Oz election thread #3 - Rudd's Labour

msolga wrote:

You know (apart from feeling quite pissed of with him for his completely inappropriate comments in parliament yesterday), I feel almost sorry for poor old Brendan, trying to walk some sort of middle path between the Lib conservatives (who still haven't realized that Howard's way is well & truly kaput with the electorate) & the Lib moderates/progressives, who want to move the party into the future. Liberal unity simply isn't achievable until the Tuckeys & Minchins, etc, vanish. And in the process of trying to achieve the unachievable poor ol Brendan doing himself a lot of harm. Any bets on how long he'll last? I reckon he'll be gone by the end of this year & will be replaced by you know who.

Frickin' tuckey. 'The apology changes nothing, little girls are still being raped' , what a twat, status quo is not an option, it has comprehensively failed, and as Kev said, this is a call to action, not an action of itself. I still love his management approach when he states clear measurable goals that he wants to achieve within definitive time periods. He knows the power of stating clearly an aim and what that does to the entire organisation. JFK and 'ten years to get a man on the moon' territory. Let's hope it's not 'by 1990 no child will be living in poverty'.

Mrs Hinge saw a grab of a late 50s aussie housewife (if appearances, accent and vocab can be trusted) commenting on the apology 'it's about time' - and said that Brendan would shiver to see someone, seemingly part of the constituency he was reaching out to by being an apologist for the stealing, so utterly against the position he took.

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I mean, how can Brendan Nelson move the Libs forward when he's saddled with this lot (AND the mad monk, who declared Nelson's speech a great success on ABC radio this morning! Laughing

)? They are totally out of step with the entire nation on the "Sorry" issue & seem to think that JH is still running the show!:

"..... Missing altogether was the prime minister who could never bring himself to say sorry, John Howard, and his silent legacy was to prove a curse this day to his successor, Brendan Nelson.

As Nelson rose to offer his apology to the Stolen Generations on behalf of his Opposition, the signs were already abroad that all was not roses. West Australian Liberal Wilson Tuckey had made great show of reciting louder than anyone the Lord's Prayer at the beginning of the parliamentary session, and then had marched out of the chamber. He would have nothing to do with any apology. Nor would fellow West Australian Don Randall, who was absent, and Victorian Sophie Mirabella, also missing. Others shuffled paper and read throughout Rudd's speech, and Peter Costello tapped on a laptop computer.

But as Nelson moved into his speech, detailing the policies that led to children being removed from their families, he declared that "our generation does not own these actions, not should it feel guilt for what was done in many, but not all cases, with the best of intentions". ....."

http://www.theage.com.au/news/national/australias-new-beginning/2008/02/13/1202760398783.html?page=fullpage#contentSwap1

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hingehead wrote:

....as Kev said, this is a call to action, not an action of itself. I still love his management approach when he states clear measurable goals that he wants to achieve within definitive time periods. He knows the power of stating clearly an aim and what that does to the entire organisation. JFK and 'ten years to get a man on the moon' territory. Let's hope it's not 'by 1990 no child will be living in poverty'.

Yeah, but he's going to run Julia into the ground, though. :wink:

"Oh BTW, Julia, before next Monday's cabinet meeting, could you just add a few new sections on aboriginal pre-schools to the education revolution manifesto?" :wink:

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For hinge. :wink:

http://www.theage.com.au/ffximage/2008/02/13/sorry13_gallery__530x400.jpg

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Exactly!:

http://www.theage.com.au/ffximage/2008/02/13/wbTOONtandberg1402_gallery__567x400.jpg

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http://www.smh.com.au/ffximage/2008/02/13/1402_cartoon_gallery__600x354,0.jpg

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msolga wrote:

Yeah, but he's going to run Julia into the ground, though. :wink:

"Oh BTW, Julia, before next Monday's cabinet meeting, could you just add a few new sections on aboriginal pre-schools to the education revolution manifesto?" :wink:

I think Jenny Macklin will be running with her - last night on 7.30 she was saying they'll be opening up a further 1000 ECE places at university and looking at funding half the students' fees. I have no idea how they are going to convince them to work in remote communities.

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http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/common/imagedata/0,,5888012,00.jpg

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hingehead wrote:

msolga wrote:

Yeah, but he's going to run Julia into the ground, though. :wink:

"Oh BTW, Julia, before next Monday's cabinet meeting, could you just add a few new sections on aboriginal pre-schools to the education revolution manifesto?" :wink:

I think Jenny Macklin will be running with her - last night on 7.30 she was saying they'll be opening up a further 1000 ECE places at university and looking at funding half the students' fees. I have no idea how they are going to convince them to work in remote communities.

That's certainly a tough ask. I wonder how she'll go about it?
But Kevin's will must be done! :wink:

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Nice try, Tony Abbott! Laughing

:

Howard best PM for Aborigines: Abbott
February 14, 2008 - 11:05AM/SMH

John Howard did more for indigenous people than any other prime minister, opposition frontbencher Tony Abbott says.

Mr Howard was the only living former prime minister absent from yesterday's parliamentary apology to Australia's indigenous peoples.

He refused to say sorry to the stolen generations while in office between 1996 and 2007.

Mr Rudd described all his predecessors, except Mr Howard, as great friends of the Aboriginal people.

Mr Abbott, the opposition's indigenous affairs spokesman, said it was appropriate for Mr Howard to be taking some time off rather than witness the apology.

"He was a great prime minister, a great leader and he changed Australia dramatically for the better," Mr Abbott told reporters in Canberra.

"I believe no Australian prime minister has done more for Aboriginal people, in practical terms, than John Howard.

"After 11-and-a-half very difficult years as prime minister, I think the guy's entitled to a bit of time out."

AAP

http://www.smh.com.au/news/national/howard-best-pm-for-aborigines-abbott/2008/02/14/1202760448673.html

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Well that pretty much means Turnbull is the only possible leader out of the remnants. Poor Monk thinks that they were able to get away with it for so long because they were actually providing value.

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hingehead wrote:

Well that pretty much means Turnbull is the only possible leader out of the remnants. Poor Monk thinks that they were able to get away with it for so long because they were actually providing value.

Yep .... and Turnbull won't be nearly so "consensual" a leader as poor ol hapless Brendan.

The Mad Monk is on an entirely different planet to the rest of us .... always was! Laughing

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From today's Crikey dispach ... exactly as I'd thought. Alas, poor Brendan!:

How Rudd saved Nelson from the Coalition of the Irreconcilable

Possum Comitatus writes:

Yesterday an extraordinary thing happened, in public, in Parliament, live on national television - but it wasn't the apology to the Stolen Generation (although, that too was quite the moment). Nor was it the deranged escapades of Chris Pearce, the Member for Aston, who found the need to demonstrate his displeasure at the profound proceedings unfolding before him by ignoring events and spending his time flicking through some magazine that we can only surmise wasn't the latest edition of The Art of Healing .

No - yesterday, Kevin Rudd rescued Brendan Nelson the person from being suffocated under the polarising burden of being Brendan Nelson the Leader of the Coalition.

And a Coalition it truly is, a Coalition of the irreconcilable.

In highly charged, highly emotional moments of national importance like yesterday, moments that become headlines rather than footnotes in our national history, unity, political unity, or at the very least a well constructed façade of national unity is the necessary ingredient that makes the difference between an event being one of momentous celebration, or becoming one which leaves a potentially bitter after-taste.

With the Coalition descending back into its natural state of internal ideological conflict now that the artificial glue of government power has been removed, the chances of Brendan Nelson ever producing a response to Rudd's speech that not only reconciled the views of those like Sophie Mirabella with the views of people like Petro Georgio, but also didn't sound like a "yes, an apology BUT" moment that cuddled up to a Howard legacy that half of the Liberal Party would prefer to forget, were remote -- especially since Nelson owes his leadership to the apology naysayers.

Nelson was left delivering a camel of a speech in Parliament, forced by petty internal party politics to say things which he knew would spoil the moment, things he did not believe, things that would likely leave a bitter political legacy for the future. He knew well that it would be "these things" for which Brendan Nelson would always be remembered when those of tomorrow look back to yesterday's moment in history.

When the time came to deliver his camel, Brendan Nelson had the look of a man that, as one wit put it, "suddenly realised that he had chosen the wrong party", and would now be forever burdened as the name behind a speech whose contents were not reflective of Brendan Nelson the person, but simply reflective of the cancerous political dynamics of the Coalition itself.

The public reaction to his speech was probably not that different to how Nelson himself would have reacted were he not a Member of Parliament and found himself listening to those very words on the lawns of Canberra with thousands of others.

Just when Nelson probably thought it couldn't get any worse, when he'd accepted his inevitable fate of historical villain, Rudd delivered him a lifeline. Not only a lifeline that would forever have the effect of boosting those parts of Nelson's speech that apologised and downplayed the list of caveats that accompanied it, not only a lifeline that created a media friendly image of national political unity as the two leaders stood together on the same side of the chamber presenting a gift to the House from the representatives of the Stolen Generation, but a lifeline that saved Brendan Nelson personally from shouldering the historical burden of being the spoiler, a spoiling role that more reflected the Coalition's political dysfunction than any views that Brendan Nelson himself might have had, but could not say.

It's hardly any wonder that of all the political players involved in yesterday's proceedings, it was Nelson that looked the most emotional, particularly when he greeted the Stolen Generation members.

The three great images to come from yesterday were Rudd saying sorry, the standing ovation, and the presentation of a coolamon to the Speaker. Rudd threw Nelson a lifeline by deliberately bringing his political opponent centre stage into the symbolism of that last moment, guaranteeing that the historical narrative over yesterday's event will be far kinder to Nelson than even he thinks he probably deserved.

We can only hope Nelson learned a lesson in political leadership yesterday - partisan politics has limits. But even if he didn't, he certainly owes Rudd a beer.

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Interesting that Kevin Rudd demanded that two of his staffers (who'd done the back-turning thing in response to Nelson's speech) properly apologize to Brendan Nelson.
Brendan Nelson should now go back to a full meeting of his troops & smack down those appalling recalcitrants (mentioned in above posts) for refusing to take such an important occasion seriously. They not only insulted him by their boorish behavior, they insulted the stolen generations & all other aborigines ..... & they insulted the Australian people, who whole-heatedly wanted that apology. Just who do the nothings like Wilson Tuckey & co think they are? Howard is dead & gone. His backward politics have been rejected by the Australian people. They'd better get used to the idea or get out. Evil or Very Mad

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I'm coming around to vikorr's view .... that a heathy opposition makes for a healthy democracy.

Though I absolutely know which side I'm on! :wink:

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msolga wrote:

I'm coming around to vikorr's view .... that a heathy opposition makes for a healthy democracy.

Though I absolutely know which side I'm on! :wink:

Yeah, but oppose things that can and should reasonably be opposed - don't oppose for the sake of opposing.

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hingehead wrote:

msolga wrote:
I'm coming around to vikorr's view .... that a heathy opposition makes for a healthy democracy.

Though I absolutely know which side I'm on! :wink:

Yeah, but oppose things that can and should reasonably be opposed - don't oppose for the sake of opposing.

Well, of course, hinge. Absolutely agree!

In this particular case I'm absolutely bloody outraged by the attitude & behavior of those Liberal creeps who showed absolutely no respect for anyone or anything yesterday!

They absolutely infuriated me. There is such a thing as basic decency & they didn't seem to know about that!

I hope that clears that up? Very Happy

In the meantime, the colour of my politics hasn't changed in the slightest bit! :wink:

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Further on the importance of a viable opposition....

In my state, Victoria, we have a totally entrenched Labor government. Which, to many of us, appears to be acting not all that much differently to Jeff Kennett's Liberals Rolling Eyes

.... we also have a totally piss weak (Liberal) opposition.

We have the lowest paid teachers in Australia, nurses who have to fight tooth & nail to get anything vaguely resembling a fair deal, public transport nightmares, huge hospital waiting lists, etc, etc, etc ... & god knows, any number of other critical issues: environmental, & other (like over-development of suburbs, bay deepening, etc, etc ...)

I believe that our government gets away with as much as it does (despite a lot of public protest) because it knows there is currently no viable alternative to it. Complacency. I would never vote Liberal (I vote Green as an alternative to the ALP in Victoria), but I honestly believe that this government would be a damned sight more responsive to ordinary community concerns if it there was a real alternative that might appeal to voters. Right now there are so many disenchanted Labor voters with no real alternative. I really wish the opposition would (finally!) get it's act together to get Brumby & co back on their toes!

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I suspect Queensland is in a similar boat, although Bligh is doing a lot better than Brumby, but the QLD opposition, at least in news grabs, appears to be saying, in a whiney voice, 'but he took my ball. I want it, I want it, I want it.

I'm with you olgs - if the libnats can't provide a viable alternative give the greens a shot. What a pity Meg Lees destroyed the Democrats.

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hingehead wrote:

I'm with you olgs - if the libnats can't provide a viable alternative give the greens a shot. What a pity Meg Lees destroyed the Democrats.

Blast that damned woman's eyes! Evil or Very Mad

But, but ... we kinda know, hinge, that the Greens are nowhere big enough to bring about real changes! <sob>

It would be so refreshing, such a change, for ordinary people's concerns to matter again, that's all .... Imagine it! To be listened to! Surprised

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Oz election thread #3 - Rudd's Labour

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