So this week we have seen a courageous Government re-start the climate change debate with progress toward a *carbon price* starting in July 2012.
Good on them. Let’s re-establish the dialog, get the facts out there and start dealing with this problem. Let’s show some real leadership.
And predictably - the dingbat right wing is going crazy - Monsignore Abbott is apoplectic just thinking about the possibilities to rant and rave and create chaos - while lying through his teeth. His minions are already running around like a pound full of yapping poodles.
Silly boys.
The beautiful thing about Liberal Party stupidity has been that many of the thinkers of the nation have made *contingency* plans. Because it was not clear that the Liberals would ever get their act together and agree to do anything about this problem, some of the smart ones amongst us have made other *arrangements*.
And unfortunately for Monsignore Abbott they don't include him and his dingbat view of the world - or his poodles.
The smart ones will be moving elsewhere, taking their intellectual property and ideas and going to places where these things are valued. Many of the new green jobs will follow.
And the rest of you can spend your lives debating truth and facts and being misled by the Monk and his puppeteer Murdoch. Good luck.
Monday, February 28, 2011
Can Of Worms
Oh what a can of worms Adam Schwab has opened up in Crikey - here.
His analysis of the "own" versus "rent" scenario for domestic housing is pretty much spot on. But it won't appeal to all the bogans who have already bought near the top of the market - or who are thinking of doing so. Or who are trying to sell ;-)
Hell no - everyone knows that real estate prices always go up and that bricks and mortar is always the best investment - don't they?
Lets not spoil the party for those poor souls who have already been sucked in by the banks and the commission industry.
It must annoy them to discover that not everyone is on the real estate *booster* bandwagon.
Perhaps they will soon work out the meaning of that little word "risk".
His analysis of the "own" versus "rent" scenario for domestic housing is pretty much spot on. But it won't appeal to all the bogans who have already bought near the top of the market - or who are thinking of doing so. Or who are trying to sell ;-)
Hell no - everyone knows that real estate prices always go up and that bricks and mortar is always the best investment - don't they?
Lets not spoil the party for those poor souls who have already been sucked in by the banks and the commission industry.
It must annoy them to discover that not everyone is on the real estate *booster* bandwagon.
Perhaps they will soon work out the meaning of that little word "risk".
Saturday, February 26, 2011
Too Late
I suppose that it will too late to turn back the clock after the right wingers and the Liberal Party finally manage to get hold of the Treasury levers and start executing their *grand plan*. That would be the plan that is modelled on the one that is currently being executed in Madison, Wisconsin. See here and here for details.
It won't be good enough for people like me to say "I told you so" when the people of the nation wake up one morning and say "Hey this isn't what we voted for".
It will be far too late then Virginia.
By then you will be dealing with the next iteration of WorkChoices. The key assets of the place will be being frantically offloaded to big business for peanuts and anything else of value will be being asset stripped and *outsourced*.
And when they finally get tipped out for being incompetent a few years later there will be few assets left for a *real* government to manage. Your assets will by then be in the back pocket of Corporate Australia. Good luck if you want then back.
That scenario my friends is what you have to look forward to under a dingbat right wing Liberal Party Government.
But of course they will never admit to it or concede their approach prior to doing it. That would be like giving us prior notice.
Just keep your eye on what they do in NSW next month. In the lead up to the election they are trying not to scare the horses - afterwards they will be rampaging like Rambo and Atilla.
But don't take my word for it - check out what their siblings are already doing in the US and the UK.
The consequences will be worse here because by and large Australian's aren't paying attention, won't have a blue clue until it is too late and then they will moan and whinge and ask why they weren't told.
Well I am telling you. And if you choose to ignore the message then - good luck.
PS - Some great posters and slogans here. The one that I like says "Unions: The anti-theft device for working people" ;-)
It won't be good enough for people like me to say "I told you so" when the people of the nation wake up one morning and say "Hey this isn't what we voted for".
It will be far too late then Virginia.
By then you will be dealing with the next iteration of WorkChoices. The key assets of the place will be being frantically offloaded to big business for peanuts and anything else of value will be being asset stripped and *outsourced*.
And when they finally get tipped out for being incompetent a few years later there will be few assets left for a *real* government to manage. Your assets will by then be in the back pocket of Corporate Australia. Good luck if you want then back.
That scenario my friends is what you have to look forward to under a dingbat right wing Liberal Party Government.
But of course they will never admit to it or concede their approach prior to doing it. That would be like giving us prior notice.
Just keep your eye on what they do in NSW next month. In the lead up to the election they are trying not to scare the horses - afterwards they will be rampaging like Rambo and Atilla.
But don't take my word for it - check out what their siblings are already doing in the US and the UK.
The consequences will be worse here because by and large Australian's aren't paying attention, won't have a blue clue until it is too late and then they will moan and whinge and ask why they weren't told.
Well I am telling you. And if you choose to ignore the message then - good luck.
PS - Some great posters and slogans here. The one that I like says "Unions: The anti-theft device for working people" ;-)
Friday, February 25, 2011
Julia and Alan
This is the most significant exchange between our Prime Minister on the one hand and Alan Jones on the other - that the nation has seen for a decade or so. She was representing us and he was representing them.
She demolished him - big time. Made him look like the fool he is.
Make sure you listen.
He thought that he could set her up and demolish her reasoning because he is part of the dingbat right. It's what they do for a living ;-)
He talks BS and his listeners lap it up and apparently that is what guarantees his gigantic salary each year.
And he is a loud mouth supporter of the right wing Liberals - and thinks he can influence opinion with his over the top ranting and raving.
Today Julia took the fight to the dingbats - and won.
Finally we are seeing a bit of fightback. Go Julia. Don't stop now.
She demolished him - big time. Made him look like the fool he is.
Make sure you listen.
He thought that he could set her up and demolish her reasoning because he is part of the dingbat right. It's what they do for a living ;-)
He talks BS and his listeners lap it up and apparently that is what guarantees his gigantic salary each year.
And he is a loud mouth supporter of the right wing Liberals - and thinks he can influence opinion with his over the top ranting and raving.
Today Julia took the fight to the dingbats - and won.
Finally we are seeing a bit of fightback. Go Julia. Don't stop now.
Thursday, February 24, 2011
The Far Right
It is pretty clear (to me at least) that conservative political parties across the world are being taken over holus bolus by the far right - and that these parties either have no interest or no capability - in doing anything about it.
I won't get into all the evidence here - but if you have doubts then it will be a relatively simple intellectual exercise to do a bit of research to validate my hypothesis.
If you can't do that then you shouldn't be reading this - please turn the page now.
I will give you a clue - check out who runs our very own *Liberal* Party.
But don't take my word for it - look at the *evidence*. And if you are even partially alive and awake and alert and able to read and comprehend then it will be fairly easy to find.
In Australia, on the far right we have people like Tony Abbott, Eric Abetz, Scott Morrison, Cory Bernardi and a bunch of other near geriatric white males calling the shots. And on the moderate side we have Malcolm Turnbull and a few invisible nobodies who are pushing that barrow.
It might be that the Liberal Party is finely balanced between the far right and the moderates in terms of numbers - but if the far right make the policy and control the party room and dictate the terms - how can this be anywhere near equal. Why aren't the moderates revolting?
OK they might be slightly revolting - but they aren't actually doing anything. And that is because they have ceded control to the far right. They have taken the easy way out - hoping their invisible individuals will get a guernsey when the Libs eventually return to Government under Monsignore Abbott. I suppose "Minister for Something Completely Lightweight" looks like a pretty good title when you have few other options.
But in the meantime the Australian population are looking for some leadership. The only option we have is to find a party who is looking after our interests or to stroke the others. Some Choice?
So what I say to Malcolm is this. Please stand up and be counted. And put together a competent team who understand these things. Purge the dingbats - because you have no-where else to go.
And neither do we.
I won't get into all the evidence here - but if you have doubts then it will be a relatively simple intellectual exercise to do a bit of research to validate my hypothesis.
If you can't do that then you shouldn't be reading this - please turn the page now.
I will give you a clue - check out who runs our very own *Liberal* Party.
But don't take my word for it - look at the *evidence*. And if you are even partially alive and awake and alert and able to read and comprehend then it will be fairly easy to find.
In Australia, on the far right we have people like Tony Abbott, Eric Abetz, Scott Morrison, Cory Bernardi and a bunch of other near geriatric white males calling the shots. And on the moderate side we have Malcolm Turnbull and a few invisible nobodies who are pushing that barrow.
It might be that the Liberal Party is finely balanced between the far right and the moderates in terms of numbers - but if the far right make the policy and control the party room and dictate the terms - how can this be anywhere near equal. Why aren't the moderates revolting?
OK they might be slightly revolting - but they aren't actually doing anything. And that is because they have ceded control to the far right. They have taken the easy way out - hoping their invisible individuals will get a guernsey when the Libs eventually return to Government under Monsignore Abbott. I suppose "Minister for Something Completely Lightweight" looks like a pretty good title when you have few other options.
But in the meantime the Australian population are looking for some leadership. The only option we have is to find a party who is looking after our interests or to stroke the others. Some Choice?
So what I say to Malcolm is this. Please stand up and be counted. And put together a competent team who understand these things. Purge the dingbats - because you have no-where else to go.
And neither do we.
Tuesday, February 22, 2011
A Revolution is Underway
There is a revolution underway - but it is not the one that you might think.
The Arab world is shedding dictators at a huge rate of knots - and good on them. The US have been propping these dimwits up for decades and it's time for a change.
But I am not talking about that here.
I am referring to what is happening in Madison, Wisconsin - geographically in the middle of the north of the mainland USA - usually called the Midwest. Check the story here and here.
This is where an almighty war is underway between the dingbats in the Republican Party with their apprentices in the Tea Party on one side and the good people of Wisconsin on the other.
The new Republican Governor has decided to slash and burn the place but the people have other ideas. This is a serious bun fight between the Republican's and their mates in big business on one side and the people on the other.
What we are seeing here is a crazy and extreme right wing dingbat move to destroy the fabric of the place. But the people of Wisconsin have had enough of dingbats. This will become a serious battleground between the ultra right and everyone else. And it will probably go on for years and become a template for the actions of other ultra right political parties around the world - including our own Liberal Party.
So it is probably worth paying attention.
PS. In case there was any doubt, I am on the side of the people ;-)
The Arab world is shedding dictators at a huge rate of knots - and good on them. The US have been propping these dimwits up for decades and it's time for a change.
But I am not talking about that here.
I am referring to what is happening in Madison, Wisconsin - geographically in the middle of the north of the mainland USA - usually called the Midwest. Check the story here and here.
This is where an almighty war is underway between the dingbats in the Republican Party with their apprentices in the Tea Party on one side and the good people of Wisconsin on the other.
The new Republican Governor has decided to slash and burn the place but the people have other ideas. This is a serious bun fight between the Republican's and their mates in big business on one side and the people on the other.
What we are seeing here is a crazy and extreme right wing dingbat move to destroy the fabric of the place. But the people of Wisconsin have had enough of dingbats. This will become a serious battleground between the ultra right and everyone else. And it will probably go on for years and become a template for the actions of other ultra right political parties around the world - including our own Liberal Party.
So it is probably worth paying attention.
PS. In case there was any doubt, I am on the side of the people ;-)
Monday, February 21, 2011
Let’s Do This
I am appalled by the war mongering of both our Government and opposition and the fact that our media glorify these deaths in Afghanistan while ignoring the reasons why we are there. They do this because they are part of the club that *knows* why we are there and think that we citizens are far too stupid to be let in on the secret.
Truth is that none of us care much about another dead soldier. Unless of course he is related to us - and then we care a lot.
So I am proposing a simple fix to our political processes that will ensure we don't have to endure too many more unnecessary dead soldiers.
The fix is simple - when our Government decides to send troops overseas to fight another war then we will make sure that the force is as representative of the nation as it can be.
And because the Government of the day decides to send troops then their families should make up ten percent of the force. So if the force is 1000 strong then there will need to be 100 family members from the current Government included.
Your sons or daughters will be fine if you don't want to go yourself Minister - we will need 100 of them.
And in the case of a war mongering opposition then let’s make it 5 percent - so 1 in 20 will be opposition family members.
And similarly shadow Ministers can nominate their children if they can't make it - we will only need 50 of them for every 1000 troops.
I am pretty sure that if we adopted this *process* then all the unnecessary wars that we would otherwise pursue would magically disappear.
And the USA would have to revert to using their own citizens as cannon fodder.
Truth is that none of us care much about another dead soldier. Unless of course he is related to us - and then we care a lot.
So I am proposing a simple fix to our political processes that will ensure we don't have to endure too many more unnecessary dead soldiers.
The fix is simple - when our Government decides to send troops overseas to fight another war then we will make sure that the force is as representative of the nation as it can be.
And because the Government of the day decides to send troops then their families should make up ten percent of the force. So if the force is 1000 strong then there will need to be 100 family members from the current Government included.
Your sons or daughters will be fine if you don't want to go yourself Minister - we will need 100 of them.
And in the case of a war mongering opposition then let’s make it 5 percent - so 1 in 20 will be opposition family members.
And similarly shadow Ministers can nominate their children if they can't make it - we will only need 50 of them for every 1000 troops.
I am pretty sure that if we adopted this *process* then all the unnecessary wars that we would otherwise pursue would magically disappear.
And the USA would have to revert to using their own citizens as cannon fodder.
War on Themselves?
Have the dingbats so stuffed up their *external* wars that they now feel the need to focus on their *internal* enemies.
Read this and weep - because it looks like they really are imploding.
Read this and weep - because it looks like they really are imploding.
Sunday, February 20, 2011
Some Good News
Murdoch wouldn't do it, the ABC has no clue but Fairfax has redeemed itself with this.
It's truly *good news* when an Australian media outlet does the right thing ;-)
Thanks to Peter Hartcher and Fairfax.
In the grand tradition of the US right wing dingbats - lets hunt Scott Morrison down and treat him to "drones and gitmo". Peter King and Sarah Palin might even have some more advice ;-)
Or perhaps we do it the good old Australian way "Tasar him and then throw him in Baxter".
It's truly *good news* when an Australian media outlet does the right thing ;-)
Thanks to Peter Hartcher and Fairfax.
In the grand tradition of the US right wing dingbats - lets hunt Scott Morrison down and treat him to "drones and gitmo". Peter King and Sarah Palin might even have some more advice ;-)
Or perhaps we do it the good old Australian way "Tasar him and then throw him in Baxter".
Stupid, Stupid, Stupid
Today another young Australian was killed in Afghanistan - all in the service of "A big right wing war monger". I am sure you know who I mean.
And Julia comes out and says this:
"Today I am immeasurably sad but I am certainly very determined to see the mission through, it’s a hard mission and I'm not underestimating the cost. I understand the cost. We're talking about the loss of a very brave, very young man today. Jamie was 21 years old. So I understand the cost but I also understand the importance of this mission."
Bullshit.
What you believe dear leader is what your puppeteers in the US military want you to believe - with some additional stroking and smooching by our completely subservient defence hierarchy. For decades, Labor and Liberal politicians have been dazzled by the shiny hardware and forgotten to ask the hard questions. It has always been thus.
It is clear to most of the rest of us that your Government has "no interest" and "no capability" to take a modern world view of our national and regional interest and to decide for ourselves what is and what isn't an appropriate adventure for our military. You seem to think the "Kool Aid" provided by the US is just right for us.
Well it isn’t. It never has been and it never will be. Little Johnny juiced up on it and now your job is to get us out of there - before any more of our young boys are killed and maimed.
In case you haven't noticed, there is a bit of a revolution happening in the Arab World - as a direct result of their leaders’ 30 plus year’s worth of US "Kool Aid" consumption.
It might be worth paying a bit of attention to that - and getting your Foreign Minister to brief you on the *big picture* consequences.
And Julia comes out and says this:
"Today I am immeasurably sad but I am certainly very determined to see the mission through, it’s a hard mission and I'm not underestimating the cost. I understand the cost. We're talking about the loss of a very brave, very young man today. Jamie was 21 years old. So I understand the cost but I also understand the importance of this mission."
Bullshit.
What you believe dear leader is what your puppeteers in the US military want you to believe - with some additional stroking and smooching by our completely subservient defence hierarchy. For decades, Labor and Liberal politicians have been dazzled by the shiny hardware and forgotten to ask the hard questions. It has always been thus.
It is clear to most of the rest of us that your Government has "no interest" and "no capability" to take a modern world view of our national and regional interest and to decide for ourselves what is and what isn't an appropriate adventure for our military. You seem to think the "Kool Aid" provided by the US is just right for us.
Well it isn’t. It never has been and it never will be. Little Johnny juiced up on it and now your job is to get us out of there - before any more of our young boys are killed and maimed.
In case you haven't noticed, there is a bit of a revolution happening in the Arab World - as a direct result of their leaders’ 30 plus year’s worth of US "Kool Aid" consumption.
It might be worth paying a bit of attention to that - and getting your Foreign Minister to brief you on the *big picture* consequences.
Friday, February 18, 2011
Dingbats Everywhere
Jesus they are everywhere. It's not just in Australia that the conservatives think they can shaft workers with "WorkChoices" like programmes. Check this out.
The new Republican Governor of Wisconsin has decided to beat up his public sector workers. The people of Wisconsin are good folks and they don't deserve this ratbag. But he is what you get when the economy goes pear shaped as a result of letting fools and war mongers run the place for 8 years.
This is not a complex issue folks - Governor Walker is just another right wing dingbat who is trying to screw the workers in Wisconsin.
Next thing you know this theme will be all across the US and then they will be exporting the programme to their friends and neighbours across the world. Beware UK, OZ and NZ.
I have pinched a quote below from the Huff Post story - this seems to summarise the situation.
"Scott Walker thought he could do absolutely anything he wanted to do. He truly thought that his election and the election of Republican majorities in the state Assembly and Senate meant an endorsement of absolutely every impulse, theory, and political vendetta that he felt like expressing. Numerous reports say that Republican legislators were shocked at the level of protest. They had better get used to it -- I don't think these demonstrations are going away. What's going on in Wisconsin, in other words, is what is going on in the country at large. Republicans were elected by promising to focus on creating new jobs and nothing else. Once in office, they focused on pretty much everything and anything other than creating jobs, only to discover that the voters had been listening all along. By 2012 I would not be at all surprised to find Republican candidates for office in Wisconsin trying desperately to deny that they ever heard of Governor Walker, assuming his term lasts that long".
Sound familiar?
The new Republican Governor of Wisconsin has decided to beat up his public sector workers. The people of Wisconsin are good folks and they don't deserve this ratbag. But he is what you get when the economy goes pear shaped as a result of letting fools and war mongers run the place for 8 years.
This is not a complex issue folks - Governor Walker is just another right wing dingbat who is trying to screw the workers in Wisconsin.
Next thing you know this theme will be all across the US and then they will be exporting the programme to their friends and neighbours across the world. Beware UK, OZ and NZ.
I have pinched a quote below from the Huff Post story - this seems to summarise the situation.
"Scott Walker thought he could do absolutely anything he wanted to do. He truly thought that his election and the election of Republican majorities in the state Assembly and Senate meant an endorsement of absolutely every impulse, theory, and political vendetta that he felt like expressing. Numerous reports say that Republican legislators were shocked at the level of protest. They had better get used to it -- I don't think these demonstrations are going away. What's going on in Wisconsin, in other words, is what is going on in the country at large. Republicans were elected by promising to focus on creating new jobs and nothing else. Once in office, they focused on pretty much everything and anything other than creating jobs, only to discover that the voters had been listening all along. By 2012 I would not be at all surprised to find Republican candidates for office in Wisconsin trying desperately to deny that they ever heard of Governor Walker, assuming his term lasts that long".
Sound familiar?
Thursday, February 17, 2011
Malcolm is Gutless
Malcolm is gutless and he is probably also witless and lazy.
He was once the Liberal leader but got rolled by the right who installed dingbat Tony. Then he decided to leave the parliament to get a life but he got talked out of it by honest John ;-)
Machiavelli at work. The real reason they wanted to keep Malcolm from leaving the parliament was to stop him from saying what he thinks on the outside. The right wingers conspired to keep him in the parliament - and powerless in the Liberal party - all to keep him *inside* the tent.
Because if he ever found himself *outside* then he would be pissing all over them.
And he fell for it.
Now he is just a neutered shadow - reduced to tweeting about *not very much at all*.
If he had balls then he would start a real liberal party - and wipe the floor with the dingbats.
He was once the Liberal leader but got rolled by the right who installed dingbat Tony. Then he decided to leave the parliament to get a life but he got talked out of it by honest John ;-)
Machiavelli at work. The real reason they wanted to keep Malcolm from leaving the parliament was to stop him from saying what he thinks on the outside. The right wingers conspired to keep him in the parliament - and powerless in the Liberal party - all to keep him *inside* the tent.
Because if he ever found himself *outside* then he would be pissing all over them.
And he fell for it.
Now he is just a neutered shadow - reduced to tweeting about *not very much at all*.
If he had balls then he would start a real liberal party - and wipe the floor with the dingbats.
Wednesday, February 16, 2011
I'm Over That
It's hard not to be depressed about our politics at the moment. Particularly the dingbat brand of pseudo politics that is practised by the Liberal Party.
The usual suspects in the shadow ministry pretend to "fret and worry and wail" about "asylum seekers" and their impacts on the nation. Not because there are any real impacts Virginia but because a large subset of our population are so bogan and racist and uninformed - that this B Grade behaviour appeals to their way of thinking.
And they lap it up. If you doubt that then check out the inane BS on talkback radio and scattered throughout the Murdoch press. Even the ABC does it.
Large sections of our media exist to pander to and ultimately capture these bogan and racist eyeballs and to sell them stuff on the never never. Harvey Norman built a big business around it. And now the Liberal Party have decided to adopt them as a core constituency. Maybe Joe Hockey is wavering a bit ;-)
The liberal thinkers will be mildly annoyed. The rest of us will be appalled.
How did we ever get to a situation where our alternative government is scrambling about in the gutter attempting to win the hearts and minds of dumb-arsed "One Nation" supporters? Seriously?
I would be quite happy to have the Electoral Commission initiate a project to identify every "One Nation" supporter and to ship them and the entire parliamentary Liberal Party off to Nauru or somewhere remote - where they can do whatever they like - forever. I will even donate a couple of bucks to make it happen.
While the rest of us get on with dealing with the big issues of the era.
The usual suspects in the shadow ministry pretend to "fret and worry and wail" about "asylum seekers" and their impacts on the nation. Not because there are any real impacts Virginia but because a large subset of our population are so bogan and racist and uninformed - that this B Grade behaviour appeals to their way of thinking.
And they lap it up. If you doubt that then check out the inane BS on talkback radio and scattered throughout the Murdoch press. Even the ABC does it.
Large sections of our media exist to pander to and ultimately capture these bogan and racist eyeballs and to sell them stuff on the never never. Harvey Norman built a big business around it. And now the Liberal Party have decided to adopt them as a core constituency. Maybe Joe Hockey is wavering a bit ;-)
The liberal thinkers will be mildly annoyed. The rest of us will be appalled.
How did we ever get to a situation where our alternative government is scrambling about in the gutter attempting to win the hearts and minds of dumb-arsed "One Nation" supporters? Seriously?
I would be quite happy to have the Electoral Commission initiate a project to identify every "One Nation" supporter and to ship them and the entire parliamentary Liberal Party off to Nauru or somewhere remote - where they can do whatever they like - forever. I will even donate a couple of bucks to make it happen.
While the rest of us get on with dealing with the big issues of the era.
Tuesday, February 15, 2011
Australian Politics
This article is probably the most significant thing that I have read about Australian politics this year.
Putting aside for a moment the fact that the Liberal party is no longer the party that Menzies founded to give political representation to ordinary Australians. See here and here and here and here for a discussion of that.
What this article does is tell the story about how Liberal politicians have evolved as a species.
In the real world evolution enhances species. They must adapt or die.
In the rarefied atmosphere of Australian politics evolution creates a hybrid species that exists only for their own personal gratification. To survive they have adapted in unusual and bizarre ways. Their main characteristic is a predisposition to "genuflect" and say "yes" to their party bosses.
If you have been reading my blog then you will be aware of my thinking on this subject.
The question is "When will we Australian's do an Egypt"?
Putting aside for a moment the fact that the Liberal party is no longer the party that Menzies founded to give political representation to ordinary Australians. See here and here and here and here for a discussion of that.
What this article does is tell the story about how Liberal politicians have evolved as a species.
In the real world evolution enhances species. They must adapt or die.
In the rarefied atmosphere of Australian politics evolution creates a hybrid species that exists only for their own personal gratification. To survive they have adapted in unusual and bizarre ways. Their main characteristic is a predisposition to "genuflect" and say "yes" to their party bosses.
If you have been reading my blog then you will be aware of my thinking on this subject.
The question is "When will we Australian's do an Egypt"?
Thursday, February 10, 2011
Do they want to win?
I ask this question in all seriousness. "Do they want to win"? By *they* I mean the conservatives and by *win* I mean gain power in Australia.
Well do they?
Because you would never know it from their recent actions.
It's weird, because if I wanted the people to vote me in then I would be doing the things that appealed to them. I would give them a reason to do it.
Firstly I would get a good feel for what Australian's wanted and then I would design a policy and communications programme that built upon it. I would take a few tips from the world of marketing and sales - I am not talking about focus groups Virginia.
I would speak to the people instead of at them, engage with them instead of tell them, become one of them instead of being remote and mars based.
I would make them feel comfortable. Comfortable enough that they would consider electing me and my team when next there was an election. And I would re-enforce these things day and night over the time between now and the next election - or as long as it took.
Nope - apparently not. Doing those things would mean that you will have to abandon the right wing ideology that you want to impose on the nation. And then where would your ideas come from - Weeties?
This is the problem folks. The conservatives think they will walk back in based on our Government's incompetence and then they can do what they like - and subject us to the most mind numbing conservative dingbat ideology - like this guy's.
Or that is what Tony Abbott and Eric Abetz want to do.
The truth is that the Libs won't get near the levers until they ditch the ideology and go with the moderates. It just surprises me that they haven't managed to work that simple thing out yet.
Well do they?
Because you would never know it from their recent actions.
It's weird, because if I wanted the people to vote me in then I would be doing the things that appealed to them. I would give them a reason to do it.
Firstly I would get a good feel for what Australian's wanted and then I would design a policy and communications programme that built upon it. I would take a few tips from the world of marketing and sales - I am not talking about focus groups Virginia.
I would speak to the people instead of at them, engage with them instead of tell them, become one of them instead of being remote and mars based.
I would make them feel comfortable. Comfortable enough that they would consider electing me and my team when next there was an election. And I would re-enforce these things day and night over the time between now and the next election - or as long as it took.
Nope - apparently not. Doing those things would mean that you will have to abandon the right wing ideology that you want to impose on the nation. And then where would your ideas come from - Weeties?
This is the problem folks. The conservatives think they will walk back in based on our Government's incompetence and then they can do what they like - and subject us to the most mind numbing conservative dingbat ideology - like this guy's.
Or that is what Tony Abbott and Eric Abetz want to do.
The truth is that the Libs won't get near the levers until they ditch the ideology and go with the moderates. It just surprises me that they haven't managed to work that simple thing out yet.
Tuesday, February 8, 2011
Tony Abbott
I am so sick of Tony Abbott that I bought a voodoo doll and a big box of pins. You can imagine what I will do with them.
Seriously, the man is a joke as he rampages through Australian political life - saying and doing almost anything to gather media attention in his feeble attempt to remain semi relevant.
Slashing our international aid programme for Christ sake - to help pay for the QLD floods? You could start by acknowledging that climate change is a likely cause you pea brained dimwit.
He can't be as stupid as he appears. Or if he is then we have a *big* problem with the Liberal party selection processes Virginia.
Maybe we do - but I suspect his antics are all just a juvenile game to get his ugly mug and teapot ears in front of a television camera every other day. So we remember who he is and what he stands for.
Speaking of which - does anyone know what he stands for? Apart from naked ambition and opposition to anything that comes from the other side? No I didn't think so. His policy position is *extremely flexible*.
The man believes in nothing, stands for nothing and will deliver nothing if he ever gets to pull the levers. If you doubt this then reflect back on his time as an actual *Minister* in the Howard Government and see if you can tag anything that he did - as being of substance.
Apart from slash and burn the Health budget I mean?
Dingbat conservative ideology may once have swayed some of the masses - but these days’ people are just wary of stupidity.
Seriously, the man is a joke as he rampages through Australian political life - saying and doing almost anything to gather media attention in his feeble attempt to remain semi relevant.
Slashing our international aid programme for Christ sake - to help pay for the QLD floods? You could start by acknowledging that climate change is a likely cause you pea brained dimwit.
He can't be as stupid as he appears. Or if he is then we have a *big* problem with the Liberal party selection processes Virginia.
Maybe we do - but I suspect his antics are all just a juvenile game to get his ugly mug and teapot ears in front of a television camera every other day. So we remember who he is and what he stands for.
Speaking of which - does anyone know what he stands for? Apart from naked ambition and opposition to anything that comes from the other side? No I didn't think so. His policy position is *extremely flexible*.
The man believes in nothing, stands for nothing and will deliver nothing if he ever gets to pull the levers. If you doubt this then reflect back on his time as an actual *Minister* in the Howard Government and see if you can tag anything that he did - as being of substance.
Apart from slash and burn the Health budget I mean?
Dingbat conservative ideology may once have swayed some of the masses - but these days’ people are just wary of stupidity.
Monday, February 7, 2011
Lost The Plot
There was a time - probably 30 odd years ago - when we had a Federal Government that was actually interested in looking after the nation and its people and which was keen to help us all become more competitive. Bob Hawke and Paul Keating knew that it was a constant battle to generate new ideas and encourage change in the place so we became competitive with the rest of the world.
Biggest mistake they made was more funding for the education programme ;-)
But since 1996 we have been in "dumb down" mode. This is the mode that the conservatives are comfortable with - they want us to "leave the tough choices to them" and just stand by the white picket fence and wait for them to deliver the "good news".
Julia seems to have adopted similar thinking.
Our nation is in deep, deep shit. But no-one knows that yet. Actually a few people do - and some of them are talking about it - but our completely fucked up media won't report it properly. I am looking at you Mark Scott.
Forget News Ltd and Fairfax - they are dead in the water anyway. Stop paying for their shit!
Ross Garnaut made it perfectly clear in his original report about the consequences of inaction around climate change. We ignored him then and we continue to ignore him now.
And we are paying the price. And the dingbat conservatives are exploiting our stupidity.
If - as a nation - we aren't smart enough to see the "wood" for the "trees" - then smarter folks are going to take advantage of that.
I suppose "she'll be right mate" - is as good a philosophy as any.
But some of us have other plans - and where will that leave the bogan class?
Biggest mistake they made was more funding for the education programme ;-)
But since 1996 we have been in "dumb down" mode. This is the mode that the conservatives are comfortable with - they want us to "leave the tough choices to them" and just stand by the white picket fence and wait for them to deliver the "good news".
Julia seems to have adopted similar thinking.
Our nation is in deep, deep shit. But no-one knows that yet. Actually a few people do - and some of them are talking about it - but our completely fucked up media won't report it properly. I am looking at you Mark Scott.
Forget News Ltd and Fairfax - they are dead in the water anyway. Stop paying for their shit!
Ross Garnaut made it perfectly clear in his original report about the consequences of inaction around climate change. We ignored him then and we continue to ignore him now.
And we are paying the price. And the dingbat conservatives are exploiting our stupidity.
If - as a nation - we aren't smart enough to see the "wood" for the "trees" - then smarter folks are going to take advantage of that.
I suppose "she'll be right mate" - is as good a philosophy as any.
But some of us have other plans - and where will that leave the bogan class?
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