Just on a fortnight ago, Gorgeous Dunny emailed me with this thread-starter. Among other things, he said:
Assuming a worst-case scenario, I thought that this story might be useful. It is nothing like what we had discussed about the gutting of the CES, but I did do a useful digression at one point in the story to explain why we need to have a fairly strong bureaucracy, and that some of the work they do is extremely valuable.
We may be facing a slash and burn if Hockey gets his hands on the Treasury keys. So it could be a useful reminder of the type of thing we’d lose.
I think Gorgeous Dunny is right. We need to refocus, we need to start the campaign for the next election NOW, and we need to trumpet every broken promise, every bit of damage to the polity, every bit of stupidity that this Abbott-led government will undoubtedly commit.
Thank you, GD, for your clarion call to arms!
Simpson is a small township in the Heytesbury district of Western Victoria, roughly between the regional cities of Colac and Warrnambool. Simpson is relatively close to other larger townships of Cobden, Timboon and Camperdown. It was founded after World War 2 as a base for soldier settlement farmers.
With less concern for such matters at that time, native forest was cleared to allow farming. It was suited for dairy farming, as was the entire district. The climate is cool with a high rainfall. The soil, once part of a volcanic area, is fertile. The farming flourished in that endeavor.
As one of the country’s most productive dairy regions, butter, cheese, ice cream and powdered milk factories prospered. By the 1970s, Kraft Foods decided to establish a cheese factory at Simpson. Kraft was already a dominant influence in Warrnambool and Allansford. Thus, the Victorian Government greeted the investment with some enthusiasm.
The Minister for Decentralisation, Mr Digby Crozier, was very keen to encourage any country investment and employment prospects. When Kraft first proposed the factory, he offered to build Ministry of Housing dwellings at Simpson to accommodate the employees. Kraft accepted.
(Credit: Colac Herald)
The best-laid plans of Mice and Men oft go astray – Robert Burns
The problem was that Simpson was only about ten minutes’ drive from Cobden, and about the same in different directions from Timboon and Camperdown. These places were the most likely sources of employees needed (many having the right type of experience). By the 1970s, the private car dominated as a means of transport. It was not worthwhile for employees from these places to relocate to Simpson, even though they readily accepted the work.
The Ministry of Housing was then in the unusual position of having a quantity of rental houses available at Simpson but no prospective tenants. That was contrary to the rest of the state where prospective tenants far outnumbered the housing available. It was too good to let go.
The dilemma was resolved by using that accommodation for single mothers with children. There was an abundance of single mothers on the Ministry waiting list for accommodation. As deserted wives, the victims of domestic violence, the spouses of alcoholics and drug abusers – they were invariably without means. And as the primary carers of pre-school and school-age children, they had few options for obtaining income. So the unwanted country housing became a refuge for young single-parent families (mostly from the city) in desperate need of accommodation.
There would have been adjustments for some, but the overall impact must have been positive. For the first time they had a secure cottage and land. It was at an affordable rental, and they could get on with their lives free of many stresses associated with the basics of food, clothing and shelter.
Although Simpson had minimal resources as a tiny country town, it did have the basics of a primary school, shop and park. Cobden, with a hospital, high school, super markets and other resources was only about ten minutes drive away.
As far as can be ascertained, most such families settled in well. They would have forsaken frequent contact with other family members and friends, and with services we’d take for granted such as dental and optical and the larger range retailing and recreation. That could be balanced against the freedom from abusive and violent partners. It was a safe and healthy place to raise children.
But by 1988, changes were occurring. The social security system that supported these women and their families was changing. In the 1970s, there had been a mishmash of pensions such as Widows and Deserted Wives. They had been merged under the general title of Supporting Parents Benefit. One further change during the reforms of the late 80s, however, was that the Supporting Parents Benefit ceased when the youngest dependent child turned 16 years.
Those claiming such a benefit were then expected to register for unemployment benefit, and implicit in that, to seek employment. The little haven of tranquility was suddenly exposed to threat.
This change exposed the social problem. The very strength of their location suddenly seemed a weakness. As sole supporting parents they were given housing priority. The country location, far from being a disadvantage was actually helpful, despite their city origins. Abusive and dominant ex-spouses were unlikely to trouble them.
If they were to become jobseekers, however, that very isolation could become a disadvantage. The government, sensitive to the impact from these changes to benefits, had assigned counsellors to assist in the transition. Simpson, however, was a different matter, with such a high proportion of its tenants on Supporting Parents benefit.
How I came to be involved is part of a different era in public policy, and worthy of a digression. For the last three decades it has been fashionable to talk about “reducing public waste”. In particular there have been political demands to reduce public sector staff numbers. Usually, politicians explain it away as “only cutting out excessive administrative positions” but not reducing important public contact positions. That is the political position, but it is more wishful thinking than realistic.
In my entire career I have always been happier and more effective in public contact work than in administration. But even I know the immense value of a strong administrative base. We need it to determine that our taxes are well spent. That requires a lot more than just eliminating waste and duplication. A lot must be invested in research to ensure that the scarce resources we have are spent in the most effective way. And a lot is invested in planning and developing public policy to ensure it has the widest reach for the greatest need.
The year 1981 was proclaimed the International Year of Disabled Persons (IYDP) by the United Nations. It called for a plan of action with an emphasis on equalization of opportunities, rehabilitation and prevention of disabilities.
In Australia (in an era just before the Reagan and Thatcher age took hold), all were called on to contribute in the private and public sectors. The country got right behind the idea. Great energy and investment was put into improving access for people with disabilities. Most was done on the most obvious shortcomings such as improving wheelchair access to buildings and toilets.
Our Department (Employment, Education and Training) considered access to its services, especially training and employment.
In particular, it looked at overcoming barriers to obtaining and retaining employment. It did not look at subsidies so much as to ask the question, what does such a person need to be competitive in the job market? When considered like that, the answer seemed to be to have employment skills that were in demand. From that it devised a Labour Market Program (LMP), which became known by its acronym as DAWS (Disabled Apprentice Wage Subsidy).
An employer hiring an apprentice under DAWS would receive a wage subsidy for the duration of the apprenticeship. In dollar terms it was about $130 per week. Over the duration of the apprenticeship, that meant near 100% of the wage at first year level, and a gradually receding percentage over the succeeding years as the trainee became more skilled and experienced, and was better paid.
The DAWS program was much more than just a wage subsidy, however. It had provision for Tutorial Assistance to help trainees with trade school. If a person had a hearing impairment, an intellectual disability, dyslexia or literacy problems, it could be applied to enable success. Other LMPs could be used in conjunction with DAWS. The Modifications to the Workplace Program enabled the purchase of particular equipment to be used in work. The aim was to allow the person then to focus entirely on doing the job.
From my perspective as an Employment Counsellor, DAWS was the best ever Labour Market Program. Persons with trade qualifications and skills had something to offer an employer. In most cases that meant that they became independent of social security support through employment, and sometimes self-employment, in the community. It achieved the aim of shifting the focus away from the impairment to how he or she could work. From a public point of view, such people instead of receiving benefits became taxpayers.
I have digressed at some length to illustrate the value of public policy research, evaluation and development. The argument that we can save public money by just reducing the number of jobs in the public service, especially at the Head Office administration level, is simply nonsense.
At the time of my story (the late 1980s), a great deal of research went into developing programs of assistance to employees made redundant be the reductions in tariffs. When used effectively, they could achieve good results in redeployment.
This digression was a way of explaining the Department and my role in intervening with The Women of Simpson. When Supporting Parent Benefit ceased to become available to those whose youngest child had turned sixteen, the primary support option then was unemployment benefit. To be eligible, however, persons had to be available for work and actively seeking it, or at least obtaining skills to be able to find work.
It was not just the shock in the changed conditions of support. It could potentially lead to distress as people looked at their plight. The government, sensitive to such a situation, would have already briefed and funded the two key departments Employment, Education and Training (DEET), and Social Security (DSS) to help alleviate the potential for a backlash.
The statistical data gathered by DSS included recipients of Supporting Parents Benefits, and in particular, those likely to lose that support in the next three or four years. The data would have identified anomalies such as the high proportion of beneficiaries in the Simpson area. From that it would have been a simple step to providing funding for and planning a special project. Then it would have been a matter of liaising with the resources in the area such as the Commonwealth Employment Service (CES), DSS and TAFE.
By the time I was briefed about the project it was almost ready to go. It would always have been a priority to use whatever professional resources were available. Primarily that was an Adult Education Project Officer from TAFE, a Social Worker from DSS, and me as Employment Counsellor representing DEET and the CES. Eunice from TAFE was the coordinator of the joint project. She briefed me on the aim and the details of the plan. DSS had supplied a printout of the names of sole parents in the area.
What she proposed was a mail-out to those in the target group, inviting them to attend a meeting in Simpson about the transition. The first public meeting was essentially to be a briefing one to explain the situation and how each of us may help them.
A date was set for the meeting, to be held at the Simpson primary school. The mail-out extended to single parents in adjacent locations such as Cobden, but the largest cluster was at Simpson. We did consider the transport access of all when they responded. Since three cars (CES, DSS and TAFE) were going, we arranged to ferry any of those without transport.
The meeting was to explain the transition. Our primary concern was to assure recipients that nobody was being abandoned, and that this change could represent an opportunity to improve their lives and their future prospects. All three of us spoke to identify the role of each and how we could assist.
Eunice, as the professional adult educator, spoke about the advantages of improving literacy and basic education through to computers for broadening the horizons. The DSS Social Worker assured them of income support for the transition period and beyond, as well as offering individual help for those with personal and hardship issues. I spoke about the opportunities for changing lives and expectations through education, training and employment (which in some cases would have included preparation for work and work experience).
All three of us had graduated using the opportunities provided for free tertiary education during the Whitlam and the Fraser years. In a sense we had that in common with our group. We had all entered as mature-age students and valued the opportunities presented. The meeting was essentially for information, but we must have conveyed some of our enthusiasm to the group. There was a high follow-up response to the meeting.
We planned a second meeting for just over a week later. This one was almost a whole day (with lunch provided). There were two segments to this one. Eunice ran tests to determine their literacy and education levels and current needs. Working around that part, I, together with a CES officer, interviewed all of them to register as unemployed. They needed to be registered to qualify for LMP assistance even though not claiming benefits. I worked with those not currently being tested, and later we reversed.
It was an intense day for the group and for those of us interviewing and testing.
We arranged a third meeting to inform them of the testing results, and of the CES programs assistance available. The results and the subsequent actions are worth noting (albeit I am relying on my memory). From the mail-out we had about 16 attend the first information day. Then we had about 12 attend the second full day for the testing and registering.
It was pretty near the same number attended the third meeting for the results and the recommendations on educational, training and employment directions. The results and recommended actions were very heartening.
Four of those assessed were either functionally illiterate or close to it. Another four had little more than primary education. A further few had a reasonable enough secondary education to consider higher education or TAFE courses.
The most urgent needs were for those with no or limited literacy. That was also the first geographic problem. The nearest accredited courses in literacy and bridging education were at Camperdown. None of them had their own transport. We overcame that by liaising with the Victorian Education Department.
I worked a deal where they were able to travel to and from Camperdown on the school bus system. It was unprecedented and we had to get written authority, but it was done. From memory, seven participated, including some from Cobden. Three or four of these were in the literacy group. The others were in the educational preparatory classes in basic computers and English. I believe there were a few group sessions that all joined.
I followed up with the Camperdown coordinator some weeks after they’d commenced. She was very pleased with their progress. All had made some progress in literacy and preparation studies.
She was very impressed with a Cobden lady, Jill, who at 50 was the oldest member of the group. Jill was illiterate but made great progress. Not only did she progress in literacy. In other activities Jill showed a real talent for art and produced some excellent work. She also had a great sense of humor and kept other younger ones amused and interested.
Jill had had a long battle over her life. Her husband was in prison, and apparently didn’t add much when he was home. Poverty and the struggle to raise children had taken their toll. Somehow she had remained positive. She was looking forward to life as her children grew up. Each had an individual story, but all were about survival.
That was encouraging from where we had started with the assessments and interviews. One did Year 10 at Cobden High, which her daughter was attending. Some others, a little more advanced in education, also had good outcomes. Two enrolled in TAFE vocational courses, which normally lead to work prospects. I was able to assist another two into voluntary work experience through the hospital at Cobden and the school. In each case, it eventually led to paid work when I offered the Jobstart wage subsidy to their employers.
So starting originally with a response of sixteen to our meeting, eight moved into literacy and basic education, two into vocational training and two others into voluntary and then paid work. That was a very positive response ratio.
The success might have been helped by our backgrounds as mature-age entrants into higher education. All three of us were enthusiastic about prospects ahead for them. We seemed to have an empathy with the group. The social networking has also helped.
In my professional role as an Employment Counsellor, I was expected (in addition to my case work) to complete at least two projects on special tasks per year. This easily qualified as an important one. Some months later I reviewed and evaluated the entire project and its results, which were pretty well as described.
I prepared a study paper on it for discussion at our bi-monthly statewide meeting of Employment Counsellors. It was very well received. I was very flattered that two other Counsellors asked me to send them all the written details, with the aim of adapting a similar project to their own regions.
What we achieved then was a precursor to a program eventually promoted by DSS and the CES called JET (Jobs, Education and Training). The aim of that program was to assist single parents into one of those pathways through Labour Market Programs and Educational Assistance.
It was about opportunity, and was a little broader–based than our project. Childcare assistance could also be included. The key to its success is, I believe, to convince them that it is an opportunity, not a penalty. It can put them in control of their own future.
If we can give them hope and show a way, they will achieve.
THE PUB 
Anyone watching this Vikings show, my OH loves it.
And a Clarrie Fisher. Drool. Sad about what happened to her.
Thanks, socksfulla
Signed it but with a sorrowful meh
I must admit I like your nom-de-plume. Always reminds me of the beach when I was a kid, when all of sudden,
On hurried/harried Sunday after Mass, on our parents whim, where we all piled into the car for a trip to the Peninchular (that’s eastern bayside Melbourne for all the resta ya)
And we always ended up with socksfullofsand, which we treasured until the next summer.
“Michaelia Cash is the wife of Richard Price, brother of much-loved late journo Matt. Price”
Chris Uhlmann is married to a Lbor MP.
For those of the religious bent, I don’t think the Holy Trinity would be totally enamored.l
Kezza,
How do you feel about being indoctrinated?
blockquote>This little black duck
September 19, 2013 at 9:50 pm
Kezza,
How do you feel about being indoctrinated?
Oooooh, I’m not sure what you mean, you sophisticated drinker of whine and and consumer of all things Danishishly comestible.
Is the signing a petition from change.org part of your accusation? Or my Catholic upbringing?
I have to admit to being a terrible prude.
Screwed the indents again. My apologies.
kezza,
I would not want to diss anyone here.
You have not said whether you think your thoughts in your youth were not not your own.
I, for mine, was said to judge about religion, very early, for myself. I have, and I, from family, say that those who envelope a faith are bereft of reasoning but are blessed with not having to coming a reality about their own.
This is a better link to the Pandora Archive – you can access several versions of the website:
http://pandora.nla.gov.au/tep/22487
Will Tony burn the National Library of Australia next?
Maybe the reason Tony is in hiding is because his brain did explode? If they occasionally wheel out a pre-programmed Tony A. Bot to spout some slogans now and then – nobody would notice the difference.
(Dave)
“WA Premier Colin Barnett says Tony Abbott will have to break his election promise & raise the GST. @Lateline 10:25”
Are we supposed to be suprised at such a proposition?
Anyone think Abbott has a deal for the Indonesians for the East Timor Sea oil?
TLBD
Don’t know how you missed it, over the years, TLBD, but I thought I’d made it quite clear that I was absolutely indoctrinated by the Catholic Church. My uncle was a Jesuit, my father bucked the system and married a Non-Catholic, but Mum soon became more of a Catholic than Dad – but that was the only inkling I had as a kid that something was not quite right about religion.
And then there was my older sister. But that’s another story.
But, for me, it wasn’t until I was 15 that I realised I’d been led up the garden path. And that religion was bunkum.
Trying to throw of those shackles has been a lifelong project. For the past 45 years I’ve tried my darndest to rid myself of the contradictions that were preached. And I think first among the contradictions I was finding hard to come to terms with was the gossipmongering character assassinations that occurred in the churchyard after Mass.
Since then, since I started accusing people of being hypocrites in their daily lives, I’ve been an outcast in my own community. And I haven’t found much love elsewhere – possibly because of my prudish nature.
If you’ve ever wondered why I’m so potty-mouthed, it’s because I have this deep-seated contradiction within myself. Part of me thinks that if I can shock people enough, then maybe I’ll convert them (how religious of me) to atheism.
And part of me is revolted by my own self.
That’s the fucked nature of indoctrination. A life lived with internal and external contradictions, and I don’t think I’ll ever be able to reconcile these two competing influences.
Nice to see a politician taking it on the chin and so on and so forth, but did Colin Barnett just let the cat out of the bag on the GST?
Influential voices in Cabinet are FOR raising the GST? Tony Abbott is going to have to step up to the plate and do something about raising new taxes?
Oh dear.
Barnett just called for an increase in the GST or to broaden it’s base. Not new but more than likely as the days go by. 17.5% will be next on everything.
I hear you K2
Mum was devout, so we all went to Sunday School, Confirmation and the rest of the bullshit.
Dad wouldn’t have a bar of it but said nothing until he and I went shooting rabbits one day when I was about 13 and we ended up boiling the billy and yarning for a couple of hours. No rabbits but at the end of the day that was it for me. The rest of them followed Mum but I wasn’t interested from there on and have never regretted my decision, although there have been some consequences over the years from a few self professed Christians, from which I have developed a habit of asking ‘Show me the money’ when the pious hold forth.
Hang in there, mate. Guilt is self inflicted (with a bit of help from your friends …..) and, at the end of the day the only one you have to satisfy is you. Your conscience, integrity, honesty and loyalty are your own, and to be proud of.
Take care of yourself.
TLBD
I’m not blaming you, but you have made me think of things I haven’t thought about for a long time.
Here’s a story.
When I was a kid, aged, I don’t know, about 4 or 5 years, my Dad used to make a big deal every Sunday about parking next to a family car that was always parked up on the hill away from everyone else.
And we were always cross (as a family) because we were always late to Mass, and because of where Dad parked, and it always made us 20 seconds late (but we were never as late as the Cunninghams, who always made an “art” of the late entrance – whatever that meant!)
One day I sat with one of those Cunninghams, right down the back of our little wooden church (we must have been really really late and Mum mustn’t have come to Mass that day, I can’t remember why , but I was about 8 years old when I was, for the first time, pushed into the back seat of the church.
That day I learned the art of not listening to the sermon. The bloke I sat next to, the bloke Cunningham (Pompey, his name was) taught me the finger-steeple trick: Here’s the Church, and Here’s the Steeple, open your minds, he’d say, and here’s the People. All through Mass! My first taste of ‘thinking’.
My parents thought he was a communist. His son, Barry, became the Labor member for McMillan in 1980.
So, who was indoctrinated? Hard to tell, isn’t it?
Later I understood why the Cunninghams were simultaneously held in high regard (they were quite wealthy) and thought to be the brigands on the other hand (some were accused of being corrupt in the potato industry). Dan, Barry’s uncle, was the Mayor of Pakenham for many years. He also got the Seven Mile Road in Nar Nar Goon sealed – up to his driveway, of course.
Barry’s brothers’ prowess at VFL (Jack, Colingwood, and later Hawthorn, I think; and Matt, Collingwood) helped forge their reputations in McMillan.
Anyway, apparently, there was a division in the family, that had occurred during the Great Labor Split – and half the Catholic Faithful Cunningham Party had denied Bishop Mannix, whose veritable portrait hung proudly in our family hall, and most but not all lived in our district. Our family was strictly DLP. But that knowledge was all in the future.
In that family car, up on the hill every Sunday, were two teenage kids, a girl and a boy, who were severely disabled.I really don’t know how disabled they were by today’s standards, but they were pretty bad in terms of physical control and they had no language (that we could understand).
Their parents who ran the general store and were the most kind people, were first cousins, it was whispered, and that’s why the kids were disabled (or “mental retards” as we learned from listening to the adults, and “fucked” as we learned from the young-uns).
But we all learned it was taboo to marry a close relative, especially not a first cousin.
I learned something else, though. I learned that I hated, absolutely despised, the gossip that was entertained by so many groups outside Mass. That’s probably why I can’t handle running people down because of their looks, their dress, and their demeanour.
Yet, as a contradiction in spades, I don’t recognise my own ability to do the same. It’s a curse.
kezza,
Here, at the Pub, no one does blame exterioritory.
You sat what you say and we all check it.
muttleymcgee
Ya sound so Irish, me laddie.
Thanks for your support, and understanding of how it goes in a Catholic family. You put it so well – it’s the GUILT thingamy.
We’re almost Jewish in our psychological obsessions, but not as funny.
How do you shake off not being saved if you’re not a good person? For me, the only consolation is that I will spend eternity with Tony Abbott.
Now, that’s enough to make me strive to be good.
TLBD
Geez, I pour out my heart to you, at your behest, and all you can say is
Here, at the Pub, no one does blame exterioritory.
What the fuck’s “exterioritory”?
Are you accusing me of blaming exterior factors for my personality defects?
And then you comment that:
as if what I have to say requires checking for truthfulness.
And, who, pray tell, is this board that checks commenters comments?
Are you on it?
Well, there you go.
You know what, you can shove it up your collective jumpers.
Good morning Dawn Patrollers.
Jasper did his job this morning (0454) so the normal schedule has been resumed.
This goes to show that there IS a limit to what people will endure.
http://smh.drive.com.au/roads-and-traffic/state-eyes-tunnel-buyback-20130919-2u2mk.html
It will be interesting to see what the government’s reaction to the big Intergovernmental climate change report will be.
http://www.smh.com.au/federal-politics/political-opinion/commission-key-to-keeping-public-informed-20130919-2u2l6.html
The Victorian government is on a knife edge.
http://www.theage.com.au/victoria/daniel-andrews-suspended-from-parliament-for-three-days-20130919-2u1wt.html
A thoughtful article from Waleed Aly.
http://www.smh.com.au/comment/abbott-sexism-gibes-miss-the-point-20130919-2u2cb.html
Section 2. . .
OK Tone, let’s have a shit fight! Kevin Andrews will pitch in and help.
http://www.smh.com.au/federal-politics/political-news/prime-minister-tony-abbott-flags-challenge-to-act-samesex-marriage-bill-20130919-2u0z0.html
Here’s another shit fight for you, Tone.
http://www.smh.com.au/environment/climate-change/tony-abbott-cant-stop-green-loans-top-lawyer-says-20130919-2u1ip.html
Yes, now all of our information will be processed through Abbott’s Ministry of Information. Note that ManboyHunt refused to comment.
http://www.smh.com.au/federal-politics/political-news/scientists-say-climate-cuts-leave-public-in-the-dark-20130918-2tzs9.html
Section 3 . . .
Some symbolism from Andrew Dyson.
http://www.smh.com.au/photogallery/federal-politics/andrew-dyson-20090819-epqv.html
A DAVID ROWE CLASSIC. Abbott in his plush club, complete with trophies.
http://www.afr.com/p/national/cartoon_gallery_david_rowe_1g8WHy9urgOIQrWQ0IrkdO
Cathy Wilcox with a good piss take on the CC pogrom.
http://www.smh.com.au/photogallery/federal-politics/cartoons/cathy-wilcox-20090909-fhd6.html
OUCH!!!!! Ron Tandberg with one of his best!
http://www.smh.com.au/photogallery/federal-politics/cartoons/ron-tandberg-20090910-fixc.html
Apparently “Hot Albo” is going viral.
And from the Land of the Free –
Some good cartoons on Syrian diplomacy.
http://thepoliticalcarnival.net/2013/09/19/cartoons-day-diplomacy-syria/
A progressive Pope? Will Abbott listen, or is he too “small-minded”?
Pope Francis says Catholic Church must shake off ‘small-minded rules’ on abortion, homosexuality
I have no idea what the coalition focus groups are telling them, but surely most voters, if they have a view at all, have long abandoned the ‘white man’s burden’ view of the world. Parochialism, NIMBY, and ‘ I don’t want to know’, are all understandable especially the way news is butchered in Australia. But megaphone diplomacy? I hope not.
But the carryings-on by Abbott, Morrison and Bishop – all of whom have shown themselves to be morons in civil dialogue – defy belief in a modern world.
http://www.canberratimes.com.au/federal-politics/political-news/abbotts-cowboy-tack-riles-indonesian-mps-20130919-2u2lh.html
I’m starting to believe the Bushfire thesis that it’s about more than appealing to their redneck base. They half-believe they can play silly soldiers and go in telling these nig-nogs what they must do.
gorgeousdunny1
It goes down a treat with the 2GB demographic.
Yes, I’d half-forgotten that kaffeeklatscher. They possibly feel they have to throw 2GB a bone after their long campaign for the forces of darkness.
An excellent explanation of why ‘Hot Albo’ has gone viral.
http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2013/sep/19/hot-albo-sex-appeal-albanese
Blood Oaf said he would lose 12,000 public servants through ‘natural attrition’. Now we know how that will happen. You bring on ‘natural attrition’ by doing away with whole agencies and departments.
http://www.canberratimes.com.au/national/public-service/workers-in-axed-agencies-still-in-dark-about-changes-20130919-2u2uc.html#ixzz2fMy7e5O
Kezza2, if you read this… many of us have had their dose of guilt from the Catholic Church, I certainly have, but I got through it well before I left school. You’re not alone in having had to put up with it..Catholics do guilt well. The Church thrives on it.
However, there’s no need to come here abusing people, picking fights, and slagging the place off, when you think someone’s not taking you as seriously as you take yourself.
Divide & conquer: Step 1
Ones gets the feeling that Barnett last night let something slip that he shouldn’t have.
Abbott spent a week of the election run-up denying Labor’s “scare campaign” on the GST, and finally had to put the kybosh on it with a blanket “No.”
At the time I thought it was about as convincing as Howard’s “Never Ever” utterance on exactly the same subject turned out to be.
Howard claims to this day that he took the GST to the election in 1998 and thus did not break a promise.
But he did lie of course… not in 1998, but in 1995. The phoney “Never Ever” promise prior to the 1996 election helped him get elected at that time, establish a power network and then hold onto that power for another 10 years or so. If Howard had used even a hint of weasel words about the GST, when asked about it 1995, after the debacle of Hewson, his goose was cooked. Hence “Never Ever”.
The same thing applies today. Despite the best efforts of the media’s schmoozers, telling us how strong and noble Abbott is, and how much we’re going to come to admire, even love him, he’s still the same shithouse rat he’s always been. He really believes it’s better to seek forgiveness than permission. The man is literally on a Mission From God and probably realizes he doesn’t have much time to get his agenda rolling before the public twigs and tries to turf him out again.
He’s not a conservative. He’s an anarchist. He punches walls. He kicks heads. Why anyone thought he’d changed is beyond me. Newspaper columns and letters pages are already starting to fill up with punters exhibiting Buyer’s Remorse. More will out themselves as time rolls by.
In any matters of heritage and culture – say with a listed building – the best way to solve the problem is to send in the bulldozers in the middle of the night. Once the edifice is demolished, there’s no point arguing about it anymore.
The same applies to politics. Abbott has a demented look about him. The look of a wrecker about to get some serious demolition done. The look of a firebug just about to torch a house.
The calmer he becomes on the surface the more you know there’s a whole list of animosities, grievances, old scores, hatreds and forbidden pleasures welling up inside. Raising the GST is probably one of them. That’s why they didn’t take it off the table for their tax review. Abbott intends to be reluctantly dragged to that table by the state premiers and to do the dirty deed.
“That was then. This is now.”
Barnett last night (to his credit, actually… I was surprised) admitted he’d been profligate with spending. It’s probably a preliminary to sacking the Chair Sniffer as WA Treasurer. In short, despite his attempts to ameliorate the blunder, Barnett fessed up to blowing the proceeds of the mining boom and overspending.
Seeing rivers of gold, he dived in.
I doubt whether there’ll be too much more talk of a potential WA secession from the Commonwealth. Last night Barnett seemed to be clinging to the idea that Canberra, after all, is there to bail him out.
Barnett also seemed to imply that he wasn’t Robinson Crusoe. He let slip to Tony Jones that quite a few in the Cabinet were also in favour of changing the GST.
Not wanting to get between a gaggle of premiers and a bucket of money, Abbott may give Hockey the unpleasant task of hiking the GST and selling it as a good thing, not a broken promise at all, no, no, no…. Abbott never misses a chance to get back at someone, and Hockey’s due for a king hit.
So there it is. Over just a few days he’s proved he really didn’t get women, and that his statement made years ago was true: they really aren’t as talented as the blokes.
And now we have the softening up period prior to another blood oath being broken. The GST’s on the table after all. Of course it is, we all knew that. It’s why Joe kept it in the tax review.
If Abbott thinks he can maintain a dignified distance from a media braying for gotchas (and regarding them as theirs as of right), especially on the GST, he’s got another think coming. The more he refuses to talk, the more others will do the talking for him, as Barnett did last night.
Despite Bolt’s ridiculous “Days Of Seeming” versus “Days Of Doing” article yesterday, Abbott is trying hard to seem like a Prime Minister, but other, lesser politicians around the place may well start doing him and his promises some real harm, soon.
Oh sure. Reduce CBD congestion. That’s why they’re extending the M4… right into the CBD.
One piece of freeway construction, in one city, for a select group of people is going to cost nearly a third of what the entire NBN would cost to service an entire nation and bring it up to speed for the 21st century… as well as aiding decentralization so that the useless freeways wouldn’t need to be built in the first place.
What a disgraceful waste of money.
bb
On this photo, TA clearly shows signs of madness. We’re stuck with an unpredictable PM.
Kezza…It’s obvious you have questions within yourself (like us all!)to resolve…the catholic question is an age old one that works of literature have pondered for millenia. I don’t think anyone can deliver an instant panacea for so complex an issue…but if I may suggest…: When I was stabbing in the dark at what I saw as obvious and absurd discrepancies in the Christian doctrine, I would inevitably come up against a wall of seemingly incontesible “facts” concerning Jesus, the bible, the rise of christianity, judaism and the “BIG GOD” factor.
It was quite by accident that I one day picked up volume one of Edward Gibbon’s “History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire”. There, in VERY detailed chapters was the evidence of the construction, concoction and indoctrination (with associated violence) of the biggest fraud inflicted upon humanity…..In vol’ 1 you will find the opening shots of that fraud exposed in a language both clear and instructive….You can pick those volumes up, and I suggest you get the old “Everyman’s” complete, not the abridged, from a second hand book shop.
For instance, you will find that the “messiah / prophet / son-of-god jesus” was not even known to the Roman world, despite their fanatic reporting and recording of every celestial / earthly phenomenum witnessed ANYWHERE in the empire…as a matter of fact, the only time in ANY writing of that age that a reference is made to the Christian founder is in the letters of the Younger Pliny to the Emperor Trajan and THAT is only ONCE where he mentions the followers “of one; Kristos…”…and with Gibbon you will enjoy the wit with which he dismisses the absurdity of divine intervention…; “…when the tides of the oceans and the course of the planets were suspended for the convienence of the true believers…”
The entire six volumes are a lesson in human venality and management and one of the best reads in the western canon….but in there rests, I would humbly suggest, the answers to a good deal of your questions……enjoy!
The Lock the Gate Allliance are not at all happy with Ian Macfarlane. After assuring them beofre the election that he would support their views he has now done a double backflip and wants ‘every molecule’ of gas extracted.
Anyone believeing Macfarlane’s promises is an idiot. Surely a few decades of Coalition lies would have taught these people a few thngs, but no, they keep on believing what they want to believe.
http://www.theaustralian.com.au/national-affairs/politics-news/resources-minister-ian-macfarlane-accused-of-csg-mining-backflip/story-fn59nqld-1226722759028?sv=ee3de25bd382828c63a53ab441178d11#sthash.NqoRJdxs.uxfs
http://www.theaustralian.com.au/national-affairs/use-it-or-lose-it-miners-warned-by-coalition/story-fn59niix-1226721368923
How many Lock the Gate members voted for the Tories? I’ll add that mob to my ‘Suck it up, it’s too late to whinge now, you have what you voted for’ list
I suppose we can expect B Bishop to be as biased as the Speaker, Ken Smith, in Victoria.
Morning.
Another reason the cross city tunnel might be underutilised aside from the outrageous cost, is that it connects the inner westies with the eastern suburbanites. Basically the demographics are at odds with each other. I live in Glebe (inner west) & see no reason to go to Double Bay (east) & their too scared to visit our little ghetto of lefty progressives. They voted for Turdbull, we voted for Tanya, it’s simple really.
Wow, Andrews was kicked out for 3 days?
If Labor wins next year, I think the Victorian liberals are going to have a very miserable time in opposition. And rightly so. Especially that speaker.
These guys are dinosuars thinking putting bigger roads into Sydney’s CBD is going to reduce congestion, it’s just sheer stupidity.
gigilene,
More so I would think. Remember she has been kicked out on numerous occasions. Many scores to settle.
kirsdarke
Do you anticipate Fed Labor to “have a very miserable time in opposition”?
@gigilene
Unfortunately yes. Pyne as leader of the house, BBishop as speaker, nothing good for Labor there with the wicked witch and her poodle. They’ll go out of their way to be as vile and spiteful as possible.
The feminine genius is needed wherever we make important decisions,”
“We have to work harder to develop a profound theology of the woman,”
It is not possible to interfere spiritually in the life of a person.”
……..so said Pope Francis.
Sage advice that will not be taken by the current Australian Government. Perhaps all, including Pope Francis, could benefit from exploring the God/Goddess principles of paganism?
kirsdarke
“The witch and her poodle”:
http://farm1.staticflickr.com/202/441190891_489219fb86_z.jpg?zz=1
Oh, apparently there’ll be a state by-election in Miranda in NSW next month.
Miranda used to be held by Labor, but it’s now very safe Liberal as of 2011 with a 71/29 margin. It seems it will be contested by both parties.
Hopefully John Robertson will either put some effort in getting some votes back or just get out of the way for a better leader. It’s depressing seeing NSW this bad for Labor and it’s not improving with him in charge.
Who does this baby remind you of?
https://encrypted-tbn3.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcS3tgsALOu4zkBFI22GHeCoi-o1Kq5HvteNEUeq0nw0JTi9AfgL