People all over the world are trying to come to terms with, and make sense of, what was ‘politics, and business as usual,’ since the election of Trump. It’s easy to tune out and disengage from the reality, but underscoring all the chaos, and uncertainty is a world in crisis on many fronts.
This is not the time to retreat and despair, quite the contrary. It is incumbent on all conscious people to recognise their humanity and rise up collectively in concerted action, whatever their persuasion.
Trump is presiding again over the narcissistic mantra ‘Make Amerika Great Again’, a harking back to inward-looking and regressive politics, where economic nationalism and right-wing populism are being thrust on the world with disastrous consequences.
Identifying the underlying causes is critical, and key for understanding of why humanity is in this parlous state.
Instead of reverting to parochial nativism and nonsensical slogans, we must critically analyse the motivations that drive this ugliness and construct an inclusive alternative ‘from below,’ where people and the environment are central for our collective future survival.
The people who are pushing these agendas are not your average person, but people who occupy and wield real power and political influence for their own self-interest – the super-rich oligarchs. Australia has its own home-grown oligarch issue, especially the relationship between the Australian Liberal/National parties and Australia’s richest woman, amongst many others.
Do we want a continuation of the same, an accountable political system that serves the majority, or one that serves just the select powerful few?
For four decades The Echo has printed the stories some people loved, some people hated, and some pretended not to read. If you want us to keep telling the truth, the real truth, not the sugar-coated version. We’ll need your support to keep the presses rolling. 
