A Panadol after the party
April 21, 2008, 9:18pm, 259 views
I don’t always agree with Queensland Senator Barnaby Joyce, but he was close to the mark today with his comments on the 2020 summit.
I’m reproducing his media release in full and invite comments in reply:
A Panadol after the party
And they asked the representative group if they wanted a republic; ninety-eight said yes, one said no, one abstained and the crowd went wild.
Then they all acclaimed in unison: “We, the appointed, are the true representatives of the Australian people and, while you are at it, bring back death duties.”
“The fervour and froth, which made the 2020 like an Amway conference, has to acknowledge that what they portrayed was a very strong view of one side of the political divide and if we had 10 percent of the candidates coming from GetUp then it is only fair we should have had a proportion of candidates who were formerly supporters of Pauline Hanson extolling some of their views.
“It was too good to be true and I believe in the hangover after the party, the Australian public in general, who to be honest are not over enthused about the whole process, will ask was that truly a reflection of my views and ideas, or was it a handpicked group with a predetermined outcome? But, to be balanced in my assessment, there is a strong view that people want a more streamlined process of Government.
“However, if you are going to turn down the relevance of State Government you will have to turn up the relevance of Local Government because people do not want centralisation of power because what you end up with is the channelling and sanitising of views, so apparent in the 2020 conference.
“Surprise, surprise, Mr Rudd said a majority of ideas proposed were already part of the Labor Party platform and, really, when you get to the end of the day the hoopla seemed to be in very close orbit of the esoteric.
“I am going through the papers now to see if we are going to build a new railway line, port or develop a new form of industry and I do not seem to see it. I was also looking for part of the big ideas session that told us how a predominately service based employment force in Australia is going to survive when the mining industry goose that lays the golden egg flies off.
“Even at a more mundane level, I was looking for the big idea that was going to deal with the fact that working families are struggling to pay their fuel bill.
“I suppose the working mother will get solace from the fact that the oil companies have got my cash but, yee-haa, I got the republic.”
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A nice comeback from Kalgoorlie MHR Barry Haase in today’s Kalgoorlie Miner:
“I think that’s very unfair,” he said.
“It’s unfair to Amway conferences; at least they’re productive.”
Michael
I referred to Hasse’s unending susceptibility to lapsing into cliché’s in the Kalgoorlie Miner’s Blog. Look, I know that I am no bloody genius: I have only a basic understanding of the Political system, but why do Kalgoorlie Politicians (and I am using a broad-brush there and including the Local ones right down to the City Council) make such asses of themselves in public?
I arrived in Kalgoorlie in 1990 and I am hard pressed to think of one - not one - that excelled. I may be accused of being too parochial as the only newspaper I read is the Miner although I am far more catholic when I am on the net, but Kalgoorlie Politicians over my 17 plus years in Kalg seem only to have distinguished themselves by being Rebels, ridiculous, ignorant or irrelevant and the best of the bunch was too trusting and naive and that’s a worry. John Bowler is a credit to Kalgoorlie, but Politics isn’t about telling one and all that his opponent is ‘his mate’. It seems decent, but it doesn’t work in the real world.
Now I know that I wouldn’t measure up so perhaps it could be argued that I and people like me, should shut up. I don’t agree. They put themselves in the role of Leaders and to me at least, they should be, have to be, competant and persuasive. Are they?
Top of the list for buffoons? Birney, followed closely by Hasse. Naturally I don’t always disagree with them but their delivery and reasoning are usually reduced to a simplistic ‘personal opinion’ with bugger all reason to convince anyone other than the current believers.
I note that Guy Brownlee is interested in the Liberal nomination. He’s the wrong side of politics for me, but I know Guy and he’s a ‘top-bloke’, so I hope he put’s on a better show than the previous and current flock of Galah’s.
Bill S.
Regarding the Federal seat of Kalgoorlie it’s real maverick country. I think that’s because of the size of the electorate.
I can’t imagine a typical politician surviving in that seat. The distance is just too huge and there is no realistic prospect of ever being a minister.
Regarding Birney, I just think he was a young man promoted ahead of his time. Someone must have got into his ear and raised his ambitions to unrealistic levels. A full term on the opposition front bench and he would have been a better MP.