The "Why I'm doing this" rant

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Yesterday Georgie challenged me on why I wanted to be involved in the bike ride and why it was more important than any of the other really significant campaigns that I could be working on right now. (There are a lot of important campaigns that need support in the form of time, ideas, energy and passion.)

That questioning helped me crystallize why I'm doing this.
Maybe it'll inspire you to join us. (please feel free to ridicule, pick holes or scream support for any of the following by registering (if you haven't already done so) and making a commment.

I'm here doing this because this is THE campaign that must be won now. If it doesn't get squashed now it will be virtually impossible to stop the spread of the nuclear industry in Australia. The dark tide of John Howard's, the Liberal (and Labor) Party's nuclear agenda. To make Australia a competitor Nuclear Power game. To justify America's expansion of it's nuclear industry. To Support America's (and possibly John Howard's/The Liberal's) quest to make more nuclear weapons. To make more money for American Big Business by building and running (what will most likely be) American owned nuclear power plants in Australia all subsidised by the Australian Government and in the end by Australian Tax payers.

It's also the way the Liberal Government will justify building an international high level nuclear waste dump in Australia. Who in Australia wants to take the worlds nuclear waste?

This is one of those rare moments we can change the course of history (at least Australian history). I think Australia is an amazing place. One of the things I think is amazing about it is that it's one of the few western countries that has survived without nuclear power. And that Australian's have a proud history if opposition to the nuclear industry. I want to be part of that opposition and part of the alternatives to the nuclear industry (which has no good points).

Nuclear power is just a shift from one big business to another. This is not about making Australia a cleaner country. The nuclear energy debate is about consolidating power in big business. My hope for the ride is that we promote a paradigm shift where Australian's take back the means for power generation from overseas companies and set it firmly in the hands of every Australian.

Most people concede that things need to change. I want to make the change a good one where Australians are empowered and have an active role in the generation of their own power. I don't want to the change to be a shift from one big business boardroom's "business as usual" to another's.

Well that's probably enough of a rant.