Boxing: Ringside with the Greens
Next year’s title bout is shaping up to a big one in the electorate of Clarence. The fans will be feverish as the competition heats up, and there’ll be hooks, jabs and fancy footwork galore. Who are the contenders for the title?
In the red corner, Labor’s putting up an also-ran to replace a has-been. Fightin Terry Flanagan’s not the fittest boxer on the circuit but he certainly knows how to swing a punch. And he does have a bunch of heavies outside the ring ready to jump in to render assistance. Labor’s held the title for years but we haven’t seen any benefit here. Let’s not give them a free ride.
In the blue corner there’s Steve ‘Colossus’ Cansdell. Candles is an experienced National Party pugilist who’s been in training all year. After an unsuccessful tilt at the state title in 1999, he’s got his eye firmly on that ticket to Sydney. We’re not sure if the brain matches the brawn, but he’s certainly to be feared and seems to have a large fan base.
And in the green corner is our very own Mark ‘The Pug’ Purcell. Mark has nobly risen to the occasion by taking up boxing, throwing his hat into the ring and donning the gloves for the Greens. A late but meteoric start to his boxing career has seen him forge ahead of the other contenders due to his strongly developed environmental and social conscience, good intellect and high integrity. All essentials for a prize fighter.
A motley crew of additional minor and independent contenders is likely to climb into the ring on the night. However, we are backing Mark Purcell to win. What can you do to support Mark and the Greens in this critical campaign?
Join the Greens. Help us support Mark’s campaign by researching and raising issues, writing press releases, fund-raising, spreading the Greens message in your community or handing out how-to vote cards on polling day. We’re looking for people who are willing to help on every level. Contact us at the Centre. We meet on the fourth Monday of each month at the Environment Centre at 12.30 pm.
The Greens vote increases with every election. More and more people are seeing us as a force which can really influence the political landscape. People are also starting to get the message that we have a strong social justice focus as well as an environmental agenda. We are the ones left standing up for public education, public health, peace, humane responses to refugees while Labor has moved to the right and abandoned its progressive voters. The Greens victory in Cunningham showed the volatility of disenchanted Labor voters and the potential of the Greens to increase our parliamentary presence. We now have one Lower House member and two Upper House members. Let’s build on it. In our local campaign we’re focusing so far on the following issues