We humans love a good real life tragedy.
Some of the more macabre among us flock to the big top secretly wishing to witness a spectacular death. Perhaps it’s the trapeze artist plummeting a hundred feet, waving frantically, feeling for non-existent ropes and screaming pitifully as he/she crumples head first into the circus floor. Or the privilege of being there to see first hand the lion tamer lose control and get mauled by his taunted beasts. With any luck they might be rewarded with a thrilling bonus such as the satisfied beasts dragging body parts in all directions.
People in droves gleefully mill around a car crash scene, jealously guarding their front row spot so not to miss the final gasps of a soon to be expired victim.
Yes, we love a good tragedy. Sometimes they give us a laugh; especially the jokes we make of them. You might know some, such as the last space shuttle explosion. Horrible at the time but by the next day our email inbox was flooded with space shuttle jokes.
How many times have you watched the film of the 9/11 attacks? How many times could you still watch it?
Yes, we all love a good tragedy.
That’s why the media serves them up in spades. They know what we want and they continue to feed our morbid appetite. Each day there is something delicious for us to bite into.
Head to news.com for example and, excluding the celebrity gossip – of which there is a feast – sprinkled throughout the front page will be stories such as Gunman kills two in Wyoming or Chinese man decapitates neighbour’s wife. You won’t see a feel good story like Young stroke victim marries childhood sweetheart or . . . Trapeze artist falls 100 feet, lands on head, survives.
We don’t want good news. We demand bad news! Give us a tragedy.
Some bloggers aren’t that much different to the mainstream media as they have fallen into the comfortable habit of giving the readers something they want to hear, rather than being a fresh voice of reason with something important to say. I’m guilty of that. Metaphorically, I delight in taking away the lion tamer’s stool and whip and serving up a subsequent post about the feeding habits of mistreated jungle cats.
The singular big difference between the media and the blogs is the choice of the hapless lion tamer. The media is generally unanimous in their choice of Julia Gillard. We bloggers more often than not choose Tony Abbott. The claws are out for these two.
Then last week I put away the whip and wrote Not your average Aussie. It was not a blog about throwing someone to the lions or about an impending wreck. Rather the contrary, it was a feel good article about Julia Gillard.
To say the least, it went viral, with over 600 Facebook ‘shares’ and thousands of views here. Never, in the two years of Café Whispers has a post had such reach. Hundreds of other posts have attracted more (passionate, at times) comments but I doubt as many different commenters, or especially new commenters to the blogosphere (to go with the hundreds of comments across the social media spectrum). It showed me that there are people out there in readership land who are starved of good news stories and upon finding one . . . they spread the word. Let me say, as a blogger, it was a learning experience.
Could I write a post about Tony Abbott being mauled by lions and expect the same appeal (as appealing as it sounds)?
With all the bad news and real life tragedies fed to us on a daily basis we’ve quickly forgotten human civility.
There will always be a tragedy to report on and human civility will give way to human instincts. But for those of us who wish to focus on the good news; I have some for you . . . the lady in the picture below is still better than the average Aussie.
Julia Gillard speaking at the launch of the Australian Multicultural Council to champion inclusion and highlight the benefits of Australia’s diversity. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
Café Whispers 
If she allows gay marriage with all the same conditions as heterosexual marriage then she will really be a great news story, even though we know she has an unreasonable stance against it.
Otherwise you are correct, she’s a positive story as compared to Abbott’s mega negativity.
“if she allows gay marriage”
Therein lies both an insight into your blind support of Gillard and your acquiescence to whatever she says goes…
Honestly…
…and if she does reb?
Blind support bullshit, what as compared to the mindless Abbott followers and bash Gillard for anything and everything whether it’s true or not.
Apparently you are not even allowed to have just one positive site, no make that just one positive post about the woman. It has to be constant bashing and put downs, and even then you will probably get criticised for not being nasty enough to her or making up big enough bullshit about her.
And if you do say mostly positive things about her, even when you sometimes criticise her, you get pulled up as being acquiescence to whatever she says goes…
Utter bullshit and thanks be there is a place where we can be positive instead of the constant negativity and nastiness that abounds just about everywhere else.
Oh and is Abbott allowing a conscience vote on the matter? Do I hear crickets chirping in the background?
If Abbott allows a conscience vote I think it’ll get passed. I reckon there’s momentum gaining.
I have this theory that Mr. Abbott and co are good at projecting where they are and what they are doing, on to the PM and Labor.
I believe when we hear Mr. Abbott say the PM is in trouble and in a mess, he is really saying we are. Somehow in his muddled mind, that becomes the PM is.
Now if we take what he says about the PM and the mess she is in, that she has not long to live, and transfer it back to him, Mr. Abbott’s days are numbered.
I will give it the name of reverse projection, or maybe boomerang projection.
Others might call it wishful thinking or delusional.
Now from the first of July, Mr. Abbott is taking the shadow ministers, in a caravan around the country.
Please tell me what he will achieve by this.
There will not be any difference in July from now in June, except that most will have more in their bank accounts.
Except those who are unlucky enough to be in welfare housing, as Mr. O”Farrell felt he needed the money more.
Along with the compensation, I assume most will be getting notification, that their mortgage payments have gone down.
“If she allows gay marriage with all the same conditions ”
Maybe the pressure should be put on Mr. Abbott to go as far as the PM has.
That is open it up to a conscience vote.
At the very least, some see it as a moral issue.
Abbott will never allow a conscience vote as gay relationships much less marriages equate with hell and damnation.
Abbott won’t allow a conscience vote. A senior Liberal stated just a couple of days ago they will vote as a block on the matter. Forget who it was.
Möbius..same wavelength 🙂
Möbius, it may as well have been Abbott himself. He does speak for all Australians. 😉
I doubt if there is a Liberal left who might have the gumption to cross the floor on this issue. IMO the gay community should be putting far more pressure on individuals in the opposition to state whether they oppose or support..thereby putting Abbott under pressure.
At least some people out there think like we do on Gillard. Some I follow are saying that Gillard will be pilloried for being overseas when an earthquake hit Victoria.
Migs, and your term human civility. It certainly got me thinking how lacking this is in many facets of our society.
This could be construed as bad news. Does it matter if it is bad news for the libs? Considering ltdnews, instead of offering a redaction of their innacurate pieces about Gillard and the G20, appear to ramping up the lies, I goes it does matter. So we won’t see this piece of hypocrisy repeated over there. And, once gina gets her hands on fairfax, I’m guessing not from their either.
Turns out, he said, the passion for protecting the West Australian marine world was shared by none other than Julie Bishop.
She had, Burke crowed, made her views clear as the ocean blue on her own website some time ago, though alas, the material had since been taken down by persons unknown.
http://www.nationaltimes.com.au/opinion/politics/blame-it-on-rio-burke-leaves-bishop-in-choppy-waters-20120619-20lss.html
The interwebs has caught them out again
Yep, it CAN only be bad news for one, good for the other
As the example of Howard from 2002 shows, there’s a fairly blatant double standard here. Liberal Prime Ministers are apparently allowed to lecture the rest of the world; Labor ones aren’t.
http://www.crikey.com.au/2012/06/19/europeans-verballed-while-imf-adopts-the-gillard-swan-lecture/
Good post Migs
i only watched the twin towers as it happened and was broadcast after an episode of “lock, stock and barrel” i still won’t watch it – same with traffic smashes – worked on ambulances for a while in SA – had my fill of smashed bodies.
i will confess, though to having a certain morbid curiousity towards the unfolding of the various major changes we all face, especially wrt agw – really like to be wrong on that one 😎
that would really be a good news story !
the responses to your blog indicate that there are plenty of people sick of endless doomsaying and lies, and also demonstrates the cause of my optimism that we may yet be able to save our civilisation before the imminent ecosystem collapses – much better than burying one’s head in the sand.
my personal “good news” is that i am still alive, in the best country in the world, and i only have to look around, to feel the beauty of our world.
OT, i reckon it would be pretty good to encounter some aliens, who might have neat technology, like atmospheric carbon scrubbers, perhaps.?
I like your outlook, pterosaur.
BTW, an alien encounter is a thought that doubly excites me. Speaking of which, I must get around to looking into some regressive hypnotherapy to see what happened during all that ‘missing time’. 😉
Meeting a Yowie would be pretty cool, too. Plenty of them not far from Canberra according to my Aboriginal friends.
Migs, This blog is A good news story, you have provided an avenue.. a hub… a viewpoint central …and a way to a more “truthfull” news ….. thanks, … “It showed me that there are people out there in readership land who are starved of good news stories and upon finding one . . . they spread the word.” …well d’oh 😀
Yet another great picture of the PM, Miglo. Thanks. And didn’t she look terrific in Europe smiling off all the nonsense of News Ltd’s ‘misreporting’ i.e. lies! A model of grace under pressure. Imagine how Abbott would have reacted had it been him!
I do like the way she laughs at media rubbish.
Migs
I think that there is one simple reason that your piece got so much attention and that is there are lots of desperate latte sippers out there hungry for any kind of positive story about Gillard, however they don’t really believe it any more than the majority of people believe any thing good can be said about this woeful government. Further you are mistaken t in your assumption that all blogs are pro Gillard, there are plenty out there who certainly aren’t that at all like mine for instance.
Good on you for writing a popular piece but sometimes a piece that you throw together without much thought and be a runaway success even months after you published it like this one of mine which just keeps getting lots of hits more than two years after I wrote it.
My god how wrong can one person be. You really are out of touch with reality Iain. Blind mindless Abbott following tends to do that.
And probably without realising it you confirm why the piece was rightly so popular. There are so many nay sayers and right wing bullshit artists like yourself out there astroturfing and flooding the Internet that positive news is almost impossible.
As I keep iterating that you have to resort to bullshit, deceits, exaggerations, misdirections and distortions to make your point whilst making personal attacks, sometimes terrible ones of calling for the PM’s death, exemplifies just how fallacious your position is. If Abbott was truly such a good as a leader and Gillard so bad then you would be able to lucidly argue on facts and deeds. That Abbott is nothing but a cowardly populist sloganeering brain fart and Gillard has over 300 runs on the board and the most successful large infrastructure program ever undertaken in this country under her belt shows the massive gap between the two, and on top of that she has always well and truly had Abbott’s measure in parliament, shows in the way you attack Gillard not based on any reality but on distortions and lies.
Heaven forbid if you and the others you cite had to actually had to positively argue on reality and stick up for your man by posting his achievements, that you can only argue on distortions and gross negativity says it all really, and that’s the reality.
‘Abbott is nothing but a cowardly populist…’
That’s why he’s so unpopular with the electorate, but he could improve his poll numbers if he stopped following the Talcum line and gave up the ghost on renewable junk.
‘Tony Abbott was yesterday forced to stare down a backbench challenge to the party’s support for the 20 per cent Renewable Energy Target as senior backbenchers blamed it for adding to electricity prices amid a backlash over last week’s 18 per cent price increases in NSW and South Australia.’
From Sid Maher in the Oz.
Möbius Ecko
How many conservative blogs do you take the time to read Möbius? very few I expect because You really do seem to think that Lefty political orientation is the only truth when for many that is just not the case at all.
There are lots of people out there who are quite rightly critical of this shambolic administration, that does not make them pawns in some great (and very effective according to you) media conspiracy.
That is nonsense and you know it there is more bullshit and nonsense coming from desperate Latte sippers in blogs and on twitter denouncing and deriding Tony Abbott than there is stuff doing likewise to Gillard. We have a robust democracy that have idiots of all political flavours saying stupid things and I am right up there with you denouncing any credible threats of violence however I don’t think the Jones example you allude to is at all credible.
Oh I certainly do that 😉
The old “300 runs on the board” argument eh? Don’t you realise just how hollow such an argument is? Any government with a majority on the floor of the house will be able to pass legislation it is entirely meaningless to claim this as any measure of Gillard’s competence, likewise to suggest that the NBN (which I think you are referring to above)as something of value is to be a total slave to government propaganda. The NBN may prove to be of value but its just as possible (and more likely IMHO that it will end up being a very expensive white elephant. Its is only in the eating that we will find out the quality of this pudding.
The mistake that you make here is to confuse the way one should judge a Prime minister with the way that one should judge a leader of the opposition. The former should be judged on the job that they are doing and the latter on the Job that we think that they may do in the future.
The former should be judged on the job that they are doing
Difficult to judge the job that she is doing with lies being written in our media on an almost daily basis
Lies like ltdnews, rather than retracting their intial LIE yesterday, choose instead to push the depths of their brand of ‘journalism’ deeper into the abyss.
A SPEECH urging world leaders to follow the “Australian way” in managing their struggling economics put Prime Minister Julia Gillard at the centre of a global diplomatic spat at the G20 summit in Mexico yesterday.
Read more: http://www.news.com.au/national/europe-furious-at-julia-gillards-nagging-over-economic-management/story-e6frfkvr-1226401755452#ixzz1yHGt1Yxl
shahanana is even more misleading
The Prime Minister yesterday attempted to dismiss suggestions that her call for Europe to take lessons from Labor’s stimulation of the economy during the global financial crisis had helped fuel the row by sparking an angry response from European Commission president Jose Manuel Barroso, who said Europe would not be lectured to or “take lessons” from anyone.
http://www.theaustralian.com.au/national-affairs/foreign-affairs/no-solution-at-summit-as-europe-baulks-at-free-advice-from-g20-leaders/story-fn59nm2j-1226401743525
No dennis, she didn’t try to dismiss anything about helping to ‘fuel the row’, she said that you were amiss, inaccurate, WRONG with your ascertion that the comments were aimed at her. Attempting to create some kind of non-existant ‘economic row’ and plant this seed at Gillards feet is possibly the lowest act he has done to date (from a vast range of low acts).
This whole ‘economic row’ is simply one response to a Canadians journos question, nothing more.
Asked by a Canadian journalist to explain why North Americans should “risk their assets to help Europe”, he replied: “Frankly, we are not here to receive lessons in terms of democracy or in terms of how to handle the economy. This crisis was not originated in Europe.”
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-18508651
It is getting past simple inaccuracies, it is now deliberately misleading readers, and creating a controversy where non exists. It is MSU, and someone needs to set the record straight.
Let’s hope someone from the Government comes out and does this. What I find most interesting is that, every time the PM leaves the country, the murdoch media behave like 3 year olds with the parent out of the room, yelling and screaming and trying to blame the chaos on everyine but themselves. Although, that is probably a bit disparaging to 3 year olds.
Iain and
Law 101, never ever ask a question unless you know the answer. 😉
Min
I am pretty sure that it will be a low number but I disagree with your premise that it is unwise to ask questions to which you don’t have an answer, rather I think that in a spirit of good faith asking questions is essential to proper debate.
Tom R
Just judging Gillard “on the facts” as you call them does her very few favours anyway. This Junket is of no consequence and really its just a series of international Photo ops and more spin that a truck load of Ballerinas. So what do you expect Journalists to write? Warm and Fuzzy rehashes of Gillard press releases?
🙄
So what do you expect Journalists to write?
The truth would be a good start.
So what do you expect Journalists to write?
Well they could start with facts instead of MSU 🙄
Oh you mean the junket that Howard also attended and Abbott will. I bet you if Abbott attends a G20, really embarrassing for Australia by the way, you won’t be criticising him for going on junkets of no consequence, and if he like Howard actually “lectures” to the world, you won’t be criticising that either.
Gillard on the facts, not yours and the media’s deliberate distortions and beatups, is impressive by any account. Not even Howard with both houses and almost unlimited funds to hand achieved as much legislation, programs and reforms as Gillard, and certainly not as much success with the list of his failures being long and still being trotted out today. That she has achieved this in a minority government not only says a lot about her as a successful leader, but shows how you have really hitched yourself to a loser in Abbott, probably the worst political leader this country has known. And some of Gillard’s so called failures have actually been Abbott’s doing in blocking programs or legislation on things he in the past has stated he supports.
But then again it doesn’t matter how bad the person who leads the Liberals and how good the person who leads Labor you will still be putting out the same distorted and false guff to make excuses for the Liberal failings and put downs for Labor success.
So what do you expect Journalists to write?
Not crap.
And how about scrutinising Abbott and pointing out his constant stream of lies and distortions? They don’t have to hold Abbott to account to the same level as Gillard, but to any level would be good, so that when he runs away on a question in a press conference he doesn’t like or can’t answer, that’s reported for the cowardice it is.
How about they also report on the oppositions trashing of parliament? That would be good as it would show how unfit they are to be in government.
Mobius, there is also the fact that as a potential prime minister that Abbott is expected to have at least a working knowledge across all portfolios, and probably some degree of expertise in any number. Abbott’s continuous pattern of behaviour in avoiding answering questions proves to me that he has no basic working knowledge, must less expertise.
Möbius Ecko
I have been just as critical of these sorts of talk-fests no matter who is attending in our name.
How is she impressive on your accounting?
All governments with a majority pass legislation and although I don’t have the figures to hand I would be very surprised if you could demonstrate that his government passed fewer than 300 bills during its time in office.
She has achieved nothing of consequence once you ignore the total trashing of brand Labor, the total trashing of the idea of female leadership in politics. By way of contrast Tony Abbott has taken a dispirited and defeated Coalition from despair to being consistently 12% ahead of the government in the polls.
Its that kind of nonsense that does the left no credit at all. Where in the Westminster system is the obligation to ever support anything proposed by a government? Nowhere, that’s where! Gillard governs at the behest of Greens and three independents if there are things that she can’t get through the parliament it is there you should be allocating the blame rather than at the feet of Tony Abbott.
I have voted Labor far more often in my life than I have ever voted for the Liberals but Labor lost its way when it got the Green religion and its severe addiction to empty spin.
Möbius Ecko
Hmm what defines crap is the question I would like you to answer, because to be honest you have to concede that your perspective defines that. Think of the dung beetle it is utterly delighted by a pine of hot seaming bullshit yet if we stand in the same steaming pile its less pleasant 😉
Surely you jest in offering this in contrast to the woman who insisted “there will be no Carbon tax under a government that I lead”? anyway I challenge you to name those “lies and distortions”
Just because a question is asked does not mean that it will be answered in the manner that the questioner desires and that applies to all players in the Game of politics frankly I don’t see that as anything unusual. In fact your heroine Julia does just the same and then some.
Go back to what I asked you previously about the obligations of the Westminster system because I think that you need a refresher course in how it works.
Hmm what defines crap is the question
CRAP is writing about things that didn’t happen, and pretending they did.
It’s not a friggin’ novel, it’s a newspaper.
“Go back to what I asked you previously about the obligations of the Westminster system because I think that you need a refresher course in how it works.”
Hang on Iain that was not the case under Howard so how come the double standard? I know why because the hypocrisy of the opposition and its supporters is dumfounding.
Howard insisted, and the media obliged, that the opposition be treated as an alternative government and be held to account as that, including any statements, points of views and policies they did or did not produce being held up to the fullest public scrutiny.
It seems it’s only when a Liberal government is in opposition that they are not to be held to account for anything, their job is to be negative and nothing else, and even if that opposition means trashing things they supported and indeed their own previously held positions and beliefs then that’s OK.
You also see the double standards at work at State level where the Liberals in opposition were allowed to do more or less what Abbott is now, with the same excuse of they are the opposition not the government. Yet now they’re in government there’s little scrutiny and lots of excuses for them, whilst the Labor oppositions are being made to justify their statements. It’s only because the Liberal State governments are stuffing up so bad (and I don’t see you highlighting this) that they and their media mouthpieces can no longer cover it up.
Iain and
Iain, you’ve lost me. Why are you refering to the Westminister system? The Westminister system operates under the separtion of powers doctrine and has nothing to do with obligations of elected members of parliament.
However, one could argue that the obligation of an elected member of parliament’s first responsibility is to his or her electorate. Secondary should be to support the policies of his/her own political party – hence the reason members have the ability to cross the floor – hence the reason why conscience votes should always be permitted.
Mobius, you have really set Iain off.
Don’t you know, you cannot forgive the PM for one lie, that on inspection was not a lie.
Mobius, don’t you know, one cannot have one positive thing said about the PM. If that happens, Mr. Abbott cannot win.
As for the overseas junkets, Mr. Abbott will not be interested in that rubbish. He will be ignoring anything on a global scale. He is having nothing to do with world governments.
The only place that Mr. Abbott is interested in, is visiting his friend, the UK PM, and maybe the Vatican, to tell them what they missed in not staying at that seminary. Why, he could have had the Pope’s job by now.
Dad and mum did say he would be either Pope or PM.
Mobius, we cannot let the public know there is no carbon tax. That would be disastrous.
Iain, why so upset and desperate.
Mobius, don’t you know, the economy we are now experiencing is an embarrassment for Mr. Abbott and all his followers. The truth must be kept hidden.
Mobius, Mr. Abbott in his hubris and excitement, after Christmas, promised his followers that he had the key to the lodge, the PM would be long gone by now. It is an embarrassment for Mr.. Abbott that all his well thought out schemes and plans have come to naught.
It is not Mr. Abbott’s fault that the PM sees through all his maneuvers and like a slippery eel, escapes his clutches. Just proves how sneaky and devious the PM is. The PM refuses to react to Mr. Abbott’s clever schemes in the way, Mr. Abbott jut knew she would.
One would think the PM was cleverer that Mr. Abbott, which cannot be true.
Why, has not all Mr. Abbott attacked, fell to the ground, or at least ended up in prison, in spite of not being guilty. So great are the powers of Mr. Abbott.
Mobius, you do know, do you not, that all on this site are stupid and should bow to the superior knowledge of Iain, who knows what is best for us.
“How many conservative blogs do you take the time to read Möbius? very few I expect because You really do seem to think that Lefty political orientation is the only truth when for many that is just not the case at all.”
Iain, you might notice I do not visit many of the sites you write about anymore. I have given up making comments.
You know why? They are still writing the same trash, over and over. Nothing new.
They are not interested in listening, just hearing their own voice.
Just as we have Mr. Abbott now on at Queanbeyan, repeating his tax spiel. Not one new word. Abbott’s three word slogan this week, is a government in chaos.
Why does he sound desperate.
Today is Direct Action. Would be no coast on a business like this. No, it will come out of the pocket of the taxpayers.
The good news is that even if Mr. Abbott achieved what he sees as his birthright, there are no pointers available that he would be as success. None at all.
He offers nothing but chaos and uncertainty.
Tom R
Therein lays the quandary Tom how do you know that a “thing” did not happen?
Möbius Ecko
Oppositions oppose M E, that is their reason for being and its only on the odd occasion that they will give government the privilege of their vote. I really don’t think that you or anyone else can expect other than that as a general rule. Even when the matter is something that an opposition might otherwise support they are still under no obligation to support the government.
Well Good on John for getting the media to dance to his tune on that idea but it changes nothing at all about how our democracy works and if a government has to rely on a shaky alliance of ratbags and hard left Greens why should you expect the opposition to make life easier for them?
I don’t say that the libs should not be held to account but they are not the ones in charge at present so what are you going to hold them to account for? Its Labor who hold the treasury benches, its Labor who are making the decisions of government so naturally its Labor who must be given much closer scrutiny.
How about a reality check there M E ? Liberal state governments are all finding a less than rosy situation in the states that they have recently won, especially so here in my home state of Queensland where debt is truly scary and the books well and truly cooked so naturally there is going to be both a honeymoon period and reasons to be understanding if the job of fixing Labor’s legacy is more difficult than they expected.
How are they “stuffing up so bad” examples please 😉
Min
No Min you are mistaken Check out this piece from Wiki *(which I usually loathe citing)for a run-down of precisely what I am talking about.
I tend agree with you about a member’s responsibilities however we also expect that members will respect the rules and conventions of the party that they belong to and that they will maximise their strength by using the power of coordinated voting.
Catching up
😆
I’m perfectly calm and serene CU but of course I don’t buy your excuse making for Juliar 😉
If I really think about it I might just be able to find one small thing about the PM to endorse, Hmm I garee with her about Gay marriage springs to mind 😉
I’m sure that Tony will do his share of travel but lets hope that is for better reasons than Kevin and Julia
PM it is then, and probably for longer than you will enjoy 😉
Really as it starts in about ten days maybe you had better brace yourself for a reality check!!!
Nup I’m neither upset nor desperate in fact like Tony I’m traveling rather well at present.
The economy is doing OK at present but just you wait until the Carbon tax hits then you will find the the 1900 lefty luvvies from Fairfax will be far from alone
Gee I don’t think that a 12% lead over the government is nothing…
Politics is all a game CU and the flow of play goes back and fourth but looking at the score board and I reckon thet the libs are ahead
One would think the PM was cleverer that Mr. Abbott, which cannot be true.
Why, has not all Mr. Abbott attacked, fell to the ground, or at least ended up in prison, in spite of not being guilty. So great are the powers of Mr. Abbott.
Well you would never catch me saying that the people here are stupid because I don’t think that at all.
Catching up
I would not know because I don’t follow you around the internet, however I think that its far more fun to go to places ,like this site, where I will be challenged and get a good argument rather than the safe zone of a conservative blog where we all agree.
He doesn’t 😉
Miglo …. good luck in writing a good news story about Abbott the Tragedy.
how do you know that a “thing” did not happen?
There’s a video showing that he was talking to a canadian journalist. It has been shown around a lot. For any news agency NOT to be aware of it means they are either incompetently stupid, or deliberately lying.
They are not stupid. Are you?
http://grogsgamut.blogspot.com.au/2012/06/fairfax-and-g20-visits-what-do-we-need.html
Iain 9.14am .” She has achieved nothing of consequence once you ignore the total trashing of brand Labor”,( as reported by the our unbiased fact based uninfluenced editorial content jorno’s and Iain ) and this Iain ..”the total trashing of the idea of female leadership in politics”, mm, brave comment there Iain 😉
,
I’m not sure ‘brave’ is the appropriate word in this case LOVO 😉
Come election day, when we have an opportunity to pause, take a breath and really think of what kind of future we want and how each parties policies, principles and vision will impact on our lives, I just can’t see women en masse voting for Tony Abbott.
Julia, the more that Tony Abbott comes under scrutiny the seedier he becomes. When has the man ever had anything of any consequence to offer?
Hell more good news. That is not fair. How will Tony cope.
It is OK. Just change the rules, and one can say as they like. No need to keep to facts. More evidence of Mr. Costello’s’ accountancy skills.
Costello take note.
Good news but can do much better. At least trying.
Does anyone feel the same way.
http://grogsgamut.blogspot.com.au/2012/06/fairfax-and-g20-visits-what-do-we-need.html
News Ltd staff being informed by video. Under embargo until 2om.
Showing QT delayed on ABC 24.
Wonderful word.
crud
http://grogsgamut.blogspot.com.au/2012/06/fairfax-and-g20-visits-what-do-we-need.html
“rather I think that in a spirit of good faith asking questions is essential to proper debate.”
But when the answer is not what you wanted, just move on and hope nobody notices, eh, Iain ?
You are not what you pretend to be Iain Hall.
Mr. Swan was not asked to withdraw that the Opposition leader is nothing but a slithering slimy snake. He also called him a snake oil salesman.
Could Mr. Abbott see these comments as complimentary?
http://www.blogotariat.com/node/415875
Lot of movement on the shadow benches. Are they confused or busy planning a stunt. They have not had one this week.
http://www.yourdemocracy.net.au/drupal/node/13579
Not pulled up on the term snake oil salesman. The older Bishop did try. The Acting Speaker had honed the skill of ignoring her.
http://www.yourdemocracy.net.au/drupal/node/13579#comment-17348
http://www.yourdemocracy.net.au/drupal/node/13579#comment-17348
Love that line from first dog:
Now for the good news, they were wrong. 29 times wrong in fact.
Once again no questions on Marine Parks until 3.19
Looks like no MSSO,
No support for NBNco. I am jealous, I have to wait. Those above and below me are getting it soon. Not fair.
Albanese is surprised.
They don’t really do that sort of thing any more by the Daily Rupert or the Saturday Gina.
That would be funny, if it wasn’t so sad
Although First Dog does make a lot of sense
https://twitter.com/firstdogonmoon/status/215310413204697090
Overall Julia Gillard is doing a good job, but there are a few areas which have caused the left some consternation. These areas include her reluctance to go along with the high court on the treatment of asylum seekers, her wavering on pokies reform, and her apparent abandonment of Julian Assange. Now a fourth element has been added to that list. It concerns the funding of the school chaplaincy programme. Just this morning the high court has ruled that this programme is constitutionally invalid.
http://www.smh.com.au/opinion/political-news/school-chaplaincy-program-is-constitutionally-invalid-high-court-20120620-20n2d.html
Yet early this afternoon I heard Nicola Roxon and Peter Garrett both affirm that the government still plans to continue funding the chaplaincy programme. This sounds to me as if the government plans to defy the hight court on this matter.
Come on, Tony Abbott! Here is a big chance to attack the government validly for failing to perform its constitutional duty. What are you waiting for?
Silkworm, I could see where Julia was coming from on the issue of asylum seekers. The idea was that the people in Malaysia have already been processed as genuine refugees and some have been waiting years to find a country willing to take them. It was supposed to act as a deterrent to people smugglers, we take the ones who have been waiting the longest and the others must go to the back of the queue. The High Court ruling put a stop to that, and also effectively put a stop to Abbott’s idea of Nauru..although you would never know it by the way that the msm plays it.
On poker machine reform, both Windsor and Oakeshott stated that they would NOT support the legislation and without the support of these 2 it could not have got through. Wilkie is now negotiating with the government on a compromise solution which (keeping fingers crossed) will get the support of both Windsor and Oakeshott.
Silkworm, the government/any government cannot defy a High Court ruling, to do so would be unconstitutional. They might try to re-work legislation to try to get around a particular, but cannot defy.
Basics of Constitutional Law is that the government legislates and the judiary interprets the legislation. If the government does not like the way that the High Court interprets the legislation eg re validity, then the government must go back to the drawing board.
Hmm its all about the way that the commonwealth pays for the service so it seems to me that it will be easy enough to pay for this through the state governments which makes this high court case a very empty victory for the militant atheists when you get down to it.
Good news 🙂
Low Carbon finance helps Great Lakes Council combat rising energy costs
http://www.lowcarbonaustralia.com.au/media-release/low-carbon-finance-helps-great-lakes-council-combat-rising-energy-costs
Hello psyclaw. “Abbott the Tragedy” would be like a James A Michener novel; everyone will die. I wouldn’t have the heart to kill off the ‘hero’. 😉
Iain, how about some good news?
Migs, good analogy..with James A. Michener, a bit like the missionaries arrival at Hawaii and the heroes ended up in the leprosy colony at Molokai.
Migs, I heard it through the grapevine that you might need a little cheering up..for that music is always good..and I know it’s next to impossible to post music via one’s iPad. So thought to play one of your favorites.
“I’m perfectly calm and serene CU but of course I don’t buy your excuse making for Juliar”
Problem for you, it is not an excuse, it is a fact.
Maybe Iain would like to look at some of the graphs on this site. All go in the opposite way to Australia. Too many graphs to copy.
I believe we will be following the same thought line. Looking and acknowledging the positives July the first will bring.
Perhaps Iain may like to consider these facts (but probably won’t 😉 )
http://www.marketeconomics.com.au/2088-wake-up-australia-things-are-pretty-bloody-good
http://www.canberratimes.com.au/act-news/chaplaincy-change-a-crisis-of-faith-20110907-1wr4y.html#ixzz1yK0pE6lq
Where are children going to hold faith-based conversations? Around the back of the shelter sheds? Behind the boys’ toilet? Hell..I don’t know.
But Min the chaplaincy services in schools were never about providing faith based conversations, at least that’s what Howard told us when it was pointed out this is what was happening.
Now we have a chaplaincy openly stating this is the case, proving Howard a liar yet again.
Min, and ” where are families and children going to go to hold faith-based conversations?” she said.” (umm, Uranus)…. The scipture ‘teacher’ at my kids primary was telling the kids that evolution wasnt real…. pulled my kids out of that ‘class’ real quick, how dare they impose their BS in such a sly, insidious way…. they may have ‘fooled ‘ themselves but they’re not brain-washing my kids with their ‘fear and ‘guilt’ trip.
I deplore Howard for this…… just ’cause he bent over for the ‘brotherhood’ or the ‘Family’ dollar to try and keep ‘power’ what right has he to impose that crap on children and dress it up as ‘education’.
“where are families and children going to go to hold faith-based conversations?”
Suggest their home and the church,.
Yes LOVO, the guff about the chaplaincy program only providing moral guidance was always crap. If that were the case then the church would not have been as keen to get into the (heathen) schools and wouldn’t have fought against the schools having secular councilors as hard as they did.
Instead several cases of chaplains attempting to preach and convert were uncovered and from memory a high level church document discussing the chaplaincy as a way to convert children.
This was all fobbed off and though I was initially surprised the Labor government not only kept this program but fully backed it, I realised and have since read up on just how powerful the ACL is.
Just realised you are going to miss out on 500,000.
Shame as it was yours and Min’s good work that got it there.
Suggest their home and the church,
🙂
We have a chaplain thing at our primary school. It forced us to go up there and demand (again) action that we should not have to be demanding. We are getting a bit of a rep up there as ‘whingers’, yet, it is interesting that amongst the parents, they are quite glad these things are raised.
It doesn’t make it easy on the kids though, as we suspect they are treated a bit differently because of our actions.
I understand the Governmnet have come out in support of the chaplains, yet appear to be quite happy with the courts decision. Win win for them I guess, although, I would prefer they sent the message, and drew the line, that religion has it’s place, as CU said, in the church and private home,;schools are for education (or day care, depending on the parents 😦 )
I regard ALL prosleytising to young children as a form of “spiritual paedophillia”.
Mobius and But Min the chaplaincy services in schools were never about providing faith based conversations..
Excellent point, no they weren’t were they..
I would query also just how many kids actually want to have a faith based conversation. I can’t remember having any of these when I was a kid, except from from my Dad who reckoned that the whole thing was a load codswallop.
Sadly, the High Court yesterday, did not outlaw religious training in state schools.
It challenged the Federal governments belief that it had the right to undermine states rights, something we hear little of today.
There is something a little arrogant in the belief that the Federal government has, that the states will waste the money.
The Constitution set up the states and federal government as being equal, with responsibilities in different spheres.
Senator Milne was right yesterday, when she said it maybe a good thing, if more spending was open to be reviewed within the parliament.
Executive spending powers need reining in.
As for the Chaplains in the school, if appears on the governments level we have lost that one.
There is the power that parents have on the local level. Mr. Garrett made this easier when he extended the scheme to take in welfare workers.
Parents tell your school you only support a welfare worker, not a minister of religion.
Can someone tell me what is this marvelous pastoral care they talk about. Are they alleging that only ministers of religion can supply care and support for our children.
Religion is a very personal thing, with beliefs differing dramatically from one creed to another. How do we know what they are telling our kids.
Parents, unite and demand welfare workers.
PS. When my kids attended school back in 70 and 80’s, the local church ministers turn up at the school to give support in times of need. They attended school activities for free. Why so they have to be paid to provide the same service today. Yes, they were a part of the school community, like politicians and parents. They did not expect to be paid to carry out their responsibilities.
Cu and Sadly, the High Court yesterday, did not outlaw religious training in state schools
That would have been beyond the High Court’s powers as it would have contravened the separation of powers doctrine. In Australia we have freedom of religious expression and so the High Court would have exceeded its powers to “outlaw” religion in schools. It would have meant opening another can of worms where any future government could have for example, have banned Jewish or Muslim schools.
When the High Court hands down a formal judgement, it has to look at posssible consequences..has to look to well beyond the next decade.
I’m sure Iain and his cohorts will be pleased to know that Sen Penny Wong has assured the Senate that no panna cotta will be endangered by the carbon price, nor will it cause any more earthquakes in Victoria.
Every body must thank Sen di Natale for squeezing those assurances from Sen Wong.
Oddly enough, the Senators on the left of the President weren’t happy with Sen Wong’s answers, nor with Sen di Natale’s questions. 😆 😆 😆 😆 😆