Page 1584 - Week 05 - Tuesday, 14 May 2019
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MS LE COUTEUR (Murrumbidgee) (3.25): Seniors are wise and experienced. I believe we have just appointed one of them as our Integrity Commissioner. They absolutely do deserve our support. They come with history and life learnings from which we could all benefit if we took the time to listen. All too often we dismiss the view of seniors, casting them off as out of date, with old-fashioned ideas. But there is a lot to be learned by hearing what they—I should say “we”—have to say and by hearing about what is important to them.
Since many of them—if not all of them, certainly most of them—are retired, they have the time to live their passions, to get involved with their community, to get involved with their kids and their grandkids, to focus on and to promote the ideas and ideals that are central to the future of the community that they want, for the world that they want for their children, their grandchildren and the whole community of the future.
They often become the most altruistic part of our community. For example, look at how people in India feel they should live their lives: first off, you are a child; then you become a householder with a house and kids; then, when that is finished, you become a sage. That is what our seniors are. They are a resource that we really do not use enough.
But some seniors in our society are taking on that role. There are a few groups that I would like to highlight. The Grey Power Climate Protectors’ mission is to use their power to protect the climate now and for future generations. They are working to inspire and train older people to be bold and creative in non-violent action to help change the policies of climate change for good.
They are political but nonpartisan. They are targeting political parties with the worst climate change policies the most but also pushing other parties to do better. They are encouraging grey nomads to become green nomads, because they can see that our future is under threat. They can see the need to protect our environment and mitigate against climate change before it is too late. They describe themselves as older, bolder and unstoppable.
Of course, the Knitting Nannas have been around for quite a while. You may have seen them at the pre-poll over at CMAG. They were formed in response to a growing awareness of the exploitation of unconventionally mined gas in our prime agricultural lands. They are drawing on a broad history of knitting used as a tool for non-violent political activism. They view their knitting skills as less important than the act of bearing witness while they knit.
They usually knit in yellow and black to identify with the lock-the-gate triangles that are mounted at the entrances to many properties. Their knitting choices range from functional items for sale, such as beanies, cosies and toys, to more symbolic objects. These include triangles in many sizes that echo the lock-the-gate versions; long lengths of knitting which are thrown across gates and roads in imminent danger of invasion by drill rigs; cushions for protestors who may be uncomfortably immobilised for long periods of time when locked on; and chain sleeves to prevent lock-on blisters.
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