed in Australia but grown in India.

Have to say I do wish you would consider changing the title of this poem. Every time I see it I burst out laughing....It is the sitting member bit that gets me sorry - you should know by now how my sense of humour works. Now were it titled To my sitting MP well that is perfectly respectable.

Saw on the news tonight that a lot of farmers here are banding together and selling their produce on line, fresh and delivered straight to your door at prices comparable with the supermarkets - way to go...support your local farmer, the supermarkets don't

Cheers

Maureen

[Jasper Brush]

Mate,

CSR ( circa 1861) the 1st Australian suger producer has been purchased by a suger conglomerate in Singapore. Who sold Australia out-- the shareholders.

Ex CSR cane farmers (through the shareholders) are growing cane for a Singaporian company with all the profits going overseas. Don't blame governments blame shareholders.

AWB the Austalian Wheat Board raised by the Australian government in the depression to put a few bob in growers bank account was privatised by the Howard government was sold last year by shareholders (98% voted for the sale) to a Canadian Agri business who ofsold the wheat business to the Americans who now control the Australian wheat growers sale prospects, All the Canadians wanted was the Agri section of AWB. The AWB share holders are now whinging to the the Federal government to do something, Fat luck. No wonder the other Australian growers wheat exporter is gowing gangbusters, AWB is stuffed the growers and their shares will be useless in 12 months time. Serves them right for selling out. Dairy Farmers milk, xxx, Boags, Tooheys, beer, Berri fruit juice are owned by the Japanese (Kerin Holding). And so the list goes on.

It is not governments who are stuffing this country it is shareholders.

Oh, Joy or Rapture. Yesterday, shareholders of Australias biggist rice producing company nocked back a take over bid by the Spanish. Good onya everybody you are true Australiians.

John

[Vic Jefferies]

Good On You John,

Thanks for commenting and of course you are correct in saying that it comes down to the shareholders selling out in many cases. However, do we have a national strategy, a plan or any idea where the country is headed to, in say, fifty years?
Recently read where a Chinese Government official passed the comment that a certain proposal was acceptable to China because it would fit well into their
FIVE HUNDRED YEAR PLAN!
Seems to me our governments plan for next week or maybe the week after and that is then usually changed or dropped!
Don't know what we are going to do when "we reach the bottom of the hole....."

Vic