Exposing the anti-carbon price rallies
A lot has been said over the last week about the anti-carbon price rally held in Canberra. The one that Tony Abbott spoke at with the very questionable signs in the background.
One of the things that the conservatives have been able to get away with is saying that the attendees were ‘ordinary Australians’, and that they had 
never attended a rally in their life. Firstly this particular trick of declaring that people ‘haven’t attended a rally in their life but are so worked up about an issue that this is their first’ has been used by conservatives in the past.
Just think about the supposed ‘peoples’ revolt’ against the mining tax.
However, the particular declaration that the rally attendees were ‘ordinary Australians’ is the greatest trick. And it’s being 
trumpeted by the mainstream media.
The CANdo mob, in partnership with Menzies House, are seemingly all over the rallies. The CANdo website points out clearly that rally coordination is through their Carbon Coalition group. They’re behind the posters, stickers, bumper stickers and badges. The site promotes it’s rally video with great pride being front and centre on the site’s home page. It’s quite a production too.
The site even points CANdo members to spin-off sites.
There are active lobbyists and organisers being paid by un-named companies to see that the carbon price is dumped. In one exchange, a CANdo member even indicates a willingness to pay people to speak out about the carbon price.
Judging by the level of activity and the nature of the organising, it doesn’t seem like these were ‘ordinary Australians’.
Indeed it sounds very much like the kind of faceless men and women the Liberals accuse pro-carbon price supporters as being. A case of the pot calling the kettle black!
In fact, this ‘peoples’ revolt’ wasn’t able to generate enough support for rallies held in other locations around Australia on the same day as the Canberra rally. Carbon Coalition group members seem to bemoan this outcome.
So much for there being wide spread ‘hatred’ for the carbon price.
More importantly it puts to the sword Abbott’s claims of ‘ordinary Australians’ being at the rally and a ‘peoples’ revolt’ against the carbon price.
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As found on
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Creative Commons
Alex Schlotzer by Alex Schlotzer is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 2.5 Australia License.
Based on a work at alexschlotzer.wordpress.com.
April 2, 2011 at 12:50 pm
Just saw this quoted through my contacts on Twitter:
“CPI impact of GST was around 3½ times larger than the impact that a A$20 carbon price is likely to have.”
This would make a complete mockery of there continued outlandish claims of how the economy will be ruined with a price on pollution. Though it makes me have a good laugh that it will be howled down as supposed voodoo economics even though the Tories happily quote stuff the same sources if it suits them.
Carry on.
– Alex
April 1, 2011 at 10:09 pm
Hello Alex,
I see that Roger has found his way to your site.
Surf’s up!
April 2, 2011 at 11:16 am
Hey Miglo thanks for leaving a comment. Surf’s up alright! I love the classic troll behaviour of being unprepared to read the article.
I’ve been dealing with Roger’s kind for well over 15 years and so far he’s among the least sophisticated I’ve come across so far. I’d dare to say that I’ve been combatting trolls longer than he (or she) has been online.
Cheers
April 1, 2011 at 8:39 pm
How many ordinary Australians would get their 11-year-old child to slave over a sign that says ‘Juliar Is Bob Browns Bitch’? Not many, I wouldn’t think.
April 2, 2011 at 12:45 pm
Hi Adam,
I think you’re right. I can’t imagine the parents I know letting their children write anything like it as a banner for a rally. But then Tony Abbott is only interested in driving wedges and has no interest in a serious and mature debate about how to reduce our greenhouse gas emissions.
Thanks for leaving your comment.
– Alex
April 1, 2011 at 3:16 pm
Alex, I think RogerTS is a hopeless case. but I agree with you entirely.
April 1, 2011 at 8:06 pm
Thanks Pip and I agree with you.
What I find funny is that RogerTS has clearly not read the entire article. Though it’s an excellent example of a troll. Note the circular arguments, attention to semantics, the insincere tone. It’s a textbook example really.
April 2, 2011 at 6:46 am
What I cant understand is why Alex is so reluctant to clarify his statement.
I havent argued anything – yet
Cheers
Roger
http://www.rogerfromnewzealand.wordpress.com
Mind you I might have mentioned about the communists posing as greens like the do in my country.:)
March 31, 2011 at 9:41 pm
Clearly this person has no idea how to read a sentence or is just a stooge for CANdo and/or the Liberals.
April 1, 2011 at 1:09 pm
I simply asked the author to explain more clearly about this hoax he talks about.
Is it more than the allegations he has made that these people were not ordinary Australians, or is there more to it?
Cheers
Roger
http://www.rogerfromnewzealand.wordpress.com
March 31, 2011 at 4:04 pm
And your point is?
Cheers
Roger
http://www.rogerfromnewzealand.wordpress.com
March 31, 2011 at 4:11 pm
The point, if you weren’t able to distill it, is that the supposed ‘ordinary Australians’ weren’t so ordinary. The rally was nothing more than Tory professionals, aided and abetted by large radio networks in NSW, shuffling people onto buses. And there’s nothing ordinary about the hoax that CANdo is attempting to perpetuate on Australians by mindlessly declaring there’s a “peoples’ revolt” against the proprosed price on pollution.
March 31, 2011 at 4:17 pm
Appears to me that all the allegations you have made could be leveled at any rally political or otherwise.
Especially Green rallies.
What hoax is associated with Cando?
March 31, 2011 at 4:30 pm
Those allegations have already been levelled at green groups but without success because those groups organised their rallies openly and transparently.
Everyone knew about it.
The Canberra rally on the other hand was defined from the start as being ‘ordinary Australians’. There was nothing transparent or open about the method used to ‘organise’ it and nothing at all ordinary about the faceless men and women behind the rally.
March 31, 2011 at 5:55 pm
So what about the “hoax” then?