Is Australia its own Worst Enemy?
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Too true, Cooda.
Just swap 'Slim Shady' for Julia and Eminem's got it right...
Cause I'm Slim Shady, yes I'm the real Shady
All you other Slim Shadys are just imitating
So won't the real Slim Shady please stand up,
please stand up, please stand up?
The only one we haven't seen is Competent Julia. Being a massive non-fan of Rudd, when the takeover happened that's the one I was hoping to see, but she hasn't even been spotted in the wild so far.
Just swap 'Slim Shady' for Julia and Eminem's got it right...
Cause I'm Slim Shady, yes I'm the real Shady
All you other Slim Shadys are just imitating
So won't the real Slim Shady please stand up,
please stand up, please stand up?
The only one we haven't seen is Competent Julia. Being a massive non-fan of Rudd, when the takeover happened that's the one I was hoping to see, but she hasn't even been spotted in the wild so far.
Just worked out why the sudden spate of photo ops in childcare centres.
Julia and Kevvie are campaigning with the kids to get labor up at the first available election post the much anticipated 2013 shellacking.
The kids should be exercising their democratic rights in about 2025.
They have to win over the kids, 'cos no-one older is listening anymore.
Julia and Kevvie are campaigning with the kids to get labor up at the first available election post the much anticipated 2013 shellacking.
The kids should be exercising their democratic rights in about 2025.
They have to win over the kids, 'cos no-one older is listening anymore.
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It's interesting to see how our leadership oaths have changed.
Rudd. Sworn oath.
‘I, Kevin Michael Rudd, do swear that I will well and truly serve the Commonwealth of Australia, her land and her people, in the office of the prime minister, so help me God.’
Gillard. Affirmation.
"I, Julia Eileen Gillard, do solemnly and sincerely affirm and declare that I will loyally serve the Commonwealth of Australia in the office of prime minister."
And as a comparison;
Howard sworn oath.
I, John Winston Howard, do swear that I will well and truly serve the people of Australia, in the Office of Prime Minister, and that I will be faithful and bear true allegiance to Her Majesty, Queen Elizabeth II, so help me God.
Rudd. Sworn oath.
‘I, Kevin Michael Rudd, do swear that I will well and truly serve the Commonwealth of Australia, her land and her people, in the office of the prime minister, so help me God.’
Gillard. Affirmation.
"I, Julia Eileen Gillard, do solemnly and sincerely affirm and declare that I will loyally serve the Commonwealth of Australia in the office of prime minister."
And as a comparison;
Howard sworn oath.
I, John Winston Howard, do swear that I will well and truly serve the people of Australia, in the Office of Prime Minister, and that I will be faithful and bear true allegiance to Her Majesty, Queen Elizabeth II, so help me God.
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'The book of Rudd'
Interesting pictures you can see in the open book Ruddy is holding. The animals depicted can be likened to our politicians:
Scenario 1 - 'Animals (politicians) of varying stature all following each other head to ass, looking for the next trough to stick their noses in. Or,
Scenario 2 - 'Animals (politicians) following each other head to ass, looking to mount the animal (business leader) in front and ensure their species survives. Or,
Scenario 3 - 'Animals (politicians) looking for some sort of 'Noah's Ark' type refuge to hide in so as to make sure they are not destroyed in the upcoming elections.
Scenario 1 - 'Animals (politicians) of varying stature all following each other head to ass, looking for the next trough to stick their noses in. Or,
Scenario 2 - 'Animals (politicians) following each other head to ass, looking to mount the animal (business leader) in front and ensure their species survives. Or,
Scenario 3 - 'Animals (politicians) looking for some sort of 'Noah's Ark' type refuge to hide in so as to make sure they are not destroyed in the upcoming elections.
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If this
Inside China - Washington Times
gets beyond the verbal stage, it will make the things we're currently bitching and moaning about fade into insignificance.
Am I the only one who is NOT filled with confidence at the thought of either Julia Gillard or Kevin Rudd as a war leader?
The mind boggles at the very idea...
Then we'd have "Boadicea Julia" to add to our list of 'new' Julias. Oh... my... God...!
Inside China - Washington Times
gets beyond the verbal stage, it will make the things we're currently bitching and moaning about fade into insignificance.
Am I the only one who is NOT filled with confidence at the thought of either Julia Gillard or Kevin Rudd as a war leader?
The mind boggles at the very idea...
Then we'd have "Boadicea Julia" to add to our list of 'new' Julias. Oh... my... God...!
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Swan budgetary announcement 30SEP2011.
$47.7 billion deficit as opposed to the budgeted $49 billion made possible by not spending as much as anticipated. Whacko!
Most all Labor promises don't eventuate until after 2013 so where are the savings? (or not so bad losses).
Possibly they pulled out of doomed projects that they are already found guilty of, and see no point continuing. Green Loans, cash for clunkers, free insulation, solar HWS, BER for example?
Had they grabbed the CASA budget they would probably be in surplus now.
Had they grabbed the CASA budget plus didn't bother with selective R&D grants to environmental scientists who said what the wanted, the Libs would be in deep trouble next election.
Had they done all of the above and looked after Australians instead of sending cash overseas in foreign aid, K Rudd would be happily extinct in a UN post somewhere in the Golan Heights and Jules would be celebrating her half century on this planet with people who genuinely like her.
But the science is in.
$47.7 billion deficit as opposed to the budgeted $49 billion made possible by not spending as much as anticipated. Whacko!
Most all Labor promises don't eventuate until after 2013 so where are the savings? (or not so bad losses).
Possibly they pulled out of doomed projects that they are already found guilty of, and see no point continuing. Green Loans, cash for clunkers, free insulation, solar HWS, BER for example?
Had they grabbed the CASA budget they would probably be in surplus now.
Had they grabbed the CASA budget plus didn't bother with selective R&D grants to environmental scientists who said what the wanted, the Libs would be in deep trouble next election.
Had they done all of the above and looked after Australians instead of sending cash overseas in foreign aid, K Rudd would be happily extinct in a UN post somewhere in the Golan Heights and Jules would be celebrating her half century on this planet with people who genuinely like her.
But the science is in.
.
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I'd be embarrassed to be a voter in Krudd's electorate and to be told that, unlike voters in every other electorate in Queensland, only the voters in that electorate are so thick as to vote a Labor candidate back in.
Queensland has the doubtful place in history as the first place in the world to vote in a Labo(u)r Government. They have the chance in 2013 (and hopefully earlier) to not vote in one solitary Labor member of parliament. If there's one Labor Member of Parliament who richly deserves to be voted out of office - far moreso than every other Queensland Labor MP - it's Kevin Rudd.
Queensland has the doubtful place in history as the first place in the world to vote in a Labo(u)r Government. They have the chance in 2013 (and hopefully earlier) to not vote in one solitary Labor member of parliament. If there's one Labor Member of Parliament who richly deserves to be voted out of office - far moreso than every other Queensland Labor MP - it's Kevin Rudd.
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If you're talking about The Courier Mail (aka The Kevvy Bugle) I'd personally be dubious about anything except the comics and the TV Guide. Even that usually has a few errors 
.
There's no question that Rudd has a solid support base in Griffith and generally throughout SEQ, but it's not universal, and took a big whack after his previous PMly antics. Bligh's motley crew haven't helped the Labor brand either.
The Student Union Labor types (I call 'em UniLabor, dunno if it's original) who are running the show at the moment are really failing to engage grass roots supporters. They're not actually listening to any grass roots supporters so the next elections (state and federal) will probably come as a Roolly Huge Shock, but until they figure out that a lot of ordinary voters think UniLabor are living in an imitation-ivory tower, the polls aren't going to get any prettier.
They all need to get out more. Half hour photo shoots at construction sites ( where they're flanked by flunkies) doesn't really cut it.
.There's no question that Rudd has a solid support base in Griffith and generally throughout SEQ, but it's not universal, and took a big whack after his previous PMly antics. Bligh's motley crew haven't helped the Labor brand either.
The Student Union Labor types (I call 'em UniLabor, dunno if it's original) who are running the show at the moment are really failing to engage grass roots supporters. They're not actually listening to any grass roots supporters so the next elections (state and federal) will probably come as a Roolly Huge Shock, but until they figure out that a lot of ordinary voters think UniLabor are living in an imitation-ivory tower, the polls aren't going to get any prettier.
They all need to get out more. Half hour photo shoots at construction sites ( where they're flanked by flunkies) doesn't really cut it.
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I, John Winston Howard, do swear that I will well and truly serve the people of Australia, in the Office of Prime Minister, and that I will be faithful and bear true allegiance to Her Majesty, Queen Elizabeth II, so help me God. Well thank god you're on the case Frank.Until now I wasn't aware that we had these godless heathens at the top of government. I will sleep better now knowing that you are on the case rooting out heretics. But.seriously,do you ever wake up at night and think,'gee I'm a bit of a brainless numbnuts ,aren't I?'
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Talking about statements by brainless numb nuts why don't we discuss how much a ton of carbon or anything for that matter weighs?
We could always ask Tony Abbott but then he seems to be more than a little confused on this issue or anything which requires thinking.
As Blanik3 has alluded to perhaps someone can explain exactly the source of angst in the alleged oath of office.
Was it the deleted reference to her Majesty Queen Elizabeth or is it the religious aspect that is apparently so worrying to the identity and security of our country.
Can we expect an imminent attack from HM military forces or perhaps is the author concerned that we will incur the wrath of God for this supposed slur by omission.
We could always ask Tony Abbott but then he seems to be more than a little confused on this issue or anything which requires thinking.
As Blanik3 has alluded to perhaps someone can explain exactly the source of angst in the alleged oath of office.
Was it the deleted reference to her Majesty Queen Elizabeth or is it the religious aspect that is apparently so worrying to the identity and security of our country.
Can we expect an imminent attack from HM military forces or perhaps is the author concerned that we will incur the wrath of God for this supposed slur by omission.
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They all need to get out more. Half hour photo shoots at construction sites ( where they're flanked by flunkies) doesn't really cut it.
Especially when you are later sprung having a quiet perve down the lady manager's top.
PM Material 
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I'm no Abbott fan. I also think the way Hockey behaved in Parliament wrt Swann's award was petty and childish.
However, that doesn't excuse the ALP's poor performance. They consistently hand Abbott free kicks that make him look shinier then he is. That's their fault, not his.
However, that doesn't excuse the ALP's poor performance. They consistently hand Abbott free kicks that make him look shinier then he is. That's their fault, not his.
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Well I must confess that I would be as guilty as Tony,after all,there you are on the endless road trip spruiking the usual nonsense of politics regardless of gender;well I for one would be glad of a surplus to be looking at.Oh.by the way Frank.I'm sure Tony was thinking of King and country as he was staring down the Khyber Pass.Not that I would expect you to understand that Frank-humour being a little missing in your DNA
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I agree that both sides of the political fence do not deserve any support at this point.Neither leader has the ability to enthuse or inspire the rest of us to feel as though we are in good hands.
As the well known saying goes 'A drovers dog' would win an election for the Libs at the moment so that would mean that the Libs could win with even Tony Abbott at the helm and for me that is a very chilling and unnerving prospect.
To my way of thinking Tony Abbott represents a very dangerous way forward for us.He represents a very narrow and conservative viewpoint that is being questioned by a number of people including others in the Liberal party.
This from the Age.
It is a worry when a potential Prime Minister allows these sort of photo opportunities.
This headline sums up both photos for Tony Abbott.
Picture clear for Abbott on renewables target
Then this one will give a lot of ammunition to anti Abbott supporters who question his views on women and especially those who view Tony Abbott as a religious ideologue.
The problem with Labor is that they give the Liberals so many free kicks that people are not doing enough to question what direction Tony Abbott would take Australia in.
My main concern is that Tony Abbott does not know either.
As the well known saying goes 'A drovers dog' would win an election for the Libs at the moment so that would mean that the Libs could win with even Tony Abbott at the helm and for me that is a very chilling and unnerving prospect.
To my way of thinking Tony Abbott represents a very dangerous way forward for us.He represents a very narrow and conservative viewpoint that is being questioned by a number of people including others in the Liberal party.
This from the Age.
Peter Costello, who argued publicly what some of Abbott's colleagues will say privately - that the instinctive populism of the Opposition Leader, coupled with what Costello sees as his deeply ingrained Catholic collectivist instincts on economic policy, is a significant departure from the Howard-Costello project, where free-markets ruled and the new protectionism inspired by the more searing experiences of the global financial crisis was but distant, deeply retrograde, thunder.
The point of Costello's column in The Age was to argue that Abbott's leadership was precipitating a profound shift in the Coalition's economic thinking: voices that had been in the minority during the Howard government were now in the ascendancy. Had anyone noticed that Nationals senator Barnaby Joyce's folksy sermonising against the excesses of neo-liberalism was being enabled through his apparent freedom to declaim across portfolios without check from the leadership?
Costello thought he might do some reporting, what we in the trade might call a news analysis, and his disapproval was profound.
Catholic thinking was best left to theology, not economics, he suggested. The sectarian tone of his critique could have obscured a more simple point for a lot of readers. Cut through Costello's waspish aversion to Catholic collectivism and you see the nub - Abbott is a very different style of Liberal thinker, and his government would be of a different genus to the one Australians saw between 1996 and 2007. The sharpness of the column suggests Costello feels that this profound shift in the Coalition policy core is being insufficiently chronicled, let alone interrogated.
The point of Costello's column in The Age was to argue that Abbott's leadership was precipitating a profound shift in the Coalition's economic thinking: voices that had been in the minority during the Howard government were now in the ascendancy. Had anyone noticed that Nationals senator Barnaby Joyce's folksy sermonising against the excesses of neo-liberalism was being enabled through his apparent freedom to declaim across portfolios without check from the leadership?
Costello thought he might do some reporting, what we in the trade might call a news analysis, and his disapproval was profound.
Catholic thinking was best left to theology, not economics, he suggested. The sectarian tone of his critique could have obscured a more simple point for a lot of readers. Cut through Costello's waspish aversion to Catholic collectivism and you see the nub - Abbott is a very different style of Liberal thinker, and his government would be of a different genus to the one Australians saw between 1996 and 2007. The sharpness of the column suggests Costello feels that this profound shift in the Coalition policy core is being insufficiently chronicled, let alone interrogated.
This headline sums up both photos for Tony Abbott.
Picture clear for Abbott on renewables target
Then this one will give a lot of ammunition to anti Abbott supporters who question his views on women and especially those who view Tony Abbott as a religious ideologue.
The problem with Labor is that they give the Liberals so many free kicks that people are not doing enough to question what direction Tony Abbott would take Australia in.
My main concern is that Tony Abbott does not know either.
A bit of Paul Kelly might be instructive here
The two great myths are Abbott as extremist and Abbott as ideologue. The Australian public shuns such traits and Abbott’s poll ratings affirm this is not how the public sees him. The effort to paint Abbott as extremist and ideologue, once Labor’s central strategy, has failed so far.
Labor, however, cannot give up. Undermined by its own dysfunction, it will keep playing the Abbott card because it has few other options and is convinced he is a destructive force unfit to become prime minister. Labor’s last hope remains a bet against Abbott’s political character.
Labor, however, cannot give up. Undermined by its own dysfunction, it will keep playing the Abbott card because it has few other options and is convinced he is a destructive force unfit to become prime minister. Labor’s last hope remains a bet against Abbott’s political character.