Politics unworkable?  Government dysfunctional?  People alienated from the political process?

John Pesutto is our new (2016) Rotary Hawthorn member,
 
and newish (2014) Member for the State Electorate of Hawthorn, and newish (2014) Shadow Attorney General.  And when he spoke to us at Tuesday lunch he revealed an unusual politician:
*  Someone who is unafraid to address this type of deep-seated question.
*  Someone who is keen to see our system of government move away from “whatever they propose, we’ll oppose”; and move towards a system where discussions across the party divide are seen as normal, sensible  and constructive.
 
It had taken John 20 years, and four unsuccessful bids for preselection, to achieve his goal of changing from being a solicitor to being an MP.  This journey, no doubt, has provided him with life experiences in the ‘real world’ that are making him a better politician.  He suggested to us three key attributes that he tries to nurture:
Resilience – 20 years of trying to enter parliament!
2  Forbearance – no rushing to the quick insult; resisting the temptation of seizing a trivial advantage.
3  Goodwill – Look first, jointly, at the problem to be solved, rather than just applying a knee-jerk solution.
 
Of course there may be conflict between the views and philosophies of individuals and of parties.  But rarely does the most prudent course lie at an end of a spectrum of options. 
 
Example: Crime and Punishment
Some people might say that jails are not working. So punishment should be by different means.
Other people might say that we should respond to all crime with draconian “lock ’em up for years, and for ever if the crime is bad enough”.
Neither end of the spectrum deserves to win the debate.  The legislative response should surely be somewhere in the middle, to be determined by rational debate drawing on statistics, anecdotes, research and the experiences of other jurisdictions.
 
Another example, suggested by John, is the debate about freedom of speech.
 
Thoughtful questions from the floor showed that our members are alive to the approach that John espouses.  Irrespective of our personal political loyalties, surely we can all hope that John’s rational, measured approach can make headway and thereby
*  return politics to being workable; and
*  provide us with governments that are not excessively doctrinaire, and therefore are more likely to be functional; and
*  encourage more people to engage in the political process.
 
John: we welcome you to our club!