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The Queensland Quagmire

If a week is a long time in politics, then the last week must have felt even longer than eternity in the Fires of Hell for Tony Abbott and the rest of the lost souls of the Federal Opposition.

So, in an attempt to cheer them up, Peta Credlin and her hubby, Brian Loughnane, have decided to throw a fancy dress party. It will have a biblical/religious theme and, of course, Tones is coming along as his hero, Jesus. Brian and Peta, respectively, are dressing up as that nasty biblical plutocratic duet, Herod and Herodias.

So, at the venue, Joe Hockey and Christopher Pyne are acting as bouncers. Dutifully, they are guarding the door, awaiting the guests. Joe is dressed in a cassock and Pyney has a dog-collar on.

Peta: Erm...thanks guys for coming along and helping out with security...Hopefully, we’ll all have a spiffing evening which will help us forget about the Purgatory we had to endure last week...

[Joe and Pyney are no mugs. They know that by volunteering to be on the door, they can get into the keg early, so are both well-oiled even at this early stage of the proceedings.]

Peta: Oh, and great costumes, guys...very thematic...

Joe: Yeah...kitted out in my cassock, Peta, it’s obvious who I am, isn’t it?

[Peta ventures, “Friar Tuck”, and Joe beams, pleased as the punch he’s been drinking, Peta got it in one.]

Peta: Erm, Pyney...so, with your dog-collar, I presume you’re some sort of a priest?

Joe: Nah, he’s come along as the dog in the manger – haven’t you seen him wrecking Question Time every week...haw...haw...

Brian: Yeah, and talking about mangers, I bet Julie Bishop rocks up with an upturned crib on her head...bwahahahahaha...

Peta: Yeah, she’s an expert at copying other people’s stuff...haw...haw...

[Suddenly, interrupting the raucous party spirit that is already under way at the venue door, a stretched limo pulls up and a coterie of characters that looks like it has stepped off a Cecil B deMille set, alights.

Firstly, and most appropriately, out steps Tony Abbott, with a long wig and false beard, but dressed only in his trademark budgie smugglers. Accompanying him is Sophie Mirabella, dressed as Salome; Phil Ruddock is Methuselah; Alan Jones is a penitential monk kitted out in a nice chaff-bag sackcloth-and-ashes number; Warren Truss, making a snoring sound, presumably is acting out the role of one of the disciples who fell asleep in the Garden of Gethsemane; Barnaby Joyce has come along as Moses, with a stone tablet under both arms, each with six Commandments on it; and Bill Heffernan is carrying a pitchfork.]

Peta: Erm...Tones...I know you said you were coming along as Jesus, but I didn’t know they could afford budgie smugglers in those days...

Tones: Of course they could afford them in those days, Peta – there was no carbon tax then to clean out their wallets...heh...heh...

Brian: Tones, I’m very disappointed, I must say, that you’ve turned up in a limo – I thought you would arrive on a donkey...hee...hee...

Tones: Oh very droll, Brian...But, speaking of dumb-asses, Peter Dutton sends his apologies – he’s got a bit of a runny nose and he says he is going to make use of the circumstances to build up some hands-on experience for his future Health portfolio gig...heh...hee...

[So, amidst much mutual back-slapping and boisterous bonhomie, the Federal Opposition party animals, except for Joe and Pyney, who are still dutifully manning the door, enter the venue.

Once inside, however, Tones views the decor and is singularly unimpressed. There is no stage for him to mount later, so that he can give his Sermon on the Mount to the assembled faithful. He complains to Peta, who in turn clicks her fingers, summoning Brian over, like a little lap-dog.

“Sheesh”, sighs Tones to himself. “Why do we do it? Why do we allow ourselves to be demeaned like this? I reckon those gay marriage guys must have rocks in their heads...”

Peta orders Brian to get himself toot sweet over to the Builder’s yard across the street and pinch some planks of wood to build a stage for Jesus’ sermon. Knowing what side his unleavened bread is buttered on, Brian scoots across and is back within two shakes of the Lost Lamb’s tail. He gets down to work so diligently, he makes St Joseph the Carpenter, at the time of the Sanhedrin Stimpac, look like the Big Man Himself after he had made the world in six days and was having his sabbath RDO.

But, another thing Tones wasn’t happy with was the band. Again, he complained to Peta, for which she rebuked him, telling him to lighten.]

Peta [peeved]: I only remembered at the last minute, mate, about organising some music, so they are all I could get...

Tones: Well, a Bruce Springsteen tribute band is better than nothing, I suppose – what do they call themselves, anyway?

Peta: The Swann-E Street Band, I think...and as a bonus, they told me they are going to do a version of the Whyalla Wipeout later on!

Tones: Huh! Couldn’t be any worse than Emo’s pathetic rendition...haw...haw...

Peta: Oh, and the reason we couldn’t afford to hire a venue with a stage was that we splashed most of our dough on the band’s fee...

Tones: Oh? How much did those clowns sting us?

Peta: Well, put it like this...I don’t think Bruce himself would charge much more – the Springsteen look-a-like front-man told me they charged so much cos “they needed to do something to find the dosh to pay for their budget surplus...”



Tones [conciliatory]: Well, I must say, Peta, the food and drink is second to none...there’s everything here...it would make the original Herod and Herodias nosh-up look like Jesus’ forty days’ fast in the wilderness...

Peta: Yeah...the only thing is, there’s so much to be consumed, we’ll never get the buggers to go home at the end of the evening...But, then again, when you start your Sermon on the Mount, that’ll soon clear the room quicksmart...heh...heh...

Tones: Oh, very drool, Peta...But, I’ve got an even better idea for clearing the room – just get Sophie to do her Salome dance-of-the-seven-veils routine – that’s guaranteed to get even the cockroaches on their bikes...hee...hee...By the way, have you seen Julie this evening...bwahahahahaha...

[Whilst Peta and Tones have been chewing the fatted calf inside, Joe and Pyney have been dutifully announcing the guests as they enter. However, there has been a hiatus for a while and they are bored stiff. They decide to play a joke on Tones.]

Joe [hollering into the festivities hall]: And now, dressed as the Angel of Death is...Ms Leigh Sales!!!!

[The very mention of the name of his most recent red-headed nemesis puts the fear of the Lord into Tones and he scuttles, trembling at the knees, under a table to hide, much to the merriment of the assembled guests and Joe and Pyney especially.

Then, outside, walking along the street, Joe and Pyney notice, heading in their direction, a strange figure, tramp-like, and seemingly attired in goat-skins, with a staff in one hand and a jar containing some insects in some yellowish liquid in the other.]

Tramp [bellowing]: HEAR YE!!! HEAR YE!!! MAKE WAY FOR THE COMING OF THE LORD!!! MAKE A STRAIGHT PATH FOR HIM TO TRAVEL ON HIS BIKE!!!

Joe [very alarmed]: OMG!!! It’s that nutter, “CanDo” Campbell Newman!!! He thinks he’s John the Baptist, fresh from making a desert wasteland of the province of Queensland!!! Quick, lock the door before he gets in and spoils the Federal party as well...

[However, falling back on his macho army training, CanDo is more than a match for Friar Tuck and the Poodle who Pooped in the Manger. He whacks them with his staff, leaving them lying senseless on the pavement outside the venue. Striding inside, he spots Tones, who has just extricated himself from under the table. CanDo immediately genuflects in front of his Messiah.]

CanDo: MY LORD!!! MY LORD!!! I AM NOT FIT TO UNTIE THE STRING ON YOUR BUDGIE SMUGGLERS...

Tones [scandalised]: PETA!!! PETA!!! HELP!!! HELP!!! THIS POOFTER WANTS TO INTERFERE WITH THE STRING ON MY BUDGIES!!! I FEEL THREATENED!!! HELP!!! HELP!!!

[Even Peta is lost for words. “What a potential freakin’ disaster we could have on our hands here”, she whispers to herself. “If this fruit-loop banana-bender convinces the whole country that what he is doing in Queensland is a fore-runner to what we are planning to do federally, we’re stuffed!”

Then, CanDo, hollering something about “if locusts and wild honey are good enough for Queenslanders, then they’re good enough for the rest of you”, smashes, with hammering blows from his staff, all the containers of food and drinks sitting on the tables.

Peta, trying to keep her head, but determined that CanDo is about to lose his, turns to Brian, who, all night, had been axing wooden planks and hammering the stage together. She orders him to chop CanDo’s scone off, which he does expertly with one blow. Then, Peta turns menacingly to Tones.]

Peta: Righto, Jesus...your cousin John the Baptist has let the cat out of the bag, so we’ve no other option but to sacrifice you as well...Brian!!! Bring two of those planks and make a cross!!!

[Understandably, the crucifixion of Tones puts a dampener on the evening’s jollifications, so the venue soon empties, except for the Swann E Street Band, who had kept on playing, and Peta. To make sure she gets her bond back, Peta is tidying up, sweeping the floor around Tones’ cross. However, from the near-dead figure, she hears a whispered, barely-audible, pleading coming from his almost-lifeless lips.]

Tones [hoarsely]: Peta...Peta...

[Peta pulls a stool over to stand on, so she can hear Tones’ dying last words.] Tones: Peta...Peta...

Peta: What is it, Tones? I can’t hear you...you’ll have to speak up...

Tones: Peta...I can see The Lodge from here...

Peta: Well, too bad sucker...you can blame your stupid cousin, CanDo, for your predicament...It’s his fault you’ll never see it’s inside...Now...that reminds me...I better make an appointment to see the pre-selectors for Warringah...there’s going to be a vacancy there pretty soon...heh...heh...

[Then, mockingly, the Swann-E Street Band plays its final number of the evening: “We Take Care Of Our Own”.]



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101 COMMENTS

paul walter

30/08/2012Reading this morning, Cando's latest antic involves the overturning of the Wild Rivers legislation. Development, but only if it is ecologically disastrous and hacks at the Greens. Apart from the bribes, of course .

Catching up

30/08/2012Terrific

Ad astra

30/08/2012AC Welcome back to [i]TPS[/i] and thank you for another clever and very contemporary piece of satire. From all accounts, the only view of The Lodge that Tony Abbott will have is a distant outside one. You know you are always welcome to write your satire here for our very appreciative audience.

nasking

30/08/2012 LOL. Good stuff AC! Hope you are well. I've linked this post to my Facebook page: http://www.facebook.com/nick.king.1232760?ref=tn_tnmn Been reading thru the fine threads and Lyn's links with my magnifying glass like glasses. Well done all. Have a goodie N'

TalkTurkey

31/08/2012Hi and good to see you AC. Poor Tone doesn't get much sympathy does he! No embrocations of ointments very precious . . . No Peta wiping his Lotus feet with her hair . . . Why do I think that's the likely way of it when it happens? Speaking of Tones, the whole tone of the 5th Estate has changed, does everybody notice? It's a thrusting powerful feeling now, determination replacing despair, not that I have ever despaired really except a bit that so many others have been so pessimistic for so long, well that's all different now. All the Left is on the upbeat now.

Patriciawa

31/08/2012[b]Denying The Master[/b] Though almost half a dozen years away, For Tony Abbott it’s just yesterday, When all was right in the world because John Howard was in charge of Oz. Through the years since then it’s been his mission To restore the mighty Coalition To government. He the natural heir, Has his ministry waiting there. No learners these, nor needing policies. Howard’s men, with all the qualities Required to rule, ready to replace Gillard’s gang, a basket case. Honest John and friends all raise their voices, Now we’ll reinstate Work Choices! “That was two PMs ago!” Tony is aghast. ”No! NO!” Notes and illustrations at http://polliepomes.wordpress.com/2012/08/30/denying-the-master/ Apologies, AC, I hadn't realized your new post was up! I'll read it tomorrow!

Lyn

31/08/2012TODAY’S LINKS What went wrong at The Australian: an insider’s account, Rodney E Lever, Independent Australia The paper may continue, but only as long as Rupert Murdoch’s wealth and ego can support it.Beyond that, it may also have some practical future on the national scale — with better reporting. But not while it remains the idiotic plaything of rogue amateur journalism and an owner who rarely reads it and does nothing to change it. http://www.independentaustralia.net/2012/business/media-2/why-the-australian-has-always-been-rubbish-an-insiders-account/ Dental reform, finally, Gary Sauer-Thompson, Public Opinion Outside health policy circles the reaction was more along the lines of the Gillard Government being on a spending spree, budget surpluses being blown out of the water, and the budget surplus for 2012-13 being a mirage. The budget black hole position gives little acknowledgement of the Gillard Government making spending cuts in low priority http://www.sauer-thompson.com/archives/opinion/2012/08/dental-reform-f.php#more JONATHAN HOLMES: No porn star, ABC Media Watch’s haughty honcho makes a big boner, Vex News we’ve loudly opposed it as uncorroborated, incredible and dubious nonsense. It’s become clearer that what actually happened in Ms Gillard’s time at Slater & Gordon was that some big lefty legal egos clashed over a whole range of things, with Bernard Murphy, now a Federal Court judge, and ally Julia Gillard, departing on negotiated terms. http://www.vexnews.com/2012/08/jonathan-holmes-no-porn-star-abc-media-watchs-haughty-honcho-makes-a-big-boner/ C’MON BOYS & GIRLS. PLAY , Greg Jericho, The Hoopla Of course she, as our first woman Prime Minister, must deal with a louder volume of abuse than do most women – including those who work in the media – but nonetheless she is certainly not alone in having been the victim of such abuse.It was interesting to see her call out the abuse she receives for what it is when in her marathon press conference http://thehoopla.com.au/boys-girls-play-nice/ SMH business scribes join flight from Fairfax, Matthew Knott, Crikey Economics editor Ross Gittins, political editor Peter Hartcher and investigative gun Kate McClymont are understood to be on a “protected species” list of journalists who are not eligible for voluntary redundancy even if they are keen to leave. http://www.crikey.com.au/2012/08/29/smh-business-scribes-join-flight-from-fairfax/ Effective media accountability does not have to threaten journalists’ independence, Wendy Bacon Journalists, especially those from News Ltd, and right wing commentators promote the illusion that the Australian Gillard Labor government is threatening to ‘regulate’ the media in response to rigorous scrutiny of its performance. It has even been suggested that the Australian Labor Party is bullying News Ltd which is by far the most powerful media owner in this country. http://www.wendybacon.com/2012/effective-media-accountability-does-not-have-to-threaten-journalists-independence/ Australia Approved, Miglo, Café Whispers We’ve also had devoted lovers of the right comment here at Café Whispers that it has been the people of Australia, not Tony Abbott who have been calling for an election. From what you will read below I can narrow that down even further. Simply, only the right-wing brigade have been calling for an election from the moment the dust settled on the last one http://cafewhispers.wordpress.com/2012/08/30/australia-approved/ Another Turnbull Conflict Of Interest?, Michael Wyres however find it curious that these shares were still taken up in 2012 – (when they were added to the register) – and apparently divested also in 2012. At all times while Mrs Turnbull held them, her husband was the communications spokesperson for the opposition.The question of a conflict of interest remains over Mr Turnbull’s shares in France Telecom http://michaelwyres.com/2012/08/another-turnbull-conflict-of-interest/ Ch 7 Reporter gleeful at the sight of assaulted union workers, Turn Left 2013 Is there some sort of media handbook that says when you refer to unions you automatically include the word “thug”?Unions stand up for workers rights http://turnleft2013.wordpress.com/2012/08/30/ch-7-reporter-gleeful-at-the-site-of-assaulted-workers/ Is the Federal Government dropping the ball on whistleblower protection, Peter Roberts, The Conversation Without effective protection, compensation and the commitment to respect whistleblowers, those laws risk being a dangerous facade, tempting employees to come forward with reports, then leaving them exposed to damaging retaliation http://theconversation.edu.au/is-the-federal-government-dropping-the-ball-on-whistleblower-protection-9132 How Howard taxed the tripe out of the public to eliminate government debt, Stephen Koukoulas, Market Economics The tax to GDP ratio averaged 23.4% in the 12 Budgets handed down by Peter Costello in the Howard Government. Fact.At the end of the Howard Government term, Australia had negative net debt (financial assets in other words) equal to 3.8% of GDP (2007-08). Fact.As at June 2013, net government debt will be 9.2% of GDP. Fact. http://www.marketeconomics.com.au/blog Be like Gough: 75 radical ideas to transform Australia, John Roskam, Chris Berg and James Paterson, Institute of Public Affairs Every single opinion poll says that Tony Abbott will be Australia's next prime minister. He might not even have to wait until the current term of parliament expires in late 2013. The Gillard government threatens to collapse at any moment. Abbott could well be in the Lodge before Christmas this year. http://www.ipa.org.au/publications/2080/be-like-gough:-75-radical-ideas-to-transform-australia “Next item”: LNP mayor gives NBN Co just 8min, Renai LeMay, Delimeter encourage you to watch the clip of Gold Coast Mayor Tom Tate cutting NBN Co’s presentation short in the Gold Coast City Council. Irrespective of whether they were politically motivated or not, his actions were just plain rude, and I agree with Minister Conroy that Tate should apologise to NBN Co and invite the company back to give a full presentation to council. http://delimiter.com.au/2012/08/30/next-item-lnp-mayor-gives-nbn-co-just-8min/ Denying The Master!, Patriciawa, Polliepomes Ad Astra’s post records a week of stressful interviews for Abbott which had begun with his extraordinarily hubristic speech about an Abbott Coalition government restoring the Howard golden years and was to end with that admission of defeat………………”there is no going back to the past http://polliepomes.wordpress.com/2012/08/30/denying-the-master/ Abbott 'mislead 7.30 or parliament', News Mail Mr Abbott responded to the question time taunts with this personal explanation: "Several times the Prime Minister in question time today claimed that I had not read the BHP statement issued yesterday. This is false."Mr Albanese said the apparent contradiction represented a breach of privilege. http://www.news-mail.com.au/story/2012/08/30/abbott-mislead-730-or-parliament/ Today’s Front Pages Australia Newspaper Front Pages for 31 August 2012 http://www.frontpagestoday.co.uk/index.cfm?PaperCountry=Australia

Lyn

31/08/2012Good Morning Ad A new link for the IPA article the above link is broken:- Be like Gough: 75 radical ideas to transform Australia IPA REVIEW ARTICLE Every single opinion poll says that Tony Abbott will be Australia's next prime minister. He might not even have to wait until the current term of parliament expires in late 2013. The Gillard government threatens to collapse at any moment. Abbott could well be in the Lodge before Christmas this year John Roskam, Chris Berg and James Paterson http://www.ipa.org.au/publications/2080/be-like-gough:-75-radical-ideas-to-transform-australia

Lyn

31/08/2012Sorry Ad Still not working, works ok for me from my draft just won't post, notice how the end turns to black. Would you be able to fix it for me please Ad.

Ad astra

31/08/2012Hi Lyn Here is the IPA article again. THe link is still broken - perhaps that's an omen - but it works if it is pasted [i]in toto[/i] into the address line. Be like Gough: 75 radical ideas to transform Australia IPA REVIEW ARTICLE Every single opinion poll says that Tony Abbott will be Australia's next prime minister. He might not even have to wait until the current term of parliament expires in late 2013. The Gillard government threatens to collapse at any moment. Abbott could well be in the Lodge before Christmas this year John Roskam, Chris Berg and James Paterson http://www.ipa.org.au/publications/2080/be-like-gough:-75-radical-ideas-to-transform-australia

2353

31/08/2012Hi Lyn, That IPA link shows their level of delusion - thanks I think (H).

Ad astra

31/08/2012LYN'S DAILY LINKS updated: http://www.thepoliticalsword.com/page/LYNS-DAILY-LINKS.aspx

Ad astra

31/08/2012Folks The link with which Lyn and I are having difficulty this morning is to one to the IPA article: Be like Gough: 75 radical ideas to transform Australia 
IPA REVIEW ARTICLE by John Roskam, Chris Berg and James Paterson. Ignore the dire predictions it makes for the Gillard Government, and read the 75 ideas below. They are indeed radical. They give a foretaste of what we could be in for should Abbott man win government. The list is alarming. If it get out to the electorate that this is what Abbott man is about to do, in my opinion it will be a resounding negative for him. The IPA man have done him in the eye. The link will work if you copy and paste it into the address line: http://www.ipa.org.au/publications/2080/be-like-gough:-75-radical-ideas-to-transform-australia [i]If he wins government, Abbott faces a clear choice. He could simply overturn one or two symbolic Gillard-era policies like the carbon tax, and govern moderately. He would not offend any interest groups. In doing so, he'd probably secure a couple of terms in office for himself and the Liberal Party. But would this be a successful government? We don't believe so. The remorseless drift to bigger government and less freedom would not halt, and it would resume with vigour when the Coalition eventually loses office. We hope he grasps the opportunity to fundamentally reshape the political culture and stem the assault on individual liberty. 1 Repeal the carbon tax, and don't replace it. It will be one thing to remove the burden of the carbon tax from the Australian economy. But if it is just replaced by another costly scheme, most of the benefits will be undone. 2 Abolish the Department of Climate Change 3 Abolish the Clean Energy Fund 4 Repeal Section 18C of the Racial Discrimination Act 5 Abandon Australia's bid for a seat on the United Nations Security Council 6 Repeal the renewable energy target 7 Return income taxing powers to the states 8 Abolish the Commonwealth Grants Commission 9 Abolish the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission 10 Withdraw from the Kyoto Protocol 11 Introduce fee competition to Australian universities 12 Repeal the National Curriculum 13 Introduce competing private secondary school curriculums 14 Abolish the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) 15 Eliminate laws that require radio and television broadcasters to be 'balanced' 16 Abolish television spectrum licensing and devolve spectrum management to the common law 17 End local content requirements for Australian television stations 18 Eliminate family tax benefits 19 Abandon the paid parental leave scheme 20 Means-test Medicare 21 End all corporate welfare and subsidies by closing the Department of Industry, Innovation, Science, Research and Tertiary Education 22 Introduce voluntary voting 23 End mandatory disclosures on political donations 24 End media blackout in final days of election campaigns 25 End public funding to political parties 26 Remove anti-dumping laws 27 Eliminate media ownership restrictions 28 Abolish the Foreign Investment Review Board 29 Eliminate the National Preventative Health Agency 30 Cease subsidising the car industry 31 Formalise a one-in, one-out approach to regulatory reduction 32 Rule out federal funding for 2018 Commonwealth Games 33 Deregulate the parallel importation of books 34 End preferences for Industry Super Funds in workplace relations laws 35 Legislate a cap on government spending and tax as a percentage of GDP 36 Legislate a balanced budget amendment which strictly limits the size of budget deficits and the period the federal government can be in deficit 37 Force government agencies to put all of their spending online in a searchable database 38 Repeal plain packaging for cigarettes and rule it out for all other products, including alcohol and fast food 39 Reintroduce voluntary student unionism at universities 40 Introduce a voucher scheme for secondary schools 41 Repeal the alcopops tax 42 Introduce a special economic zone in the north of Australia including: 
a) Lower personal income tax for residents 
b) Significantly expanded 457 Visa programs for workers 
c) Encourage the construction of dams 43 Repeal the mining tax 44 Devolve environmental approvals for major projects to the states 45 Introduce a single rate of income tax with a generous tax-free threshold 46 Cut company tax to an internationally competitive rate of 25 per cent 47 Cease funding the Australia Network 48 Privatise Australia Post 49 Privatise Medibank 50 Break up the ABC and put out to tender each individual function 

51 Privatise SBS 

52 Reduce the size of the public service from current levels of more than 260,000 to at least the 2001 low of 212,784 53 Repeal the Fair Work Act 54 Allow individuals and employers to negotiate directly terms of employment that suit them 55 Encourage independent contracting by overturning new regulations designed to punish contractors 56 Abolish the Baby Bonus 57 Abolish the First Home Owners' Grant 58 Allow the Northern Territory to become a state 59 Halve the size of the Coalition front bench from 32 to 16 60 Remove all remaining tariff and non-tariff barriers to international trade 61 Slash top public servant salaries to much lower international standards, like in the United States 62 End all public subsidies to sport and the arts 63 Privatise the Australian Institute of Sport 64 End all hidden protectionist measures, such as preferences for local manufacturers in government tendering 65 Abolish the Office for Film and Literature Classification 66 Rule out any government-supported or mandated internet censorship 67 Means test tertiary student loans 68 Allow people to opt out of superannuation in exchange for promising to forgo any government income support in retirement 69 Immediately halt construction of the National Broadband Network and privatise any sections that have already been built 70 End all government funded Nanny State advertising 71 Reject proposals for compulsory food and alcohol labelling 72 Privatise the CSIRO 73 Defund Harmony Day 74 Close the Office for Youth 75 Privatise the Snowy-Hydro Scheme[/i] [b]Be afraid, very afraid.[/b]

jaycee

31/08/2012The IPA. list forgot to add an appendum..: "Arm yourself!!"

TalkTurkey

31/08/2012Good morning Lyn and Ad, Working away in the early morning for the good of the world because that's what it really is. That list you publish is only tongue-in-cheek, it's not serious. [i]Tell us it's not serious![/i] :) Fortunately the Abborttians WILL NOT get a chance to do any of it.

TalkTurkey

31/08/2012Chris Berg and his ilk would fit very well in Anders Breivik's world view eh!

Lyn

31/08/2012Hi Ad Thankyou so much for trying, like you said could be an omen. Brilliant of you thanks for posting the 75 radical ideas, but did you see they admitted Mr Abbott won't be able to do all at once, well I never. I thought I had better tell you the reason I linked the article was to show our readers how mean & nasty the Liberals are. Think Campbell Newman, Abbott will be 100 times worse. "Scary be afraid" Julia Gillard introduced the word Nutjobs sure does apply in that article. Hi Talk Turkey I can tell you they are deadly serious, you are serious too, "they won't get a chance".

jaycee

31/08/2012Good slapstick, Acerbic....had to shut down the old imagination at the bit about can-do and the budgie smuggler strings!!....(Bart Simpson shudder....uurrrrrrrghhh!) That list just about undoes everything that adheres a society together. What sort of insanity cannot see that the very emotive issues that Tabbott uses to divide his opposite side of politics cannot be turned against him to destroy his preffered side of politics? For example ; Last weeks topic of "going back to the golden age"...this week: "that was then, this is now..no going back..." This list should be put up on the IPA's favourite commentry home away from home : The Drum.

DMW

31/08/2012Former PM Malcolm Fraser responds to an article by former Labor Foreign Minister Gareth Evans on Asylum Seekers. A few home truths that need to be repeated often. [b]Australia’s Abdication on the High Seas[/b] Malcolm Fraser @ProjectSyndicate [i]The government has won support for this punitive approach by convincing the public that it is the only option for reducing the number of deaths at sea. But policymakers seem to have forgotten that when people are fleeing for their lives, when their family and friends have been brutalized, imprisoned, or killed, no democratic government’s deterrent can match the fear that drives them to try their luck on the high seas, packed into rickety boats.[/i] http://www.project-syndicate.org/online-commentary/australia-s-abdication-on-the-high-seas-by-malcolm-fraser [b]A Lifeline for Asia’s Boat People[/b] Gareth Evans @ProjectSyndicate [i]Sometimes countries arrive at good policy only after exhausting all available alternatives. So it has been with Australia’s belated embrace this month, after years of political wrangling, of a new “hard-headed but not hard-hearted” approach to handling seaborne asylum seekers.[/i] http://www.project-syndicate.org/commentary/a-lifeline-for-asia-s-boat-people-by-gareth-evans Fascinating that a former Labor Minister agrees with a policy that is more in line with John Howard's conservative/reactionary views and a former Liberal PM has the more progressive and humane view. The world of Aus politics is totally upside down

jaycee

31/08/2012Thought I'd go and visit the IPA. web-site to check out that item and while there had a read of Gina's vomit! I am now going to email the Federal police, suggesting they raid the IPA. headquarters because they must be "on" something very, very illegal over there!

Lyn

31/08/2012Hi Jaycee You are a top character, love it, love your posts. Thankyou for the Grins, Smiles, Laughs and giggles. Hope the FED's go there and rip all the paper work up.

Ad astra

31/08/2012Hi Lyn, jaycee, TT This IPA list is truly frightening. I’ve picked out just a few to illustrate how radical this right wing think tank really is. It is the Australian equivalent of the US Tea Party. I’ve not included in my list repeal of the carbon and minerals tax, climate change items, stopping the NBN and so on; we know these already, but take a look at the ones I’ve listed below, which I’ve rearranged into groupings of like items. The IPA list is quite disorganized – perhaps a reflection of its thinking! [b]9 Abolish the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission 12 Repeal the National Curriculum 14 Abolish the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) 27 Eliminate media ownership restrictions 15 Eliminate laws that require radio and television broadcasters to be 'balanced' 47 Cease funding the Australia Network 4 Repeal Section 18C of the Racial Discrimination Act (The one that caught Bolt) 18 Eliminate family tax benefits 19 Abandon the paid parental leave scheme 20 Means-test Medicare 56 Abolish the Baby Bonus 68 Allow people to opt out of superannuation in exchange for promising to forgo any government income support in retirement 21 End all corporate welfare and subsidies by closing the Department of Industry, Innovation, Science, Research and Tertiary Education 28 Abolish the Foreign Investment Review Board 29 Eliminate the National Preventative Health Agency 38 Repeal plain packaging for cigarettes and rule it out for all other products, including alcohol and fast food 41 Repeal the alcopops tax 71 Reject proposals for compulsory food and alcohol labeling 70 End all government funded Nanny State advertising 23 End mandatory disclosures on political donations (So that tobacco company support can be hidden) 48 Privatise Australia Post 49 Privatise Medibank 50 Break up the ABC and put out to tender each individual function 

 51 Privatise SBS 

 72 Privatise the CSIRO 75 Privatise the Snowy-Hydro Scheme 52 Reduce the size of the public service from current levels of more than 260,000 to at least the 2001 low of 212,784 53 Repeal the Fair Work Act[/b] This modified and rearranged list starkly exposes the radical thinking of the IPA, one that will try to influence Abbott man to their way of thinking. There is no way Abbott could even contemplate implementing most of these, but this is the direction the IPA is pushing him. Remember too that the IPA is heavily represented in ABC radio and TV programs and its blog sites. Frightening!

DoodlePoodle

31/08/2012For me, the Paralympics is the bright spot on TV at the moment. To see these athletes overcome all odds and proudly represent their country and achieve is something most people would never have thought possible. Having had a Mum lose a leg to cancer 60 years ago with a family of five aged 2 to 12, I do appreciate how determined these people are. Mum's initial prognosis was bad but she was determined to beat it and beat it she did and lived to 92.

lol

31/08/2012Maybe you guys need to concentrate less on what Tony Abbott is doing and concentrate on your beloved leader.. check out these links:- http://www.michaelsmithnews.com/ http://lawyerocracyontrial.wordpress.com/2012/08/29/legal-regulator-set-to-investigate-juliagillard-lawyer-misconduct-allegations/

Michael

31/08/2012The IPA wish list seems to boil down to one request: "Turn Australia 'Off'".

LadyInRed

31/08/2012AC Loved the piece. lol I see that the very very nasty are out in force as we expected they would be. How very nasty and desperate they can be when they fear their dopey leader is being exposed for the fool that he is. Give Tones enough rope .....and well you know the rest. He actually needs no help from us, but what he does need is the free leg up that the MSM has been giving him. When that got pulled out from under him how very unintelligent and stupid he looked. Note lol - we know what to expect from people like you. Pathetic placards, Alan Jones ugly persona, Bolt needling away with his insulting diatribe, Whiney Piney whinging, Hockey bellowing its not fair, MSM ruining all that newspapers ever stood for. We know the low blows that you lot will try to inflict, like cornered wounded animals. Typical of bullies when they see the fight is being lost they come out screeching, whining, fearmongering, throing punches, ugly, unhappy lot that you are.

TalkTurkey

31/08/2012From Twitter Peter Mc‏@PeterMcII . @ABCTV is making a doco about Gough (ping Whit Goughlam @leftocentre) http://www.abc.net.au/whitlam/ Retweeted by Whit Goughlam

jaycee

31/08/2012Dear LOL. Don't need to concentrate on what our "beloved leader" is doing as we have the endless microscopic eye of the right-wing loonies broadcasting it from their rags every day..BUT!..on the other hand, by taking ones' eye off the devolved LOTO, one could be in for a rather nasty suprise...after all he is a believer in the old adage : "A lie a day keeps the press away!"

Gravel

31/08/2012Acerbic Conehead You made the wait well worth it. Thank you for starting my day with a laugh. I have missed your great wit.

2353

31/08/2012I was going to leave this for tonight but it's relevant now. Arron Sorkin, the Creator of [i]The West Wing[/i] and other similar standard US TV shows has a new show out (only available in Australia on Foxtel at the moment) called [i]The Newsroom[/i]. This is how the first season ends -> www.youtube.com/watch?v=yGAvwSp86hY - effectively claiming the US Tea party is the same as the Taliban. [quote]The character of Will McAvoy (played by Jeff Daniels, a radical liberal in his own right) on The Newsroom is a supposed Republican, yet railed against the Tea Party in a condescending rant (written by Sorkin) during the episode. He bashed Tea Partiers as Christians who believe the Bible is the inspired Word of God by saying they are characterized by "a fundamentalist belief in scriptural literalism." He also accused Tea Partiers of demonizing education, being misogynistic, and hating the government. The character then threw all civility out of the window. “They can call themselves the Tea Party. They can call themselves conservatives and they can even call themselves Republicans, though Republicans certainly shouldn’t. But we should call them what they are. The American Taliban.”[/quote] http://www.examiner.com/article/hbo-s-newsroom-calls-tea-party-american-taliban It's probably the best 6 minutes you'll spend today.

Psyclaw

31/08/2012LOL Getting to the bottom of the credibility barrell mate, when you have to cite "evidence" from Mr Michael Smith. All that's left now is for you to reference a Mr Tony Abbott assertion as evidence of something or other and you'll have reached the absolute bottom.

Lyn

31/08/2012Hi Ad & Everybody Well Ad at least we now know Mr Abbott's policies thankyou to the IPA, they told us 75 of them in one hit. No wonder Abbott won't heehe! tell anyone. Acerbic Conehead, thankyou for your brilliant article your talent continues to delight everyone. Psyclaw thankyou for taking time out of your worries to post interesting reading for us. I do hope things are ok with you. Or at least improving. Twitterverse: David Donovan‏ thanks to ipa for explaining clearly why Australia should never elect Abbott or anyone that psychotic "institute" recommends David Donovan‏ The problem is, they are earnestly serious about the obviously ridiculous BS they spout. Space Kidette‏ Stimulus or bust | Stephen Koukoulas | Commentary | Business Spectator: http://www.businessspectator.com.au/bs.nsf/Article/QE3-Jackson-Hole-stimulus-ECB-interest-rates-Fed-pd20120831-XNTK5?OpenDocument&src=sph#. Financial Review‏ The next budget could be weeks before the election, says @latingle - the govt must get the MYEFO statement right [free] http://bit.ly/QGewtZ Those pointing out that there is a big budget hole are not very popular in Canberra at the moment. “Bloody Chris Richardson,” one senior source grumbled yesterday after the Deloitte Access Economics partner was splashed all over the media with dire budget warnings. “He didn’t even want us to take the bloody budget back to surplus in May.” http://afr.com/p/opinion/game_of_gazillians_iou_budgets_as_VlTelYHeUjFfWt8VexRLHN Australian News‏ Catholic school teachers to strike in Qld: Thousands of teachers at Catholic schools in Queensl... http://www.sbs.com.au/news/article/1687677/Catholic-school-teachers-to-strike-in-Qld Financial Review‏ #China steel purge poses threat to resources boom [free] http://bit.ly/S2XEPD #auspol #ausecon #ASX Australian News‏ Aust can't 'cut and run in Afghanistan Opposition Leader Tony Abbott says Australia can't cut... http://www.sbs.com.au/news/article/1687675/Aust-cant-cut-and-run-in-Afghanistan David Kirkpatrick‏ SMH: Our political debate is a joke : http://bit.ly/PvaLTI : I Blame Tony Abbott #TheSmearStralian/#NewsLtd Howard still Abbott's number one fan But Mr Howard couldn't speak highly enough of Mr Abbott this morning think it is fair to say that I am just about Tony Abbott's biggest fan on the political scene. I think he has done a terrific job. “Just understand one thing, the Coalition would not be it is now were it not for Tony Abbott, because he really, by staring down Kevin Rudd on climate change, panicked the former prime minister, " http://www.theage.com.au/opinion/political-news/howard-still-abbotts-number-one-fan-20120831-25426.html#ixzz254biMY9b Cyber attacks should be taken down: Abbott OPPOSITION Leader Tony Abbott wants tougher legal powers to order "scurrilous" internet bullying attacks to be taken down I think there should be some powers for take-down orders, to ensure people are at least civil to each other http://www.heraldsun.com.au/news/breaking-news/cyber-attacks-should-be-taken-down-abbott/story-e6frf7kf-1226462189339?sv=b TheQldPublicServant‏ Townsville Qld Health Staff to learn fate on cuts on Monday #qldpol #NewmnLied2You | Townsville Bulletin Foxtel gifts undeclared despite warnings MORE than 70 federal politicians have failed to disclose a gift of free pay TV worth $1560 annually despite being warned by the gift-giver that it must be declared. http://www.smh.com.au/opinion/political-news/foxtel-gifts-undeclared-despite-warnings-20120830-253ey.html#ixzz255BM2NoS

2353

31/08/2012Drat - foiled again. Just found and was going to post the SMH article on "our political debate is a joke" to find that Lyn beat me again! Nice work Lyn.

TalkTurkey

31/08/2012Howard (of Abbortt) [i]I think he has done a pretty fabulous job.[/i] Two nuances: [i]"pretty" fabulous?[/i] How fabulous is that? [i]has done:[/i] past perfect tense. finito. kaput. no more. Shorter Howard: [i]He's #*cked it up. [/i]

lol

31/08/2012Bahaha!you guys are funny do you always attack the messenger instead of reading the message. You assume so much of me from only having ever posted on this site twice.

KHTAGH

31/08/2012I don't know about the rest of you but this following line is just so unbelievable. Apparently we were all mistaken about what T Abbortt said on the 7:30 report, just how stupid do these people think we are. [i]Mr Morris called Ms Sales a "cow" after she conducted a tough interview with Mr Abbott during which the opposition leader [u][b]seemed[/b][/u] to say he'd not read a statement by mining company BHP Billiton.[/i] So now we see the rewriting of history that is only a week old.

Truth Seeker

31/08/2012AC, there's nothing like a good bit of political satire to put a smile on the face and warm the cockles, so to speak. I do think that reality for Abbot will be worse than your final conclusion though, as I think it will be more like death by a thousand cuts! We are so lucky here at TPS to have so many contributors with vision and imagination, something conspicuously lacking on the right of politics. There appears to be very little, if any, creativity in their ranks, and they take themselves way too seriously. Abbotts and the LNPs vision for the future is to take us back to the past, further illustrating my point, and I have yet to come across any on their side that can produce anything even remotely entertaining. Sad really But we can. Cheers Patricia, another gem. Cheers

jaycee

31/08/2012Get lost "crispy"..LOL!!

NormanK

31/08/2012Acerbic Conehead Welcome back! And thanks for another good laugh - very, very clever. I didn't anticipate Peta being called over to the cross. [[i]Insert clever quip here to prove that you can be just as witty at political satire as he is[/i]] I was a little disappointed to see that you are still having a go at Our Sophie. You do know that with her knee injury she is unlikely to ever dance [i]Swan Lake[/i] again, don't you? The world of classical dance has been deprived of one of its true [i]prima ballerinas[/i]. [[i]Remember to remove form reply prompts[/i]]

Patriciawa

31/08/2012AC, hopefully that is how Abbott's end will be played out, taken care of by his own. What a script! Tones crucified at Peta's hands, with Can-do Campbell as John the Baptist. Cameo roles of Sophie Mirabella as Salome and Leigh Sales as the Angel of Death! I've always seen Sloppy Jo as nothing more than an overweight bouncer. Welcome back!

LadyInRed

31/08/2012KATAGH Morris is a right wing nutter. That tells me he has no respect for the average punters intelect. That we would somehow allow him to rewrite history. It's insulting. 2353 It was the best 6 minutes I spent today. Let's see how far towards the Tea Party Tabbott is taking the Libs. If he wins then we can expect a further lurching to the right as he will reward all the zealots and disenfranchise the more liberal. I note that in the excellent article in the Global mail yesterday from the Member for Fraser that the Libs started going conservative under Howard and Tony is Howards boy and is making sure the Libs go more and more conservative. Control rather than free thinking. Just look at Can-do the LNP person who spoke out against him yesterday has been 'counselled'....whaaa??? These come direct off that video. What the Tea Party stands for: 1. Ideological purity 2. A fundamental belief in scriptual literalism 3. Denying science 4. Unmoved by facts 5. Undetered by new information 6. A hostile fear of progress 7. A demonisation of education 8. A need to control womens bodies 9. Severe xenophobia 10. Tribal mentality 11. Intolerance of dissent 12. Pathological hatred of US (Australian) government I believe the puchline of that video was - yes you might win the next election but at what cost if you have to forgo so much of what you believe. A few years under a government like that and the amount of damage it could do to the hearts and minds of its people is unimagineable. Keep the church out of the afairs of state - or you may as well be the Taliban. Let's hope Romney loses because he is jsut the start if he does. By the way I'm an atheist.

jaycee

31/08/2012I think the time is fast approaching when we of the Fifth Estate will have to coordinate our attacks on the LNP. by lining up in sequence, through various blog sites, article after article building on or creating a theme of dismantling the opposition policies..if and when they appear..and linking one site to the other! We perhaps ought to take a leaf fom the MSM. attack manual and relentlessly, from every source at our disposal..and that means using what we are best at : rumour, leaks from inside sources, personal bits and pieces, overheard conversation in cafes' and restraurants etc. We need to build such a negative portrait (not hard) of the LNP. that will make voting for them as distastful as ..well..kissing Tony full on the mouth!!! We have taken analysis about as far as can be done and now, perhaps ought to go on the attack!....."...and let slip the dogs of war!!"

jaycee

31/08/2012Norman K..Deprived of a prima ballerina mabey...but not the prima donna!

KHTAGH

31/08/2012Jaycee [i]distastful as ..well..kissing Tony full on the mouth!!! [/i] Thanks to this statement I just ate my lunch twice. I forgive you , but the mental imagery is grotesque.

jaycee

31/08/2012So sorry KHTAGH....anyway, now we are even as your response made me wet my trousers in laughter!!

TalkTurkey

31/08/2012Anal Jones living up to my transposition of the consonants in his given name: "Women are (I forget his wording but wtte trashing) this country" You go Girls. The Australian Government must surely include the most impressive body of women in power anywhere, and the blokes aren't half bad neither. Jones beware, you have offended a major demographic. Women, and a lot of blokes too.

42 long

31/08/2012When you look through a lot of blogs the LNP supporters are by far the nastiest. They just quote the MSM, and insult everyone. Why does Tony attract such types? Who funds the LNP also. Big Tobacco in a big way. I could Never support a party that takes that amount of money from them, in the current circumstances, (if ever). They would have to expect some good results for their "investment". Howard is giving his endorsement to the Tea Party Republicans and criticising Obama's performance. The Americams have more manners and don't do that sort of thing, but little Johnnie can't resist. He should approve them because Tony's mob have copied them. Suggesting THAT six months ago was considered stretching it a bit. Now nobody denies it. I see our new man in the NT has frozen fresh intake of people into the "public" service. That will be a few school leavers who will miss out on a job that they might have wished for. Soft target for "rightists" They wouldn't vote the right way anyhow, so what's the problem?

Ad astra reply

31/08/2012Hi Lyn Thanks for your Twitterverse, which has given me more grist for my writing mill.  I've now finished: 'Tony Abbott beware: Incitement is a dangerous game', which I will post on Sunday afternoon.

LadyInRed

31/08/201242 long I agree. Gosh if you can't get a job in the public service in NT then you are really going to be stuck, unless you join the armed forces. Incitement Ad - that will be interesting.

2353

31/08/2012LiR - I agree, incitement will be interesting, From memory, it's also illegal in the majority of cases.

Tom of Melbourne

31/08/2012The evidence mounts to the point of being incontrovertible, Jaycee is either delusional or a liar.

TalkTurkey

1/09/2012TalkTurkey‏@TalkyTurkey There is an old bigot named Jones A mouthpiece for whinges & moans A misogynist Who just needs a fist - [i]Tomorrow he gets it from Tones![/i]

TalkTurkey

1/09/2012Spring, and a Leap Year Blue Moon! Spooky, magic, delightful. A year from now, an election will be happening any week from now. That will be full term, which is the best thing anyway, and a Spring election is best too. October at a guess. Slightly warmer and less iffy than September, and by November the Abborttians - [i]if indeed that's what they are by then![/i] - would be squealing that we're putting off the election alap. But right now I say it again : - [i]Abbortt remember the Ides of September![/i] In just three weeks [i]the ground beneath you will begin to quake[/i], as it becomes [i]obvious to the public [/i]that you have lost the confidence of your bunch of losers. I'm so gleeful at the prospect I'm almost grateful to you! :) There will be those desperate to save you, those desperate to depose you, and those who haven't got a clue what to do. Turdball is in an hilarious situation, (for us), such a Costello Lite he's turning out to be! (snigger!) The great problem for the Slopposition is that there is NO ONE PERSON who can possibly command majority support once Abbortt is rolled. (I've said so for years!) [i]All[/i] are flawed, weak underlings without leadership credibility. Won't be Hockey, he's a yob. Mesma aka Julie Bishop couldn't cut it against *J*U*L*I*A*, she never has. Morriscum will be thinking hard about his chances though. That slimy creep would be my best guess in the event of a spill, but he won't be liked all that much by his Party, he's neither fun nor likeable. Imagine him getting doting support from a Credlin equivalent, as has been so indispensable to Abbortt, I don't think so. He would just be an admission that the Right's whole strategy had failed, an anxious hopeless sort of choice. I see someone mention that Abbortt is to be Anal Jones' guest today - Is that so, anyone know? I do hope so, Jones' stupid comment today about women will get all over Abbortt and right whack too. I think Jones has really done his dash now. He's filth, and contact with him will be regarded with disgust. Abbortt is on his way down bigtime now, *J*U*L*I*A* has headed him, I believe decisively by now, and that will only continue and accelerate. Abbortt's nearly waterlogged, there's no-one else very buoyant, Oh what a shame for the Liberals. What a blessing, and what a hoot, that is for us. Happy Springtime Swordsfolks. It's all Up from here. (Mostly anyway! :))

Acerbic Conehead 2

1/09/2012Apologies, Swordians, for the delay in following up, but I had to wait until the weekend to avail of a window of opportunity to chip in again. Thanks to all of you who expresed your appreciation of my piece or kindly welcomed me back: Catching up, nasking, TalkTurkey, Lyn, jaycee, LadyinRed, Gravel, Truth Seeker, NormanK and PatriciaWA. And, especially Ad astra, thank you for your kindness in allowing me to grace [i]The Political Sword[/i]. You as a writer, and your blog and contributors in general (especially Lyn's invaluable links) are a beacon of light, or, as TT said, a "Happy Springtime". But, I feel a song coming on. CanDo and Tones are like cartoon characters, no sooner do they come to a sticky end, when, once more, they are up to more mischief. Back in a while, hopefully.

NormanK

1/09/2012I got [i]Newspolled[/i] yesterday. Now I can honestly say that I am participating in our democracy. :D

TalkTurkey

1/09/2012Good (quiet!) morning Swordsfolks, Beautiful first day of spring here in Adelaide. Just a few of the tweets I'm screeching. I have joined the many others calling for the sacking of that maggot Anal Jones, but he whom I despise even more is the crooked Peter Reith, who almost daily insults my sensibilities on the publicly-funded ABC. Reith is facing vast condemnation from The People, and Virginia Trioli, whom I have needled in the past as [i]Triv[/i]ioli, has (in an article I forgot to link to!) shown her true and vibrant colours as a journalist with ability and a degree of moral fibre, and Reith's lies about Children Overboard have outraged her ever since. [i]As they have me![/i] She says she carried a brief around for years hoping to corner Reith, now she is calling for him to be held to account! Look if I don't come straight back with that link to Ms Trioli's article could someone else find it please? Everyone wants to read it for sure. I want to write a limerick.I can feel it coming on . . . It's the issue that's given her grief: She has longed to interrogate Reith! No more Trivioli, She's Feisty TRIOLI! It's great to see journos with teeth! I'll see if it fits on Twitter eh. Below are just a few of my last few tweets as I said. @seearjay @peartonjohnson Reith is a crook who lied the crooked Howard Government back into power. He is a traitor to Austalian democracy. 50mDi Pearton‏@peartonjohnson @seearjay So infuriating that #thedrum trots him out like he's a celebrity. He is a disgusting man who avoided any consequence for his lies. Retweeted by TalkTurkey @TalkyTurkey @Colvinius @LaTrioli Great passionate article though Ms Trioli at whom I have railed in the past. Just give us some Truth eh! @Colvinius @LaTrioli Not that Reith has a case to answer, Reith has no answer to the case. He should be behind bars. He injured Australia. There is an old bigot named Jones A mouthpiece for whinges & moans A misogynist Who just needs a fist - Tomorrow he gets it from Tones! High time Australians moved on from the likes of Bolt Jones Ackerman et al. 10hTalkTurkey‏@TalkyTurkey

Pappinbarra Fox

1/09/2012I believe that Mr Abbott would be correctly diagnosed as a sociopath despite his mates and people who know him at the surf club claiming him to be a "good bloke". But isn't this part of the pathology? To be a good bloke only in the company of people he feels comfortably superior to and therefore has nothing to fear about them while at the same time displaying all the tics, swagger and confrontation with people and ideas that he fears and feels extremely insecure about.

TalkTurkey

1/09/2012AC This is going to take all your ability to believe I just posted these words: I want to write a limerick. [i]I can feel it coming on [/i]. . . [i]Then[/i] I looked back and saw your words for the first time: as TT said, a "Happy Springtime". But, [i]I feel a song coming on.[/i] I feel a good Spring coming on! looking forward to your Spring Song!

NormanK

1/09/2012Bushfire Bill fires a shot at the parting Shaun Carney. Posted Saturday, September 1, 2012 at 9:13 am (Page 2) [quote]Congratulations on taking the package. But I wonder whether you've ever stopped to consider that writing off the political hopes and allegiances of half your readership might have had something to do with the situation Fairfax now finds itself in? If you continually tell your potential readers that they're hopes are nil and their preferred candidate is hopeless, then why would they read your stuff? Except for wonks like me, of course, but I haven't bought a newspaper for years and years.[/quote] http://blogs.crikey.com.au/pollbludger/2012/09/01/seat-of-the-week-deakin/comment-page-2/#comment-1396508 [b]Reith rewrites history to hide the shame of children overboard lie[/b] by Virginia Trioli The Brisbane Times [quote]ENOUGH, Peter Reith. It has been infuriating hearing the former defence minister repeat all this week that the Children Overboard scandal was just ''a minor incident, long finished'', just ''a small thing'', a ''bit of a stuff-up'' and that he has nothing to answer for. ********** Let's revisit the facts, as established by two independent reports into the incident - and they include deeply compromising elements that Reith clearly hopes most of us have forgotten. But I haven't.[/quote] http://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/opinion/politics/reith-rewrites-history-to-hide-the-shame-of-children-overboard-lie-20120831-255u3.html#ixzz25AsnoV4N

TalkTurkey

1/09/2012Peter Dmitrienko‏@curiouser_georg @ggreenwald The saddest, most maddening medical marijuana prosecution you'll ever read about. http://tinyurl.com/96r2txg Retweeted by Ashley Ng Hide conversation Reply

Lyn

1/09/2012Hi Ad and Everybody Don't miss reading Anne Summers a must read for everybody:- Twitterverse:- PM prepared to take all the time she needs, Ross Peake is Political Editor Tony Abbott is now demanding that Australia go to the polls in 11 months. His rationale is that the last election was held on August 21, 2010. Therefore, the government's nominal three-year term expires then and Julia Gillard should face the people. Not so fast. According to the Australian Electoral Commission, the earliest date for the next election is August 3 next year. The latest is November 30 http://www.canberratimes.com.au/opinion/pm-prepared-to-take-all-the-time-she-needs-20120831-255iv.html#ixzz25AnpAfn9 Conspiracy of silence lets persecution of PM fester, Anne Summers, IN RECENT weeks we have learnt that Julia Gillard has been the subject of ''vile and misogynist'' assaults on websites and Facebook. Even though she is a public figure, does she have any redress? What are the Prime Minister's rights at work? If she was the chief executive of a public company, she would be protected, but what are the protections for a prime minister who is being treated in ways that are unlawful under federal legislation designed to safeguard the rights of workers? http://m.smh.com.au/opinion/politics/conspiracy-of-silence-lets-persecution-of-pm-fester-20120831-255tt.html It's time to afford the PM her rights at work I think it is time to name and shame, to expose all examples of this hateful misogyny and call on decent Australians to not share it, forward it, retweet it or otherwise give it exposure. The Prime Minister, like the rest of us, is entitled to be able to do her job without harassment, bullying or sex discrimination. This is an edited extract from ''Her rights at work: the political persecution of Australia's first female prime minister'', the 2012 Human Rights and Social Justice Lecture delivered yesterday at the University of Newcastle. http://www.nationaltimes.com.au/opinion/politics/its-time-to-afford-the-pm-her-rights-at-work-20120831-2556m.html Prima donnas and the PMs, Peter Hartcher The public, after all, heard all the stories yet still rate Rudd as preferred Labor leader by a factor of two to one. Only the caucus is having grave difficulty in getting over its own confected outrage. In the months ahead, the caucus will allow the polls to dictate whether it's time http://www.smh.com.au/opinion/politics/prima-donnas-and-the-pms-20120831-2567l.html#ixzz25Ax0WEPe Dafid‏ Shaun Carney departs The Age today leaves with final anti Labor cheap shot. If thats the best you can do good riddance http://www.theage.com.au/opinion/politics/down-and-out-leaks-that-fed-labors-sinking-feeling-20120831-255u1.html Mark ‏ We want more of this brilliantly straightforward political reporting...REITH THE LIAR...thanx Virginia Trioli: http://bit.ly/ODSDX5 #auspol Timothy Stuart Even conservative Spectator isn't so keen on Abbott http://www.smh.com.au/opinion/political-news/spectator-tells-abbott-to-lift-his-game-20120831-25434.htmlAdd that to the list with The Oz #auspol TheQldPublicServant‏ Premier is doing a ‘terrible job' | Rockhampton Morning Bulletin #qldpol #BecauseHeLied2Qlders http://www.themorningbulletin.com.au/story/2012/09/01/premier-is-doing-a-terrible-job-how-do-you-think-/

Michael

1/09/2012This is the caption on a photo accompanying the last article by Shaun Carney at The Age. "Shaun Carney in 1986, the year he joined The Age. He departs today and will be greatly missed." On the basis of what he writes in that article, on the way he's continually harassed the Labor government with no more than dumbed down 'doyen of political commentary' variations on Abbott's "no, no, no"... "No, he won't."

TalkTurkey

1/09/2012Thank you NormanK for posting that link, that's brilliant. Anal Jones is right: Women [i]are[/i] wrecking the squalid joint he and his filthy mates have slobbed and slouched around in for so long, and remaking an Australia of which decent men and women can be proud. I am one of many men who is proud and glad of the women in our great Labor Party, and those of great worth in all walks of life. In the end we are so much just persons. Go Girls. And Boys. Time for a big change. We're doing it. We will not let the filthy Right have Australia.

DMW

1/09/2012On the first day of spring I stumbled around the twitterverse and the blogosphere seeing multitudes of comments wishing fond and not so fond farewells to Mr Carney and other Fairfax staff. Then I stumbled across this: [b]Abbott's 7:30 interview and fantasy politics[/b] Dominic Kelly @ OnLineOpinion [i]It was about a quarter past eight on a Wednesday evening when I opened Twitter for a quick scan of recent events. As it is wont to do, Twitter (or at least the section of it devoted to Australian politics) was having a bit of a meltdown. Tony Abbott had just been interviewed by Leigh Sales on the ABC's 7:30, and from all accounts it had not gone well for the Prime Minister-in-waiting. Sales had apparently 'destroyed' Abbott ...[/i] http://www.onlineopinion.com.au/view.asp?article=14057 Some days as I stumble from repose I grab the same old pair of glasses and view the world as I have always perceived it to be. Other days I try a different pair of glasses and often get a greater understanding of the world as it is. Just sayin' :)

NormanK

1/09/2012DMW I wonder which pair of spectacles Mr Kenny donned before penning this masterpiece? [b]Julia Gillard's so-called comeback in the polls has been overstated[/b] By Chris Kenny The Australian [quote]Aside from the polls, Labor's relentless attack on Tony Abbott bore some fruit when he stumbled in an interview. The government has spent the best part of two years running an oppositionist-style campaign against Abbott - ironic given its main criticism is his negativity.[/quote] Ironic? It's ironic that Mr Kenny doesn't recognise the irony of his own ironical observation. [quote]Yet there can be little doubt about its effectiveness. The Opposition Leader's personal polling has been kept low, if not the Coalition's. Labor's spin has the [b]love media[/b] questioning Abbott's suitability and this, in turn, keeps animosities simmering within Coalition ranks.[/quote] Even if one doesn't subscribe fully to the conspiracy theory of the evil media beast plotting to overthrow this Labor government ….. love media? Really? "And with a love like that you know you should be ….." http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/opinion/gillards-so-called-comeback-in-the-polls-has-been-overstated/story-fn8qlm5e-1226462501593 I know, I know, I shouldn't be reading the Australian on the first day of Spring. I blame my mouse.

Truth Seeker

1/09/2012TT, after reading your comments on Reith, and feeling much the same I was tempted to add a verse in his honour(?) to my latest poem "Relevance Depravation Syndrome", but the bloody thing is so long already (so many to write about), that I thought I would follow your lead and go for a Limerick instead. There's a dishonest bastard named Reith who does nothing but lie through his teeth with credibility sparse he just talks through his arse and his relevance beggars belief. Jones gets a cameo in my poem. Cheers

Truth Seeker

1/09/2012That should be "Deprivation". bloody typos Cheers

NormanK

1/09/2012Jon Stewart on Clint Eastwood and Mitt Romney. Video at bottom. [b]Jon Stewart Basks In The Glory Of Clint Eastwood’s ‘Awesome’ Speech While Tearing Apart Romney’s[/b] by Josh Feldman Mediaite [quote]Jon Stewart opened The Daily Show‘s final night in Tampa by basking in the “awesome” and “hilarious” speech Clint Eastwood gave at the Republican National Convention, which consisted of the Oscar-winning actor yelling at a chair for ten minutes. But while Stewart was awe-struck over Eastwood’s speech, he was not so kind to Mitt Romney‘s acceptance speech, bashing it as being a whitewash of American history.[/quote] http://www.mediaite.com/tv/jon-stewart-basks-in-the-glory-of-clint-eastwoods-awesome-speech-while-tearing-apart-romneys/ The world needs more Jon Stewarts.

DMW

1/09/2012Hi NK, there are so hurt as a lover spurned. I guess that Mr Kenny piked up the [b]Hate Media[/b] glasses that the fine Dr Brown prescribed. May I humbly suggest that you admonish your with the words [i]Stop it you will send me blind [/i] :P

Acerbic Conehead 2

1/09/2012Queenslanders are as mad as hell and aren’t going to take it anymore. And the rest of the country is very apprehensive that Cando is but a sample of what to expect if Tones gets into the Lodge. Here’s Swannie and a group of his Queensland mates doing a cover version of the old Steely Dan number, [i]Razor Boy[/i]. The fightback against CanDo has begun! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u9g-Z5nFg5Y :- ) His slashes are singing a song of the past He sheds no tears According to him it will be the last For many years He connives to get the oldies Chucked outta caravan parks After scythings of services set in There’ll be buyers’ remorse :- ) Will he still have a song to sing After the Razor Boy comes And takes our jobs n’ things away Will he still be singing it On that cold and windy day? :- ) We know that all his cuts are so close at hand He feels all right We guess he’s only a curtain-raiser for Tones That dark bad knight We guess only horses in races are safe now No way they’ll lose He thinks his comeuppance won’t come when we lay down For him we got news! :- ) Will he still have a song to sing After the Razor Boy comes And takes our jobs n’ things away Will he still be singing it On that cold and windy day?

TalkTurkey

1/09/2012TS Depravation is the process to which Murdochracy is subjecting the world.

NormanK

1/09/2012Acerbic Conehead Thanks for that. It does the soul good to have a bit of Steely Dan rattling around in the brain box. When I saw 'Steely Dan' I though we might be in for some [i]Dirty Work[/i] but you went one better. Your scalpel-sharp new lyrics were cutting as well. :)

Truth Seeker

1/09/2012TT. I did see the double meaning, so maybe it was a Freudian slip, and either works in regards to the media, the LNP and P Reith. Cheers

DMW

1/09/2012apropos different sets of glasses Tim Soutphommasane ‏@timsout 3:21 PM - 1 Sep 12 Sad to see @ShaunCarney1 leave @theage. A strong final column: http://bit.ly/UgrdKS According to the internet's repository of all knowledge, Wikipedia, [i]Soutphommasane joined the Australian Labor Party in 1998 aged 15. He later worked on the speechwriting staff of then New South Wales Premier Bob Carr, and in late 2007 he returned from Oxford to work in the office of Kevin Rudd during that year's federal election campaign. Soutphommasane remains an ALP member.[/i] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tim_Soutphommasane Guess there are some Labor people who see things differently to other Labor people and some conservatives as well.

KHTAGH

1/09/2012G'Day Swordsters, thought you might like to hear the more intelligent side of Mr Jones, I hate to hear the prick too but it is worth the 15 seconds of your life, shows his womanly side. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oe2YkPv760U

Truth Seeker

1/09/2012KHTAGH, thanks for that, it's nice to know that he has that soft and cuddly side... THE GALLOPING KNOB. Cheers

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1/09/2012Folks I’ve now finished: [i]Tony Abbott beware! Incitement is a very dangerous game[/i], which I will post tomorrow afternoon. Grist to the mill for that piece has been the article by Anne Simmons, [i] Conspiracy of silence lets persecution of PM fester[/i], listed in Lyn’s Twitterverse, quotes from which have now been included. Thanks again Lyn for some super links. AC Thanks for your verse and the accompanying music that fits so well. We now have a fine collection of writers of verse that enriches [i]TPS[/i]. NormanK, Michael Of course BB would take a well-aimed parting shot at Shaun Carney; he’s been targeting him for years. His last piece shows why BB shoots him down so often. If that’s the best he could do for a farewell, I guess it shows why Fairfax let him go. He boils ‘Labor’s woes’ down to just two factors: changing leader and ‘pandering’ to the electorate’s ‘sense of entitlement’. It’s quite easy really, isn’t it Shaun? Peter Hartcher seems to have survived the Fairfax scythe, but when I read his piece today, I wondered why. He is still on the ‘Why did they ever get rid of Rudd’ bandwagon. His opening gambit: [i]” Labor cabinets have tolerated the behaviour of egotistic and temperamental leaders in the past. Why not now?”[/i] is all you need to read to get his drift that Labor should have tolerated Rudd’s egoism and temper, which Hartcher insists [i]"…were trivial in the scheme of things…”[/i] That’s why Hartcher has an aversion to Julia Gillard, which came out so strongly in his book [i]The Sweet Spot[/i]. Fairfax should get a spellchecker to catch words like ‘egosim’, but as it was near the end, I guess the spellchecker was tired. Josh Feldman’s article in [i]Mediaite[/i] was an interesting appraisal of the Republican Convention speeches last night. Chris Kenny’s article is a classic example of how any piece of good news for Labor can be negated with a stroke of an adversarial pen. No one does it better than Kenny. DMW I do like your new Gravatar. Truth Seeker, TT What delightful limericks! I like limericks – let’s have more! Pappinbarra Fox Your Abbott diagnosis might be correct. KHTAGH That’s our Alan! No wonder he’s so aggressive to Julia with all that dust up his nose!

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1/09/2012Folks We're out for the evening. Back tomorrow after [i]Insiders[/i].

Acerbic Conehead 2

1/09/2012Thanks NormanK, glad you liked it. I'm sure you could do a job on [i]Dirty Work[/i]. Just imagine (I'm being naive, I know) that maybe even CanDo is horrified at Tones' rise to power.

2353

1/09/2012AC - I suspect you are right, Newman is horrified. You see, someone of Newman's ego couldn't believe that someone else could win - after all he became Lord Mayor (and cut and ran after the flood), Premier (and form would suggest he will cut and run again). If Abbott wins - Newman has no time to become Federal Leader of the LNP without stepping foot in Parliament.

2353

1/09/2012AC - forgot to mention - I loved the contribution that opened this thread.

NormanK

1/09/2012Since one of the more popular memes doing the rounds involves Liberal Premiers trying to sabotage the federal budget by dumping tens of thousands of public servants on to the dole queue, I have no trouble imaging Campbell Newman crooning this in Tony's ear. While doing something manly, of course. Anyway, it's a good excuse to play some 70's music. Steely Dan's [i]Dirty Work[/i] http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IVBAnxmXd_k&feature=player_detailpage Julia's hard She just won't lie down and die So you need yourself somebody Who can cause the cow to cry When you need a bit of frackin' Help to bring the BISONs down That's the time you'll find me sackin' In the bush and in the town I'm prepared to do your dirty work Oh yeah Just the man to do your dirty work For sure I'm prepared to do you dirty work Oh yeah I'm your beater Get the bastards on the wing I can make their budget wobbley And they won't suspect a thing Like Clive Palmer in a courtroom I've got capital to burn I can start terrible trouble Still the punters never learn I'm prepared to do your dirty work Oh yeah Just the man to do your dirty work For sure I'm prepared to do you dirty work Oh yeah

TalkTurkey

2/09/2012[b]CQ CQ ? CQ CQ?[/b] Yous all gone to the Moon while it was blue? So is the sky here in Adelaide. Beautiful. I 'm glad you like limericks Ad: I've loved 'em since I was a lad; A fine form for funning on, For pinning a pun upon, (But [i]penning[/i] 'em can drive you mad.) And as you can see they aren't all real flash. But I have written quite a lot, and not always funny/silly, limericks can be satisfying bite-size bits of information, clear and precise. Google the word [b]ozzigami[/b], it takes you to my website (that I rarely use), click on FUN VERSE at the top, scroll down to Klokan the Blue Kangaroo, the [i]first half [/i]of her saga, some of which is deliberately life-&-death educational about saving orphaned baby native fauna, is all in limerick form. Oddly enough Klokan insisted that when she took her world tour the limerick form should be replaced by ordinary heroic couplets. (There is no accounting for the minds of female Kangaroos. They're [i]flighty[/i]. But Klokan is delightful.) Actually it makes my blood boil to realize that I'm spending nearly all my life turning my words to slings and arrows (as indeed are so many of us) when Hell I can write lovely stuff when I am less confronted by evil and malevolence. Just one more thing I hold against these creeps. Our best creative energies wasted on the likes of Pyne and Reith and Jones. So since we must do it, let's do it good Swordsfolks. We must kill the snake, not scotch it, for the sake of the best creative energies of future generations. But do read my lovely Klokan pome Comrades, you'll know me the better for looking at that page.

Acerbic Conehead 2

2/09/20122353, I agree, CanDo looks like he has cooked his goose. And I much appreciate the kind words you have bestowed on the thread. NormanK, Love [i]Dirty Work[/i] - great singalong number and terrific alternative lyrics provided by you. And yes, CanDo had plenty of capital to burn, but he seems to have wasted quite a lot, and given folks an insight into what's in store if Tones gets into the Lodge. And [i]Happy Fathers Day[/i] to all those concerned. Have a great one.

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2/09/2012Folks To whom it may concern - [b]Happy Fathers’ Day[/b]. This morning’s [i]Insiders[/i] was a good illustration of the value of a balanced panel – Laura Tingle, Dennis Atkins and Brian Toohey. We had sensible, non-partisan comment on several contemporary political issues. If only it could be like that every week!

Lyn

2/09/2012Hi Ad and Everybody Note Paul Daley in the age has included the following excerpt, interesting I thought. There is not much of interest to post for you today. Insiders fairly mundane. Twitter has been suffering a hurricane regarding the Alan Jones latest insults. Paul Daley The Age Last week Paul Daley's column asserted that Julia Gillard faced ''legitimate questions'' regarding her employment with Slater & Gordon. This was his view before the her long news conference on August 23. However, due to a production error, the column failed to reflect his reconsidered view that Ms Gillard had answered the relevant questions at the news conference. http://www.theage.com.au/opinion/politics/rudd-steps-up-and-spells-it-out-20120901-2571c.html#ixzz25Fu8kI5d Still, it wasn't such a great week for women Alan Jones let rip with a tirade on 2GB against PM Julia Gillard. This time it was about her promise of additional aid to help get more women in the Pacific into parliament and other decision-making positions. http://www.smh.com.au/opinion/society-and-culture/still-it-wasnt-such-a-great-week-for-women-20120901-25789.html#ixzz25FwZUpG3 Des Egan‏s Surprised no big companies.Thought Telstra sponsored the idiot? "@Qldaah:2GB sponsors to boycott http://ow.ly/doVvI #destroyingthejoint Stephen Koukoulas‏ Milne presents a wonderful reason why both ALP & Coalition should put Greens last #insiders Joel Fitzgibbon‏ The Greens, all spin and no responsibility! #insiders Werner & Ursula‏ Abbott and Hockey helping and agreeing with Newman!!! Australia you have been warned! Listen. #Insiders Agnes Mack‏ #insiders Laura: I think Alan Jones is starting to lose it a bit...chaff big getting bigger, PM, Greens ... Stephen clements‏ Bloody Hell - Gillard now criticised for returning to Aust on hearing of soldiers' deaths :-( #insiders Jack Sumner‏ #insiders Cassidy's putrescent obsession with Kevin Rudd recently held in check but surfaced again today - Barry keep taking the pills

LadyInRed

2/09/2012DMW Thanks for that link to opinion online. It had me thinking. We do hear with our biased ears. I think he had an interesting point to make, people who want to see the best in Abbott will have heard a completely different interview. But for goodness sake you expect the average person who is a staunch Liberal or Labor supporter to do that. Our issue has always been that the MSM is supposed to as far as possible NOT be biased. Murdoch, Jones and MSM is after the swinging voter not the person who is totally set on one candidate over the other. And that is where I think is acticle is flawed, or biased, or both no matter if it was written by a PHD holder. We just want the truth to be reported, thats why the twitterverse all cheered. We just want the questions to be asked so that the swinging voter makes an informed choice. Let's face it we all know it is the swinging voters heart we want. We want them to know who they are voting for, and at present the Murdoch painting of TAbbott is skewed. Insiders caught him out again, ths time distancing himself fromt he Golden Years of Howard. Which is it Tone's back to the Howard years or not - you can't have a two way bet.

Truth Seeker

2/09/2012TT. I went to your site and read your poem about Klokan stie looks good, loved your poem, and I agree that it is a shame that time and talent are taken up with such oxygen wasters, but our country needs us as a future under Abbortt is unthinkable. We must prevail! Happy fathers day to all Cheers

42 long

2/09/2012Tony is very selective with the source of his facts. That's why he has to talk really slow. He has to work out which line to run depending on the situation, at the time and the audience. The internet will increasingly point out this opportunism and analyists will have plenty of material to sift through. Fact is something we don't get much of from the LNP these days. The impression is good enough. Lets take it a bit further. You are being misled. It's all a pile of porkies. Smoke and mirriors. They are champions at it.. Tony is a TOP polititian. TOPS spin don't they? Lying is a serious matter and we overlook it too often depending on whether it benefits us or not. We should not accept it regardless. I don't mean the orchestrated carbon tax thing either. At the moment Gillard has more support as a prime minister, than Abbott, despite the rabid campaign against her. Would have the support of a real majority of her parliamentary party, whereas Tony is rapidly becomming a "liability" for the future of the LNP. He needed a "checkmate" in a couple of quick moves and it didn't happen, so where to now? He only got in by one vote ( including Slipper's), back then when he looked like a rising star. Insiders was even, but not deep, Perhaps that is what viewers want but we do need a serious commentry on Australian politics. Laura is getting my tick of approval for mature sensible contribution, these days.

NormanK

2/09/2012[b]Internal division could kill LNP[/b] By Adam Carroll The Gympie Times [quote]THE greatest threat to Queensland Premier Campbell Newman's grip on power is likely to come from within his own party, according to Griffith University academic Dr Paul Williams. ********** Interestingly, Dr Williams said there were fears within Coalition ranks that the decline in popularity of Liberal premiers would create headaches federally.[/quote] http://www.gympietimes.com.au/story/2012/09/01/internal-division-could-kill-lnp/

MWS

2/09/2012I don't usually link to off-topic articles, but I found this one to scary to ignore: http://www.rollingstone.com/politics/news/greed-and-debt-the-true-story-of-mitt-romney-and-bain-capital-20120829

KHTAGH

2/09/2012MWS I agree this is the type of thing that Rupert Murdoch is behind, bury the truth, spread the lies. All for self gain. I'd love for the CIA or FBI come knocking on his door someday for manipulation of the truth or buying info like he did in the UK.

Patriciawa

2/09/2012I loved Klokan's story, TT. That would make a beautiful children's book. Truth Teller will now know why we defer to you as our master of rhyme. Who could beat this? [i]So by now Klokan’s fame has spread far and wide: All Europeans love her, and to show her their pride, They found a great way to heap tribute upon her: Now all Europe’s currency’s named in her honour! * * * Now when you go to Europe, as I hope that you may It won’t be in Dollars or Pounds that you pay: In restaurants and shops, and in all travel bureaux, Everything’s value is measured in Euros! [/i]

Patriciawa

2/09/2012Forgive me, Truth Seeker! I am sure you are both, anyway!

Gravel

2/09/2012Happy Father's Day to all our Dads and Grandpa's here. Enjoy your delightful families today and everyday.

KHTAGH

2/09/2012I know you have probably finished your next article Ad but this is a good read & she has some good definitions in there too. http://katgallow.blogspot.com.au/2012/09/feelings-are-still-running-high-about.html

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2/09/2012Folks I’ve just posted [i]Tony Abbott beware! Incitement is a very dangerous game[/i]. Enjoy. http://www.thepoliticalsword.com Special thanks to you Lyn for supplying many of the links in this piece.

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2/09/2012KHTAGH That was an interesting article and as you will see consistent with what I'm saying in the piece I've just posted. Thank you.

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2/09/2012Hi Lyn Thanks for the Twitterverse. I agree with the comment about criticizing Julia Gillard for returning to Australia early because of the deaths of our soldiers in Afghanistan, that Brian Toohey made on [i]Insiders[/i]. I thought to myself, what would the News Limited press have said if she had stayed on an exotic Pacific island in the face of these deaths. She did the right thing. TT I liked your limerick about limericks. Your Klokan pome is very clever. NormanK [i]The Gympie Times[/i] article was very informative. Tony Abbott ought to worried.

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2/09/2012Good summary AD AS. It is a disgrace that there was ever a need to write it but there was. Why is it that the "mad" right has so many NASTY traits? Why isn't it possible to run their affairs without relying on the effect of what attracts arguably the worst sentiments out there. Can't remember the "older" Liberals behaving like this. Is it now the party of greed and privilege, who want to achieve power to perpetuate their aim of keeping labor out of office and punishing anyone who might agree with a "fair society" existing, without putting profit before anything else.. This bunch of rabid right ( approaching fascist) people could now never look in the mirror and pretend that they would govern for all Australians, ( but I bet they will SAY it) There is nothing in their attitude that would indicate it. Every move of the new LNP state governments has behaved similarly and attacked public servants, public education universities TAFE rents subsidies.etc.. Always benefits for the lower income people at a time when the gap between the well-off and the poor is widening. Push wages down and remove benefits in existing awards.. Another common call is to pay less tax. (mainly in the higher brackets where their mates are) How can a Country run without tax? We are NOT a high level taxed country but the LNP will never admit that. IF they get in they will set things up so the state governments will request an increase in the GST to 20% and/or remove the exemption on food etc, that was negotiated by the democrats. . This of course hurts people who have saved and low income earners who have to spend ALL of their available money just to live. Tony thinks by giving women their actual salaries during paid parental leave, he will convince women to vote for him. That will favour women on high incomes and he just HAD to TRUMP The ALP's history making allowance, when HE probably would not have not even had ANY paid leave at all.

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2/09/201242 long Tony abbott may be surprised at the antipathy towards him out there!

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