Aussie politics...

Thoughts_Arrive

What a mess.
Labor caucus.....more like Labor carcass....
Abbott is funny but not PM material.
Shorten vs Turnbull please.
And ELECTION NOW!

your move now

ok, you are so going to regret getting me started.

Both major parties are a joke atm. Abbott likes to say that Julia doesn't have the support but she's defeated K-Rudd much more easily than he did Turnbull - who in all reality would probably make the best PM of the lot of them, unfortunately I can't see it ever happening - meaning his evidence that she lacks the ALP support also suggests by his logic that he doesn't have the support of the coalition.

In most circumstances when polls indicate increasing Rudd support over Gillard, he would have won. BUT because of the minority government situation the Labor Caucus need to support her in order to prevent an early election, which they can't afford because let's face it, the backstabbing 2 years ago is something they barely got through. They couldn't win it. They're unlikely to win even if things go full term, but in their optimistic minds it gives them a chance, it certainly gives them a better chance.

What is really interesting is despite 2 things
1) The independents and third parties have more power than anyone would have thought they were ever likely to have
2) The state elections over the last couple of years have shown declining numbers giving first preferences to third parties or independents

Is that the undeniable mess that both parties have very publicly found themselves in opens the door to a third party becoming an actual reality in Australian politics, which is amazing and may allow change to actually happen and allow a real difference between the 2 major parties to emerge and for all intensive purposes despite different leanings of individual leaders have become the same over the last decade or 2.

Paul Andrews

Actually I think this has been a good government - apart from the ego driven crap surrounding the leadership. I am left wing, but not a Labor stooge and voted Greens last election. Rudd was removed by his colleagues because of his terrible management style and the treatment of his staff. That the Labor Caucus would reject him in favour of the currently unpopular Gillard shows they have principles and are not simply responding to polls. I applaud them for this.

Let's see what they have achived:

Means testing of the health care rebate of incomes over 160k
Apology to stolen generation
A price on carbon
Mining Royalty Tax
Abolition of Work Choices
A stable economy that has sailed though the GFC
Low Unemployement
National Broadband Network
More money in hospitals and schools

I give them a bad mark for asylum seeker policy - they've engaged in a racist race to the bottom with the opposition and followed the inhumane policies of the Howard Government. Shame! I also believe they ratted on poker machine policy. I disagree with Gillard's stance on Gay marriage - why shouldn't they have the right to marry?

Tony Abbott has only gained traction because of the rich, self interested industrialists and right wing shock jocks and the Murdoch press. I fear him running our country and truly hope he is replaced by Turnbull.

There is no need for an election now. We have the parliament we elected and that is a minority government which was determined at the last election. I for one believe this have made our government far more accountable and cautious. I'm glad the independents sided with Labor rather than Abbott who was willing to 'sell his arse' (his words) to get into power.

Paul Andrews

And before anyone gives credit for Australia's economy to Howard and Costello. They were fortunate that the Hawke/Keeting governments engaged in mass reforms with the support of the union movement in the 80s. All Costello had to do was keep the boat going in a straight line.

This is a good analysis of the Australian economy in framed by Samoa's choice to look to Australia and Asia rather than America.

http://globalpublicsquare.blogs.cnn.com ... mber-30th/

your move now

ahh but that raises the hawke v keating question.
which is far too complicated to go into at 11 o clock on a monday night.

so I could ignore it, or I could breifly go into it and not do it justice, have to choose option B.

Hawke never wanted Keating as treasurer but having taken the leadership from Hadyn was forced to have Keating. This was supposed to be a temporary measure until the new leadership was settled out of respect for Hadyn, however the NSW right who basically controlled the ALP wouldn't allow Keating to be replaced, feeling it was bad enough having a non nsw-man as leader.
All of which would be history and irrelevant now if so many people (Keating included) didn't insist on crediting him with those important changes, which were forced on him by Hawke and which Keating fought at the time, fiercly disbelieving in anything other than the status-quo. He was not economically educated enough to understand the job he was supposed to be doing, and not modest enough to admitt that and accept advice.

Again, too breif to do it justice

Paul Andrews

Keep This Man Out!

Tony Abbott

moretonbayfig

Love Triple J's 'Vote Compass' - respond to the survey and find out where you sit in the Australian political landscape: http://www.abc.net.au/votecompass/

catefrances

moretonbayfig wrote:

Love Triple J's 'Vote Compass' - respond to the survey and find out where you sit in the Australian political landscape: http://www.abc.net.au/votecompass/

im 73% in agreeance with the greens.

polaris_x

looks like abbott is going to win ... or does his repository of suppository comments come back to haunt him?

catefrances

polaris_x wrote:

looks like abbott is going to win ... or does his repository of suppository comments come back to haunt him?

every time abbott smiles it looks like hes going to eat a small child.