As the Ben Roberts-Smith saga shows, the weak men and women of the Australian establishment elite have little but sneering contempt for the rough men who guard them while they sip their soy milk lattes. Especially the political class. The weak men who order strong men into battle consistently refuse to accept their own responsibility at the top of the chain of command.
As for meeting with veterans: they’ve got more important things on their calendars.
Furious veterans and coalition MPs demanding the government scrap a $5k cap on allied health have accused Veterans’ Affairs Minister Matt Keogh of prioritising “drinks with the Governor-General” over meeting them.
On Vietnam Veterans’ Day, marking 70 years since the Battle of Long Tan, the group of male and female veterans declared they had lost faith in the Department of Veterans’ Affairs and called for a meeting with Anthony Albanese after a meeting with Mr Keogh on Monday “didn’t go all that well”.
We’ve certainly come a long since 2005, when then Defence Minister Robert Hill was singularly honoured by the surviving Rats of Tobruk, for his role in the national commemorations of the 70th Armed Forces Homecoming Day. The veterans stood at the end of Hill’s speech and started making a strange, animal-like chant. Hill was alarmed that he’d offended them, until a Defence aide whispered in his ear that it was their war-cry: a great honour.
I very much doubt they’d hold similar regard for today’s mob in Canberra.
Former Royal Australian Air Force Pilot Tim Nelson said it was “obvious” Mr Keogh didn’t want to be in the meeting.
“Yesterday confirmed that lack of leadership (from the department). It confirmed for us that lack of trust. Minister Keogh was forced to have a meeting with us at 5.30pm,” Dr Nelson said.
“He even let us know that he was missing an appointment with the Governor-General, which he was very upset about. He walked into the room, refused to shake our hands, sat down with his arms crossed, and rolled his eyes when we started telling him about the effect that this cap already is having on veterans.”
Four veterans, Nelson said, had already taken their own lives in response to the looming restriction. Trust in the Department of Veterans’ Affairs is gone. Keogh’s contempt just metaphorically spat on the pieces.
Julie-Ann Finney, the advocate whose son’s suicide helped force the Royal Commission into Defence and Veteran Suicide, was even blunter.
“Why would anybody want to join the ADF with him as the Minister for Defence Personnel and the Minister for Veterans? He doesn’t care about them,” Ms Finney said, holding a photo of her son David Finney, a Royal Australian Navy petty officer.
“Let’s call him out. Prime minister, the minister’s position is untenable and he needs to go. And you need to meet with us. You promised me in opposition that you would look after veterans. You are failing us.”
Donna Manton, even though a long-time Labor supporter, damned the Albanese government for “not caring about veterans”.
“This cap, which the minister says will only affect 25,000 people, is going to affect the most vulnerable 25,000 people. The people who are in acute need of allied health, or the people who have chronic health problems and need that long-term care to keep their quality of life,” she said.
“This is going to cost lives.”
On the day Australia commemorated the 70th anniversary of Long Tan, the message from the current minister was unmistakable: the Governor-General’s diary takes precedence, the eye-roll is the real response and the men and women who once stood between this country and its enemies can wait their turn in the queue.
The rough men who guard the elite while they enjoy their drinkies and canapes have noticed. They always do: Tommy ain’t a bloomin’ fool.
