Alex McCallum "The Musso"

There are many people around the world who have worked hard to serve their community and will always remain in obscurity. I'm doing my part to keep at least one person out of it

Alex McCallum was a Western Australian politician that represented South Fremantle. born on the 28th of October 1877. He was a badass. Which I can say is objectively as he died from chronic nephritis, which damages the body's sewer system. 

McCallum is what people called a “radical” Politician. This was back when radical meant less about being vegan and more about continuously haggling the government non-stop about their financial management until the opposition starts crying and gets an allergic fever towards any form of counting implement, including those 1cm Deci-blocks we played with in year 2 and 3. People used to call him “Musso” after the WWII Dictator of Italy Mussolini because of his strong commanding speech. His words are in fact so memorable that I found him because of how strongly his speech stood out in parliamentary records.

He was made the minister for public works, labour, water supply, and state trading concerns. Old mate had so many jobs that he basically became the Scott Morrison of Western Australia, though he did the opposite of keeping it secret.

His achievements included establishing the headquarters of the Labour movement, organised many of the previously unorganised workers in the state, drafting the arbitration court and winning so many awards and agreements in workers favour that he was called “the best hated man” by employers who upon seeing an image of him would probably promptly hiss and slither away like a snake in their 1930s top hat and briefcase.

Did you ever hear the tragedy of Alex McCallum the Musso? I thought not. It’s not a story The West Australian would tell you. It’s a Westralian legend. Alex McCallum was a politician of the Unions, so serious and so energetic he could use the government to influence the administrators to extend sewerage schemes… He had such a knowledge of the government that he could even keep the electorate he cared about from dying. The Labor side of the government is a pathway to many abilities some consider to be unnatural. He became so powerful… the only thing he was afraid of was losing his life, which eventually, of course, he did. Unfortunately, he caught his Kidneys Nymphitis, destroying his lymphatic nodes and dying... Ironic. He could save others from sewerage failure, but not himself."

This man, not as some glorious leader of the nation, but as a simple minister, had contributed major, long lasting positive change to the nation. Extending Sewerage Systems at a time when the entire country was struggling to stay afloat during the 1930s, being the Roadie of the Premier at the time Philip Collier. Dying in 1937 was a great loss to the state, and sometimes you wonder how a place would be different if little battlers like him held on, just a little while longer.

Thank you for reading this one. It is short and sweet, and one of my earlier videos in adulthood.  I was inspired by this video when I was listening to TTS versions of parliamentary debates in the 1930s, for which Alex McCallum stood out with his quippy words and pointy speech. if you want to know what I am up to in the modern age consider checking my facebook meme page, or my discord if you are a more savvy sailor.