Have a go at these questions about asylum seekers

Is there any more vexed political issue than that of refugees seeking asylum in this country? It remains so despite the recent advent of the Refugee Resettlement Agreement with Papua New Guinea.

The refugee issue was politicized by Pauline Hansen, and readily taken up by John Howard with the ‘Tampa episode’ and his 2001 election pledge: “We will decide who comes to this country, and the circumstances in which they come.” Because commentators insisted it was that stand which got him over the line in what was shaping as a probable defeat, politicians on both sides quickly saw the political advantage of being ‘tough on asylum seekers’. Later Howard followed up with his ‘Pacific Solution’. In more recent times Tony Abbott and Scott Morrison have sought to exploit Howard’s line by highlighting every new boat arrival as a Labor failure, now ‘a national emergency’, every drowning as ‘blood on Labor’s hands’, and the dismantling of the Howard three point deterrent plan as a foolish Rudd mistake. Many in the nation’s electorates, especially those in Western Sydney, agree. It is their votes that Labor seeks to retrieve.

So we are stuck with this situation, redolent as it is with racial prejudice, sometimes stark xenophobia, and simmering anger directed at asylum seekers and towards any party that allows them to keep coming. This is inflamed by politicians and fanned by a moribund Fourth Estate desperate to retain its relevancy.

Mr Denmore puts it so well in his piece: The Australian Asylum: “There are two dimensions to the refugees issue. One is managing the problem itself - a relatively marginal one for a rich economy that leads the developed world on most economic metrics. The second dimension - and the trickier one - is the theatrics around the issue, a charade kept alive by attention-seeking sections of the news media and the frightened politicians they goad into one piece of policy knee-jerkery after another. The facts of the refugee situation – however many times they are raised – don't seem to register. What matters for the dying institutions of our news media is that this issue is an emotive, eyeball-grabbing one, encompassing age-old fears of brown skinned hordes shattering our cosy, white bread suburban lives. As such, it's tailor-made for endless re-jigging on the front pages of the Tele and the Hun.”

He goes onto say: “That the tabloid anger pendulum swings so shamefacedly from fanning fear of refugees to pleading for their humanity to calling for security crackdowns to castigating the government for the cost of security is neither here nor there. What's important in media terms is that this story is easy fodder for fulmination and vein-popping outrage in dead trees media and on talkback radio. Meanwhile, the refugee issue is manna for political parties desperately seeking to differentiate themselves and cover up the fact that most of the major issues we face are beyond the control of nation states acting on their own (climate change, the structure of the financial system and the global movement of people).

“None of this is to claim that finding policy solutions to the seaborne drift of asylum seekers is easy or that there are not costs involved - strategically, financially or morally. But it would help us all if we were spared the self-serving screeching of the popular media and the grandstanding of populist politicians who jump to its orders in the vague hope of appearing relevant.”


Having read many expositions on asylum-seekers, and having listened to countless politicians and journalists express their opinions about the situation and what ought to be done about it, I am struck with the disjointed way in which this seemingly intractable issue is approached. Every commentator seems to select an angle that suits his or her position, particularly since the introduction of the Regional Resettlement Agreement with the government of PNG. The Greens mouth ‘cruelty’, the Coalition ‘border protection’, and Labor ‘people smugglers’. Seldom do we have the benefit of a commentator who has looked at the problem from every angle, has analyzed each, and has drawn logical conclusions from that analysis. We get a ‘bits and pieces’ approach that too often reflects partisan positions. Predictably, politicians do this habitually, but we ought to expect better from commentators who are able to sit back and view the situation rather more dispassionately. Sadly they too often reflect a partisan bias, born of the media organization’s particular preference. Balanced, fair, factual analysis is virtually dead in the Fourth Estate, as Mr Denmore asserts. It has its own idiosyncratic commercial and ideological agendas to pursue.

Rather than attempting to give my take on the asylum-seeker issue, I though it might be more instructive to step back and detail some of the questions that need to be asked in arriving at a position. Some answers are given – in bold; most of the answers are yours to supply.

Have a go at these:

What is an asylum-seeker? What is a refugee?

There is a great deal of confusion about the difference between an asylum seeker and a refugee and often the terms are used interchangeably or incorrectly. An asylum seeker is someone who is seeking international protection but whose claim for refugee status has not yet been determined. In contrast, a refugee is someone who has been recognized under the 1951 Convention relating to the status of refugees to be a refugee. The Convention defines a ‘refugee’ as any person who: “... owing to well‐founded fear of being persecuted for reasons of race, religion, nationality, membership of a particular social group or political opinion, is outside the country of his nationality and is unable or, owing to such fear, is unwilling to avail himself of the protection of that country; or who, not having a nationality and being outside the country of his former habitual residence as a result of such events, is unable or, owing to such fear, is unwilling to return to it …” More.

Has Australia an obligation as a signatory to the UNHCR Refugee Convention to engage with people seeking asylum?

YES.

Under the Convention, does Australia continue to have responsibility for finding a country for resettlement if the one to which a genuine refugee is sent cannot accept him/her?

YES.

How many refugees are there in the world today?

At the end of 2012 the United Nations Refugee Agency (UNHCR) reported that there were 15.4 million refugees worldwide. By contrast there were 28.8 million internally displaced persons (about twice as many people) at the end of 2012. More .

Is it illegal to seek asylum in Australia?

NO, no matter whether arriving by boat or air.

What proportion of people seeking asylum has arrived in Australia by boat?

Figures to 2011 give an idea: In 2008/09 16%; in 2009/10 47%; and in early 2010/11 44% of asylum seekers arrived by boats; the rest by air. Less than a half arrived by boat. More.

How does Australia rank in accepting refugees?

Australia accepts the third largest number of refugees (including refugees and other humanitarian entrants) for resettlement in the world after the USA and Canada. More.

What is Australia’s current intake under its Refugee and Humanitarian Program?

13,750 annually, to be increased to 20,000, and then possibly to 27,000. More.

Now for some questions for you to answer:

Should the intake be higher? If so, how much higher? Should there be a cap?

Is there an imperative to stop asylum seekers coming to Australia by small boats?

Does the loss of life at sea (around 1,000 in recent times) make this imperative stronger?

Do you believe most people in this country want to stop these boat arrivals and the drownings?

Is this our problem to solve alone, or is it a regional and global problem?

Is it reasonable to seek a regional solution that involves all nations in our region?

As a measure to dissuade asylum seekers from coming via boats, a recent Government decision is to disallow entry to Australia to boat arrivals that have no visa, and instead send them to PNG for settlement. Do you regard this as ‘cruel’ policy, as do the Greens? If so, why?

Whether or not you believe this policy is cruel, if an asylum seeker, armed with this knowledge, still chooses to arrive by boat, is this resettlement action by the Government cruel?

Put another way, is it ‘cruel’ to send people escaping persecution to PNG, when they knew that would be the case before they embarked on the boat?

Is life in PNG so bad that it is an act of cruelty to send people there?

If you believe so, given that residents of PNG live there themselves, what makes it such a cruel action to ask asylum seekers to live there too?

Why is it that so many objections to the RRA are being advanced, which throw doubt on the viability of catering for thousands of refugees in PNG, when the object of the exercise is to dissuade people from getting on boats in the first place?

Is Australia obliged to take into its own population those who demand to come here by boat, even if those people have been warned not to arrive in that way?

Is it fair to give admission to those who can afford to pay people smugglers for boat passage, while leaving the poor who cannot afford passage to languish for years in camps in transit countries? Is this consistent with Australia’s ‘fair go’ attitude? Is this consistent with the ‘no advantage’ rule now in place?

Are those who can afford to pay people smugglers for boat passage more deserving to come than the others who cannot?

Are those who can afford to pay people smugglers for boat passage more under threat? Do they have a more urgent and impressive ‘well‐founded fear of being persecuted for reasons of race, religion, nationality, membership of a particular social group or political opinion’, than others who cannot so afford?

Is it understandable that some Australians resent having what they feel is ‘a gun held to their head’ by people smugglers and those who buy their services, who seem to be saying: ‘we are coming whether you like it or not’?

Is it understandable that some Australians dislike seemingly well-off asylum seekers (for example from Iran) flying to transit countries and immediately buying passage to Australia by boat, while others wait for years in awful camps, (for example those from Burma) unable to buy themselves out?

Do you believe that the persecution, or fear of persecution, of Iranians, Iraqis, Afghans and Sri Lankans, for example, is worse that the persecution of Burmese or similar folk from our region?

Is there a case to be made for equity in managing the large number of different groups seeking asylum, a tenet of the current ‘no advantage’ approach?

Do you approve people seeking asylum purely for economic reasons – for a better life in this country?

Recognizing that some people have had to leave their country hurriedly without identification documents, do you find it acceptable that people seeking asylum deliberately destroy their identification documents in order make it difficult for Australian authorities to refuse asylum?

What action should be taken against those who destroy the identification documents?

What should happen to those not found to be genuine refugees? Should they be returned to their home country?

Is it understandable that some Australians resent asylum seekers arriving by boat uninvited, and then using our country’s resources provided at the expense of taxpayers?

Notwithstanding such feelings, do you endorse the Coalition’s rhetoric that we are being ‘invaded’, that our borders are ‘threatened’, and that the current state of arrivals constitutes a ‘national emergency’? If so, what is the threat?

Do you approve the Coalition’s just-announced ‘Operation Sovereign Borders’, (now styled OpSoB) as a response to what the Coalition regards as ‘a national emergency’?

Is it also a ‘cruel’ policy?

Given that the Howard government turned around only four boats, do you believe that the Coalition’s policy of ‘turning the boats around, when it is safe to do so’ is operationally feasible and not a threat to the boats, their occupants, and Navy personnel? Does the ‘Operation Sovereign Borders’ policy make this more feasible?

Do you believe that Howard government-style Temporary Protection Visas would diminish the flow of asylum seekers by boat?

While waiting for the processing of asylum claims offshore is understandably extremely frustrating, is it acceptable for asylum seekers in offshore processing centres to riot and destroy property?

What action should authorities take against the rioters?

Given that confinement on offshore venues for long periods waiting for processing is mentally taxing, what should be done to diminish the mental trauma? How is it possible to avoid mental disturbances when the ‘no advantage’ rule is being applied to those who came ahead of the many who still wait in camps in transit countries?

Is there any definitive way to avoid mental illness in detention? What more could/should be done to prevent it?

Would a degree of certainty about when asylum claims would finally be processed help, even if distant?

Would meaningful work and satisfying productivity postpone mental problems?

Should commercial endeavours be introduced into detention centres, as exists in prisons?

Should there be sporting, recreational and artistic activities introduced into detention centres?

Do you believe that children should not be sent for offshore processing?

Do you believe that unaccompanied children should not be sent for offshore processing?

What do you feel about asylum seekers deliberating sending unaccompanied children ahead of them on boats, so as to ‘get a foot in the door’ for the family?

If these children were exempted from removal to offshore processing, would that act as an incentive for people smugglers to operate in this way?

Do you approve of Australian citizens who have been granted asylum here, actively collaborating with people smugglers to bring fellow citizens here, as has been alleged recently?

Do you believe that immigration should be orderly, that although there is no hypothetical queue, there ought to be a mechanism for taking asylum seekers according to need and time of waiting?

Is there a case for substantially boosting processing facilities in transit countries and in countries of origin?

Could that reduce the numbers seeking to arrive by people-smugglers’ boats?

Given that the Greens seek a more ‘humanitarian’, less ‘cruel’ approach, and want an increased asylum and humanitarian intake, how do you believe they would like our immigration program to work?

Would the Greens impose any restrictions? If so what might they be?

How many who agree with the approach of the Greens have accommodated refugees in their own homes or in their communities? How has that turned out?


The above questions were designed to be neutral, rather than suggesting a particular answer.

If you were able to answer them comprehensively, would the answers assist you to devise a more satisfactory system for managing those seeking asylum in our country?

Do you believe that those who offer opinions about how to manage asylum-seekers ought to have answers to these questions, or have reflected on them?


Frankly, I am weary of reading or listening to pundits who take a myopic approach to the asylum-seeker problem, criticising this aspect or that, which is easy to do, yet who never make a comprehensive analysis of the multiplicity of factors, who never address its enormous complexity, and who thereby never come up with a wide-ranging assessment or a complete plan. The only group to have done this was the Houston Panel. Although they acknowledged the extraordinary complexity of the matter, they were able to develop a far-reaching plan, the so called ‘no advantage’ plan, one that proposed that those who came by boat and thereby short-circuited an orderly process, would not be advantaged over those who ‘waited their turn’. This operates at present.

Tony Abbott still relies on three word slogans as the Coalition’s solution, and now he has another: ‘Operation Sovereign Borders’. Scott Morrison uses verbal emesis to bully his way through interviews, regurgitating the same old words of condemnation of everything Labor has done, and praise for what the Howard government did with its tripartite approach, which he endlessly reminds us can be done again, presumably now via OpSoB. Together, they have condemned and opposed every move Labor has made to ameliorate the problem.

The Coalition’s Operation Sovereign Borders response to this complex matter is confined to a revised command structure that seems to be directed at better coordinating the ‘turn the boats around’ strategy. Where is its critical analysis of the multiple factors? Where is its detailed appraisal of this global problem that might lead to better understanding? All it continues to serve up is just more of the same simplistic approach, as if nothing has changed in the refugee situation in the last decade. ‘Turning the boats around when it is safe to do so’, which they insist can be done as it was done before, is offered irrespective of what maritime experts say and what the Indonesians think or say. The Coalition posits an ‘invasion’, a dire threat to our borders, a national emergency, and comes up with a military-style response.

The Greens represent the ‘bleeding heart’ elements in society. Sarah Hanson-Young and Christine Milne perpetually urge a more humanitarian approach; they eschew what they label as ‘cruelty’ toward the most vulnerable, those fleeing persecution. They urge a warm-hearted approach, a welcoming pair of arms, a line regarded by their supporters as laudable and praiseworthy, as indeed it is.

But there is never a moderating word, never a concession that not all seeking asylum can be accommodated, never a mention of whether there would need to be a limit, never a suggestion of how the practice of people smuggling might be countered, never a hint of how deaths at sea might realistically be avoided. It is all openhearted charity without apparent limit, without addressing the practical reality of hundreds of thousands of refugees seeking to come here, without tackling the problem of the people smugglers who are making a fortune out of the human misery in which they trade, men who would never willingly surrender their lucrative operations. It is all warmth without a hard-nosed element at all. There is never any comprehensive plan, such as they would be required to present were they in government. Never being in danger of being in power is their haven. Their legal confederates have joined with them by placing legal barriers in the way of moves that Labor has made, specifically the ‘Malaysia solution’, thrown out by the High Court.

For Labor’s part, it has struggled from one ‘solution’ to another. It has been forced by increasing arrivals to retreat from the ‘more humanitarian’ approach introduced by Kevin Rudd in 2008, required to explore regional approaches (East Timor and Malaysia) as the arrivals continued, forced to reintroduce most of the Howard’s strategies, eventually required to resort to an expert (Houston) panel to advise it, until finally Kevin Rudd was propelled to introduce the RRA with PNG. Even this option faces legal challenges and the difficulty of settling non-Melanesians in a Melanesian society.

At every turn Labor has met with resistance and criticism from the Greens, and trenchant opposition and obstruction from the Coalition, for whom it seemed the continuance of boat arrivals was a political plus.

I can offer no magic solution. I believe there is none without strong tripartisan support, the ongoing involvement of other nations in our region, and the development and implementation of a regional ‘solution’. Instead, as I did when I addressed this issue in Applying facts and logic in the asylum-seeker issue and again in What is the role of political blog sites?, I challenge those who oppose what Labor has done and is doing, what the Coalition proposes, and what the Greens seem to want, to come up with their own answers.

Any who insist on criticising what others are doing or proposing ought to tell us what THEY would do. I challenge any who attempt to do this, to do so only after answering the questions above, if they can.


If you decide to ‘Disseminate this post’, it will be sent to the following politicians: Tony Abbott, Eric Abetz, Anthony Albanese, Julie Bishop, Chris Bowen, George Brandis, Tony Burke, Mark Butler, Doug Cameron, Bob Carr, Jason Clare, Mark Dreyfus, Peter Dutton, Joel Fitzgibbon, Josh Frydenberg, Sarah Hanson-Young, Joe Hockey, Mike Kelly, Jenny Macklin, Richard Marles, Christine Milne, Scott Morrison, Judi Moylan, Robert Oakeshott, Brendan O'Connor, Christopher Pyne, Kevin Rudd, Philip Ruddock, Tony Smith, Warren Truss, Malcolm Turnbull, Andrew Wilkie, Tony Windsor, Penny Wong and Nick Xenophon.

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28/07/2013Folks As you will have discovered, this piece offers no magic ‘solution’ to the asylum-seeker issue, which is variously characterized as a problem of national security, more specifically a problem of border security, and now ‘a national emergency’ requiring a military response. Rather, this piece is an attempt to tease out the questions that need to be addressed in the process of fashioning a national response. There may be even more. Those who attempt such a response seem to do so with answers to but some of the questions or with incomplete answers, and without attending to the multiple facets of this enormously complex problem. Commentators reach out for simple answers to complex matters, or to answers they feel comfortable addressing, leaving gaping holes in their ‘solution’. Some content themselves to comment on but some of the facets, leaving the knotty ones to others. If you feel similarly about our current set of commentators, you may be interested to review a pensive piece by Tim Dunlop writing in [i]The Drum: The only border security we have left.[/i] His thoughtful piece looks behind the issue of people movement around the world, a phenomenon he links to globalization. His concluding paragraphs capture his thinking: [i]"National security" is the last shot in the locker of governments who have actively ceded control of nearly everything else they do to empowered corporations at the expense of citizens. It is the one major area of public policy where an otherwise disempowered government (of whatever political persuasion) gets to tell its people that "we will decide" what's going on. “For those outside the developed world, in failed states trying to escape persecution, it means the sort of humane globalisation provided by instruments such as the United Nation's Convention on Refugees is increasingly worthless. For those inside them it means endless surveillance by states themselves, as governments invade our privacy, all in the name of "security".” “Policies like John Howard's Pacific "solution" and Kevin Rudd's PNG "solution" are immoral because they treat asylum seekers as means (pawns, scapegoats) rather than ends (individuals with their own rights), and we are right be concerned about the wretched of the earth. But such policies are also a symptom of a fundamental problem with our entire political system and we need to focus on that too.”[/i] You can read it at: http://www.abc.net.au/news/2013-07-25/dunlop-the-only-border-security-we-have-left/4843500

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28/07/2013Hi Lyn This is word of thanks for your most recent links, several of which were related to the subject of this piece. I was taken particularly by the one on overpopulation, Craig Emerson’s article, and Tim Dunlop’s fine piece linking the refugee problem to globalization, from which I have quoted above. Your links are regular source of inspiration and relevant information, which feed into the pieces I write. Again, thank you.

Catching up

28/07/2013There is no magic solution to asylum seekers. There are more decent and prudent ways of dealing with them. I think to do this, one has to deal with reality and facts. That is not occurring now, maybe fro all parties. Needs to be taken out of the political arena. Not much chance of that happening before the next election. Not too hopeful it will happen after as well. Not while we have the present players. I believe the cost, in the long run, might lead us back to more sensible solutions Well one can only hope

2353

28/07/2013While those that seek asylum may be leaving for political or religious reasons - this shouldn't be a political issue in Australia and part of the reason I believe Howard was a terrible Prime Minister for Australia is that he politicised the issue for the 2001 election. Unfortunately there is no easy answer to the problem except it needs to be dealt with non-politically and rationally neither of which is occurring at the moment. On the face of it a land full of immigrants (all of us or our predecessors immigrated to Australia sometime in the past 40000 years so the anthropologists tell us) really is on morally shaky ground when saying "go away were are full" as both sides of politics are doing at the moment. By the same token this country is ecologically fragile there are some real restrictions where people can live - so "open slather" is not really an option either. I suppose that there needs to be a mature debate on the number of genuine refugees that are taken into the country - which won't happen for a while yet unfortunately while Rudd, Gillard, Abbott and Morrison are around and playing politics with peoples lives. Then there is the intellectual problem of how to determine a genuine refugee and how can the country support them and their decedents. The reality is that in the late 70's there was bipartisan support for refugees to settle here from Vietnam and in the 50's from Southern Europe. The similarity is that in both cases, Australia was a part of a coalition that literally bombed the crap out of their original countries. There is no difference with the current refugees/asylum seekers from Iraq and Afghanistan - Australia is part of the coalition that is bombing the crap out of them. Sri Lanka is a slightly different example - however in this case Australia effectively has done nothing to assist to bring peace to a country that has been in a civil war for decades - with atrocities from both sides. The politics of hate is a terrible thing - regardless of the ALP versus the ALP or civil, undeclared or declared wars around the world. If we are part of the problem, we also have a moral obligation to be part of the solution. At present, we aren't helping.

42 long

28/07/2013Unfortunately the party that doesn't do what the electorate want won't be in power. The electorate seems to reward the harshest treatment. Rudd's plan is to make it less attractive for Boat users because they are drowning in large numbers and at the same time raise the total number that are to come . Abbott has not done the second. If the actions of the LieNP (Morrison) are such as to ruin this latest plan it will cost more and more. I think the LieNP would wear that as long as Rudd's plane does not work. They don't care how many drown, as long as THEY get power. When they do they will have alienated all our neighbours and have nothing REAL to offer except use the Navy in a way that will have it operate in a bad light. Abbott is too insensitive and lacks diplomatic skills. To much bovver boy and attack dog.

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28/07/2013Catching up, 2353, 42 long Thank you for your thoughtful comments on this vexed issue. It is complex, multi-faceted, and incapable of an easy solution, certainly one that pleases everyone.

lyn

28/07/2013Hi Ad Thankyou for another masterpiece, you know how much I love your writing. Thankyou for your post to me @ 3pm, how good can it get my research helping such a wonderful writer and person as you are Ad Astra. The Asylum Seeker issue is so intense with hundreds of different opinions, but I like yours the best. I must have missed something as ABC reporting Coalition will keep Labors Papua New Guinea Policy, link below:- [quote]Opposition immigration spokesman Scott Morrison flags Coalition support for PNG solution[/quote] Updated 4 hours 25 minutes ago Opposition immigration spokesman Scott Morrison says a Coalition government would be prepared to keep Labor's Papua New Guinea asylum seeker policy http://www.abc.net.au/news/2013-07-28/scott-morrison-flags-coalition-support-for-png-solution/4848458 A must read everybody, this is interesting , Liberals opinion of Tony Abbott quite funny actually, enjoy:- [quote]@Geoff Robinson ‏ Will conservative elites bagging Abbott become a stampede if polls continue? [/quote] [b][quote]Saving Tony Abbott from himself by Geoffrey Luck [/quote][/b] If Brian Loughnane and Peta Credlin don’t act quickly, they will be responsible for costing Tony Abbott and the Coalition the election. The impression is growing that Abbott has been spooked by the all-singing, all-dancing acts of the resuscitated Kevin Rudd, so clearly designed to neutralise all the negatives of Labor and its polices that Abbott so successfully exposed. Now [b]he appears unsure which way to turn, mesmerised like a giant ‘roo in the hunte’s spotlight[/b]. http://www.quadrant.org.au/blogs/qed/2013/07/saving-tony-abbott-from-himself

Pappinbarra Fox

28/07/2013Iam incensed about the bad press PNG is getting. Lets leave POM out of the discussion - the people of PNG are warm and generous, They will always offer a helping hand to someone who is worse off than they are. 75% of the people are subsistence farmers and fishers -but the food is excellent and fresh. They can teach the world about sustainable living. They have a medical system and an education system that provides universal treatment and learning very cheaply. Yes there are problems - life expectancy is below average and only a small proportion of students go through to year 12, but these problems are being addressed. Even so, the people approach their life with humour and candor. There are no homeless people in PNG - everyone is entitled to land rights in line with their cultural law. People in Australia are arrogant from ignornace about the real PNG.

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28/07/2013Hi Lyn Thank you for your very kind words and your additional links. Scott Morrison got himself into a tangle on [i]Insiders[/i] trying on the one hand to say that the PNG policy was fraught, but he take it on anyway. ‘Salvage’ was the key word – he’d make a troubled policy work using his innate genius. The [i]Quadrant[/i] article was most revealing. This is a conservative publication; I’m surprised they published it! But it will raise the hairs on Slogan-Abbott’s and his minder’s necks.

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28/07/2013PF Thanks for the information about PNG. It sounds much better than some choose to paint it!

BSA Bob

28/07/2013Anyways, the good citizens of PNG can feel a bit better about themselves after today. Now that the coalition will keep Labor's plan the country will surely be downgraded from Hell Hole status. Who knows, perhaps the ABC will find something nice to say about it?

DMW

28/07/2013Hi Ad, some very interesting and tough questions some of which I will answer later. I acknowledge that you were writing about pundits etc. with these words [i]... never come up with a wide-ranging assessment or a complete plan. The only group to have done this was the Houston Panel[/i] however I contest that the only group to have done a wide ranging assessment was the Houston Panel. In fact the Houston Panel's inquiries show that were many quality submissions and many groups undertook wide ranging assessments and offered wide ranging solutions during that time and before. Anyone interested can find a wide range of assessments and excellent propositions by browsing the Asylum Seeker subject page at The Conversation http://theconversation.com/topics/asylum-seekers. The Asylum Seeker Resource Centre has done extensive work in the area and offers solutions see [b]Asylum Seekers and Refugees Myths, Facts and Solutions [/b] http://www.asrc.org.au/media/documents/myths-facts-solutions-info_.pdf Almost two years ago to 'celebrate' the ten year anniversary of the Tampa episode The Centre for Policy Development published it's report [b]A New Approach – Breaking the Stalemate on Refugees and Asylum Seekers [/b] see http://cpd.org.au/2011/08/prominent-australians-urge-political-leaders-to-break-the-stalemate-on-refugees-and-asylum-seekers/ The Castan Centre for Human Rights at Monash University has also been active in the area. There has been considerable amounts of excellent work in the area which has often been ignored by both the pundits and the punters and politicians to boot. The Houston Panel was not in fact [i]a wide-ranging assessment or a complete plan [/i] as it was hamstrung by it's terms of reference and the political imperatives when it was set up. Unfortunately the panel was obliged to ignore many excellent submissions as they did not meet the strictures of the terms of reference.

VoterBentleigh

28/07/2013If the aim of the RRA is to stop people getting onto dangerous boats, then they should be prevented from leaving the shores of Asia in the first place, not intercepted on the way here or transferred somewhere else after arrival. Many of the questions ignore the fundamental issue of justice. It is not whether the RRA is cruel as the Greens claim, but whether it is unjust. This is the issue which the UNHCR is concerned with and why, in essence, the Malaysian solution was rejected. It denies to other people (especially those from a different religion, race and cultural background to ourselves) the very notions of justice which we would claim for ourselves. The majority of us are descendants of economic, social and political migrants to this country and we now maintain that, although we have benefited from such migration, it should be denied to others who wish to come here unless they come by means of which we approve. When our ancestors came as migrants, they would have been given preference above others of less advantage or who had not been able to “afford a ticket”. After WWII, when people migrated here, some people had the advantage that they had the finances to do so, had relatives in other countries who assisted them and others were lucky enough to be sponsored. There would have been many thousands who did not have these advantages. Yet as descendants of these people, we now accuse one group of asylum seekers of having advantages over other asylum seekers. Let me quote Martin Luther King: “Any law that uplifts human personality is just. Any law that degrades human personality is unjust. …. An unjust law is a code that a numerical or power majority group compels a minority group to obey but does not make binding on itself. This is difference made legal. By the same token, a just law is a code that a majority compels a minority to follow and that it is willing to follow itself. This is sameness made legal.” (Letter from Birmingham Jail, 1963) Of course, the asylum seekers are not “illegals” under the Refugee Convention, and nor is the means by which they come illegal. But even if it were, here is King again: “We should never forget that everything Adolf Hitler did in Germany was 'legal' and everything the Hungarian freedom fighters did in Hungary was 'illegal'. It was 'illegal' to aid and comfort a Jew in Hitler's Germany.” (Letter from Birmingham Jail, 1963) But Abbott continues with his nasty propaganda, still speaking of these people as “illegal” yesterday. How any decent person can support him is beyond me. On the stance taken regarding “order” by moderates, King had this to say: “Shallow understanding from people of good will is more frustrating than absolute misunderstanding from people of ill-will. …. I had hoped that the white moderate would understand that law and order exist for the purpose of establishing justice and that when they fail in this purpose they become the dangerously structured dams that block the flow of social progress.” (Letter from Birmingham Jail, 1963) Border protection is a ridiculous argument when it is clear that the borders are being protected, since all these boatloads of people are being thoroughly checked and no terrorist activities have resulted in the umpteen years these people have been coming. So there is no crisis in security. Punitive measures against people being exploited and who are seeking asylum while doing little about dealing with those exploiting them is unjust. Of the number of refugees who arrive in Australia, less than half come by boat, yet we talk about caps on boat arrivals. Of course, there should be a limit on migrants arriving in any one year, but to suggest that we are not able to cope with the current additional arrivals by boat is not substantiated, especially when other countries have excessive numbers to deal with and few resources. As members of the human race, we have global obligations to others as well as the usual obligations we have to our nation and our own families, but when the going gets tough, Australians appear to want to back out of their obligations to take more of the displaced people in the world.

lyn

29/07/2013Today’s links Tough guys: Operation Sovereign Borders vs the PNG Solution by @ConversationEDU Just when you thought being “tough on borders” couldn’t get any more serious, along comes the Coalition’s Operation Sovereign Borders. It’s got all the right elements of a plan: it’s an operation (with 12 separate government agencies under the central command of a 3-star general no less), http://theconversation.com/tough-guys-operation-sovereign-borders-vs-the-png-solution-16443 Is the asylum problem a 'national emergency', as Tony Abbott says? by Oliver Laughland There have been no states of emergency called as a result of asylum seekers in detention, and no disasters – state or national – declared as a result of boat migration. Whilst the definition of an “emergency” in Australia could be applied to instances of deaths at sea, http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2013/jul/26/asylum-seekers-national-emergency-abbott Let's Pretend by Doug Evans Overall I think the Rudd/Gillard governments have done a passably good job in difficult circumstances and I agree with Paul Strangio that history will probably judge them (particularly Gillard) better than their current critics on the other side of the ‘House’ and in the MSM. http://theaimn.com/2013/07/28/lets-pretend/ An easy life by @Vic_Rollison As a Green, I could remove myself from the messiness of having to fight for nation building reform, like the NBN, Paid Maternity Leave, the National Disability Insurance Scheme and the National Plan for School Improvement. Of course I’d privately relish the outcomes of these policies, if they were successfully implemented, http://victoriarollison.com/2013/07/27/an-easy-life/ Are Treasury’s numbers wrong? > Check the facts by facts fight back Who: “The government is trying to bully the public service into a set of the numbers that clearly do not properly represent the state of the budget,” Joe Hockey. The claim: The government has pressed the public service into publishing budget figures that are wrong http://www.factsfightback.org.au/are-treasurys-numbers-wrong-check-the-facts/ Australian Opposition Shadow Treasurer tries to cast doubt on the independence of Treasury & Finance advice by @no_filter_Yamba As the federal electrion date looms ever nearer, this is Shadow Treasurer Joe Hockey attempting to cast doubt on the independence of Treasury’s advice. http://northcoastvoices.blogspot.com.au/2013/07/australian-opposition-shadow-treasurer.html Abbott Tells Another One by @saint13333 If this means I am saying he is a pathological liar then so be it. It’s not a nice thing to say about anyone but we are dealing with truth here. It’s not so much that he is a serial offender, he is. I think the electorate knows that and factors it in http://theaimn.com/2013/07/28/abbott-tells-another-one/ Tony Abbott’s latest 15 lies by @independentaus So how many are deliberate lies and how many reflect genuine misinformation? In other words, does the man suffer a major personality disorder or profound ignorance? And where are Australia’s fact-checkers and what are they doing? http://www.independentaustralia.net/2013/politics/tony-abbotts-latest-15-lies/ Kevin Rudd and Therese Rein visit Australian troops in Afghanistan by The Guardian the bigger surprise was the presence of Therese Rein on the trip – the first spouse of a serving prime minister to visit a war zone. Rudd and Rein spent four hours on Saturday at the main Australian Defence Force base at Tarin Kowt, which will be closed by the end of 2013 with about 1000 troops returning home. http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2013/jul/28/rudd-rein-australian-troops-afghanistan The Greens and Katter Party candidates in Rudd’s Griffith Kingdom: By @JanBowQLD “The concerns raised by Newman’s attack on the public service, the arts sector and environmental regulation have made people aware of the ‘scorched earth’ approach the conservatives have developed http://nofibs.com.au/2013/07/28/the-greens-and-katter-party-candidates-in-rudds-griffith- We've had enough IR reform to last us a while by @1RossGittins Parts of the media have worked assiduously to convince us industrial relations law is in terrible shape and in need of sweeping reform. So Tony Abbott has promised a major review, to be conducted by the hyper-rationalist Productivity Commission, with any proposals for legislative change to be taken to the election after this one. http://www.rossgittins.com/2013/07/weve-had-enough-ir-reform-to-last-us.html Tax Dodgers Sans Frontières by @MikeSeccombe Trillions? With a “T”, as in millions of millions? Where do Australia’s top companies keep their money? The ASX 100 includes 61 Australian companies that maintain 686 subsidiaries in ‘secrecy jurisdictions’, according to a recent Uniting Church report. The list below is sorted by number of these subsidiaries, in descending order. http://www.theglobalmail.org/feature/tax-dodgers-sans-frontieres/667/ NBN: Cost of Turnbull's Fibre _from_ the Node Upgrade by @SteveJ_CBR At best, the Coalition saves $225 per service and increases final costs. (Increase of not less than $50, possibly $500.)An "on-demand" rate of only 10% of subscribers, over a 10-20 year life of the Nodes, makes the whole deal a financial disaster. http://stevej-on-nbn.blogspot.com.au/2013/07/nbn-cost-of-turnbulls-fibre-from-node.html More evidence that Turnbull can’t deliver on 25Mbps minimum by @sortius For Turnbull to claim he can achieve 25Mbps within 3 years is laughable, both the speed & the time-frame are unachievable as it stands: the copper is shot & most current NBN contracts will go for another 3 years. For anyone to think VDSL/FTTN are anything but a money pit is a damning indictment on Australian politics, where the “New Liberal”, almost Tea Party-esque http://sortius-is-a-geek.com/?p=3187 How much was Kevin Rudd worth? by @Mark_Graph Revisiting the discontinuity model I initially used following Rudd's restoration, I have treated the Morgan, Galaxy and Essential data before and after the restoration as different series. I have also centred the aggregation on the assumption that the house effects http://marktheballot.blogspot.com.au/2013/07/how-much-was-kevin-rudd-worth.html So, who or what do I vote for, and why? by @CuriOz12 I get really annoyed when the Shadow Minister apparently finds it acceptable to invest in France’s FTTP network, but thinks his fellow Australians don’t deserve a similar service! http://curiozcorner.wordpress.com/2013/07/28/so-who-or-what-do-i-vote-for-and-why/ Were Rupert Murdoch and Rebekah Brooks Sleeping Together? by Connor Simpson Apparently emails uncovered during the News Corp. phone hacking investigation suggest Brooks has slept with the elder Murdoch, Lachlan Murdoch, and her fellow former News of the World editor Andy Coulson. Tiku heard about the rumor from three top News Corp executives, who say they heard it from lawyers involved with the phone hacking case, http://www.theatlanticwire.com/global/2013/07/were-rupert-murdoch-and-rebekah-brooks-sleeping- Decrease Your Electric Bill With A Few Tips On Green Energy Use by David Petar You might have heard of countless benefits relating to using solar panels in your home. There are many reasons to buy solar panels for the home, including tax deductions. The article below discusses some of the information that you need to go green. http://digitalbloggers.com/davidpetar/decrease-your-electric-bill-with-a-few-tips-on-green-energy-use/ Julia by Patriciawa Why was this intelligent, dedicated, conscientious, patriotic woman, loved by her staff, glowingly admired by the independent MPs who’d just helped her minority government pass the highest rate of legislation of any prime minister, why was she being killed off? http://polliepomes.wordpress.com/2013/07/27/julia-2/ Today’s Front Pages Australian Newspaper Front Pages for 29 July 2013 http://www.thepaperboy.com/australia/front-pages.cfm News headlines http://www.hotheadlines.com.au/

nasking

29/07/2013 ABC 24s MICHAEL ROWLAND DOES THE USUAL SPRUIK FOR MURDOCH'S NEWS LTD PAPERS...PUTTING UP THE PIC OF A POOR DEAD ASYLUM SEEKER CHILD...READING [quote]COURTESY OF NEWS LTD...[/quote] THIS COMING FROM A MURDOCH MEDIA CORPORATION THAT SEEMS TO ONLY HAVE SYMPATHY FOR REFUGEES WHEN IT SUITS THEIR POLITICAL AGENDA... NOW THEY WANT TO USE EMOTIVE WORDS AND IMAGES TO DAMAGE RUDD... BUT PREVIOUSLY?: [b]Press Council complaint regarding asylum seeker article[/b] In November 2011, The Telegraph published an article regarding asylum seekers with the front-page heading '[b]OPEN THE FLOODGATES[/b] – Exclusive: Thousands of boat people to invade NSW'. Another headline stated '[b]Detainee Deluge for Sydney[/b]'. This prompted a complaint to the Australian Press Council, which was upheld. The Press Council published the following statement (extract only): "[b]The Press Council has concluded that use of the word "invade" was gravely inaccurate, unfair and offensive because of its clear connotations of forceful occupation. [/b] Accordingly, the complaint is upheld on this ground for what the Council regards as an especially serious breach of its principles. The Council has concluded that use of the words "open the floodgates" and "deluge" were inaccurate and unfair. Even the intake levels claimed in the article could not reasonably be described as having such an extreme impact on suburban Sydney, and nothing quoted from the briefing note asserted government fears of inability to cope. WIKIPEDIA SO NOW THE ASYLUM SEEKERS DESERVE SYMPATHY...BEFORE THEY WERE INVADING HORDES. AND YOU WONDER WHY I DETEST MURDOCH AND HIS MOB OF OPPORTUNISTIC SCUMBAGS. THAT CHILD'S DEATH IS TRAGIC...AND THE WAR CRIMINALS WHO DROVE HIS FAMILY FROM SRI LANKA SHOULD BE CONDEMNED... AS SHOULD MURDOCH FOR PUSHING THE IRAQ WAR THAT LED TO SOOO MANY DEAD CHILDREN. DID THEY MAKE THE FRONT PAGES? N'

Ad astra

29/07/2013LYN'S DAILY LINKS updated: http://www.thepoliticalsword.com/page/LYNS-DAILY-LINKS.aspx

Ad astra

29/07/2013VoterBentleigh Welcome to [i]The Political Sword[/i] family and thank you for your thoughtful comment. You make many good points and offer strong arguments. Your point about border protection is particularly apt: “[i]Border protection is a ridiculous argument when it is clear that the borders are being protected, since all these boatloads of people are being thoroughly checked and no terrorist activities have resulted in the umpteen years these people have been coming. So there is no crisis in security.”[/i]. I hope you will come again.

Ad astra

29/07/2013DMW Thank you for your comment and for the links you provided, which I shall read later.

TalkTurkey

29/07/2013Good morning Lyn How is ya bin? ...Reminds me of a joke! About this old bloke: Bag in hand he runs out, Gives the Garbo a shout! Garbo gives him a grin: Old man, where's ya bin? We don't take bags today! [b]- I's bin on holiday![/b] No No! says the Garbo, scratching his chin: What I mean is, where's ya [i]wheelie[/i] bin?! [b]Aw gee[/b] says the old bloke shuffling his feet [b]I's weally bin in pokey But don't tell the whole street! [/b] ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ That joke was especially for you Dear Lynnie To help you start the week all grinny! :) And it didn't even take me as long to put to verse as you must have taken to put together this morning's Links! Thank you always. And Greetings Comrades Haven't heard a word on ABC24 today about The POLLS! I wonder why! Could it be because The POLLS have no good news for Abborrrtt? ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Ad astra I have no opinions that I think worthy of putting on the Boat People issue. I said that a few weeks ago when you focussed attention on it, before *J*U*L*I*A* was rolled and before this radical PNG strategy. (BTW Pappinbarra Fox, thank you for your comments in defence of PNG: noted and taken on board.) I said before wtte that I trusted the original Houston Report as far as I understood it, which wasn't far. But it seemed to me humane, practical, goodwilled, and adaptable to current needs. (I am a firm believer that goodwill is a great lubricant in human affairs.) I can certainly see that the PNG strategy will give some people pause - all those who are not in fear of their lives. But after reading PF's post it sounds pretty nice up there! It's a hard world for most people isn't it. The threat to our own happily-placed society doesn't come from without anyway. It comes from within, out of left field, from the Right.

Michael

29/07/2013Barrie Cassidy had Bwana Morrison looking like he was doing a bad John Clarke impression on 'Insiders'. Only by asking him questions about his own asylum seekers policy. Oh.

nasking

29/07/2013 Ad, HAVING NOW READ YOUR THOUGHT-PROVOKING POST I SHALL CORRECT A SENTENCE IN MY LAST COMMENT: [b]THIS COMING FROM A MURDOCH MEDIA CORPORATION THAT SEEMS TO ONLY HAVE SYMPATHY FOR ASYLUM SEEKERS WHEN IT SUITS THEIR POLITICAL AGENDA...[/b] THANK YOU FOR CLEARING UP THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN [i]REFUGEES[/i] AND [i]ASYLUM SEEKERS[/i]. IT REALLY HAS BEEN A GENERALLY REDUCTIONIST DEBATE...AS YOU AND MR. DENMORE CORRECTLY POINT OUT THE 'DEAD WOOD MEDIA' HAVE CONTRIBUTED AN EXCESS OF HYPE, DRAMA AND SHIFTING EMOTIVE VIEWS AND HEADLINES IN THEIR ATTEMPT TO HOOK-IN AUDIENCES DURING A PERIOD OF MEDIA TRANSITION...THIS HAS NOT SERVED THE ISSUE WELL. IT IS INDEED A COMPLEX ONE...AND DESERVES MORE IN-DEPTH EXAMINATION THAN HAS BEEN PROVIDED BY MUCH OF THE MSM. SADLY, TONY ABBOTT AND SCOTT MORRISON HAVE DONE EVERYTHING POSSIBLE TO UNDERMINE ANY ATTEMPT TO DEAL WITH THESE ISSUES IN A CALM AND PRAGMATIC WAY...THEY REMIND ME MORE OF SHOCK JOCKS THAN THOUGHTFUL PROBLEM SOLVERS. TIM DUNLOP IS CORRECT TO BRING UP THE COMPLEXITIES THAT COME WITH GLOBALISATION...WE ARE IN A TIME OF IMMENSE TRANSITION...AND THE MOVEMENT OF DISPLACED PEOPLE NEEDS TO BE EXAMINED BY EXPERT WORLD BODIES THE SAME WAY THEY ARE NOW EXAMINING TAX ISSUES. DMW HAS PUT UP SOME USEFUL LINKS...AND YOU HAVE ASKED MANY USEFUL QUESTIONS IN YOUR EXCELLENT POST. 2353 IS RIGHT TO MENTION THE SAD POLITICISATION OF THE ASYLUM SEEKER ISSUE BY JOHN HOWARD IN ORDER TO WIN AN ELECTION...IT HAS CREATED A DREADFUL PRECEDENT FROM WHICH WE HAVE YET TO MATURELY MOVE ON FROM. GOOD WORK AD ASTRA...AND COMMENTORS. N'

lyn

29/07/2013Good Morning Talk Turkey Thankyou, you put an instant permanent grin on my face. Talking about grins, here is a laughing link:- [quote]Rudd eats Bolt , alive, for breakfast lunch and tea by The Australian Conservative Truth [/quote] incredibly Abbott and the Liberals have come out and openly supported Rudd's insane PNG plan - giving Rudd a huge boost in the polls and ensuring Zero public debate on the issue, and zero interest in the Liberals Refugee solution (support whatever Rudd does apparently) - [b]just incredible how the Liberals are trying to hand the election to Rudd)[/b] http://australian-conservative-truth.blogspot.com.au/2013/07/rudd-eats-bolt-alive-for-breakfast.html :):):):):):):) http://australian-conservative-truth.blogspot.com.au/2013/07/rudd-eats-bolt-alive-for-breakfast.html

Patriciawa

29/07/2013Hi Lyn! Thank you for that link to my latest and possibly last effort in verse at polliepomes. Hard to explain why that might be, even to myself much less put it in writing. It's partly because I have not wanted to put time and effort into arguing the case for (or even against!) the Krudd! I do, however, admire the stalwart determination of people like yourself and Ad Astra to maintain the fight against the Coalition. I come here every day to read what he has to say and to follow up your invaluable links. In the same way I visit Cafe Whispers and Miglo's work at theAIMN.com. BK over at the PUB also helps keep me in touch with mainstream events and commentary on the struggle which many good people like yourselves are maintaining. I haven't however wanted to become involved in discussions. Not just because the joy has gone. Initially I thought it was that and that as grief passed I would be commenting again. But I think that will not be. These past three years with Julia and her government have been a wonderful distraction from the task I had set myself to organize all my old journals and writings. I am increasingly aware of time passing and my memory fading. So if I'm not going to leave a mess for someone else to tidy up or simply dump in the bin I'd better get back on task! If I can find a pome already written relevant to any topic Ad Astra raises, or I'm inspired to speak out on some particular issue you link me to no doubt I'll have my say, but meantime thank you!

nasking

29/07/2013 LYN, THNX FOR THE VARIETY OF LINKS...YOU ARE INDEED A HARD WORKER: I WOULD HAVE TO AGREE WITH [i]THE GUARDIAN[/i]'S OLIVER LAUGHLAND'S ASSESSMENT OF TONY ABBOTT'S TABLOID HEADLINE OR SHOCK JOCK-LIKE ATTEMPT TO GET PUBLIC ATTENTION AND FEAR-MONGER BY DESCRIBING THE PRESENT ASYLUM SEEKER ISSUES AS [quote]'A NATIONAL EMERGENCY'[/quote]: There have been no states of emergency called as a result of asylum seekers in detention, and no disasters – state or national – declared as a result of boat migration. Whilst the definition of an “emergency” in Australia could be applied to instances of deaths at sea, it is unclear whether this definition would extend to non-Australian citizens. As such, Tony Abbott’s claims of a “national emergency” due to boat migration is political rhetoric and not objective fact. I AM OF THE VIEW THAT TONY ABBOTT'S TENDENCY TO HYPE ISSUES AND UNNECESSARILY SCARE-MONGER HAS NOT SERVED THE COALITION WELL IN THE LONG RUN... AS THIS FORM OF ATTENTION-SEEKING, VOTER MANIPULATING PROPAGANDA HAS ALSO BEEN EMULATED EFFECTIVELY BY VARIOUS OPPONENTS IN ORDER TO WEDGE AND HINDER OUTCOMES BY THEIR LIBERAL AND LNP STATE ALLIES... AND UNLESS WE START TO SEE A MORE MATURE, LESS TABLOID-LIKE APPROACH TO ISSUES WE WILL SEE THIS COUNTRY DEVOLVE THE WAY THE USA HAS IN MANY WAYS... ESSENTIAL PROGRESS HINDERED BY PARTISAN POLITICS...THE BENEFICIARIES BEING THE CHAOS LOVING FOX NEWS AND LIKE-MINDED CABLE NEWS SHOWS...BLOGS ETC. N'

Curi-Oz

29/07/2013Thanks for promoting my rambling thoughts on the matter of who to vote for, Lyn the Linker. *blush:* It's hard to work out why I want to vote a particular way. At previous elections it has always been far clearer to me about the policies on offer; not this time though. And it's driving me potty (or possibly pottier ;-) )

Ken

29/07/2013Ad Bit hard to know how to address your questions without creating a post as long as your original or even longer. So just a few points. The key issue is the use of “normal” processes: UNHCR processing and our immigration programs and quotas. So the policy approach is one that encourages and supports people to go through those processes. The sub-issues associated with that are: • we do need to discourage boat arrivals • we do need to support transit countries (a regional solution) • we need to give greater support to UNHCR processing (or even send our own immigration people into refugee camps to process people either as refugees or as immigrants, as was done with the Vietnamese) • we may need better processes for differentiating refugees and economic refugees/migrants I think the old slogan, “jumping the queue” is also relevant to the discussion (although I note that the Opposition hasn’t even been using this lately). I think many Australians would think, why should we accept these “boat people” when there are thousands of others who, as you say, have been waiting in refugee camps for many years. The policies announced by Government are addressing some of these issues – no settlement in Oz for boat arrivals, the “no advantage” test, and so on. But these are the “sticks” and there are few if any “carrots”. To curtail the boat arrivals, people need to be given [u]hope[/u] that they do have a chance of being resettled within a reasonable time – when they see others who have been waiting for years in camps, it is little wonder they try to “jump the queue”. The fact that the PNG solution has not led to an immediate decrease suggests that better intelligence is required as to what the people smugglers are telling people. We need to work more closely with Indonesia to break the people smuggling rings. We need to do more in Australia to identify and charge those who are engaging in and supporting people smuggling. I think, historically, Indonesia has turned a “blind eye” to people smuggling because, at least, it is then no longer their problem. So close work with Indonesia is vital. We should allow some to come in as migrants rather than refugees and, if we clearly state that, it actually matters little whether they are genuine refugees or not. We should redirect some funding to UNHCR processing (although in the current climate of budget cuts, this may be more difficult unless we can stop the boats and, thereby, reduce the cost of patrolling the area around Christmas Island). Some of this needs expanding, but I won’t do so now for the sake of brevity.

nasking

29/07/2013 THERE IS NOONE I WOULD RATHER HAVE IN THERE THAN RUDD RIGHT NOW BECAUSE HIS SWIFT MOVES ENABLED US TO WEATHER THE GFC...AND CHINA TOOK HEART IN OUR RESPONSE... WITHOUT THAT SWIFT RESPONSE BY RUDD, SWAN AND HENRY THE MINING BOOM WOULD HAVE CRASHED YEARS AGO. I BELIEVE THE CHINESE CAN WEATHER THEIR CURRENT PROBLEMS IF THEY CAREFULLY EXPOSE CORRUPTION AND DEBT PROBLEMS AND RECTIFY ASAP... EVEN IF SOME PROVINCES AND CITIES AND COMPANIES CRASH THEY HAVE A BIG ENUFF POPULATION AND DIVERSE ECONOMY AND PRODUCTS NOW TO AVOID A RECESSION PROVIDED THEY PUT IN PLACE APPROPRIATE SAFETY NETS FOR THEIR PEOPLE AND OPEN UP THEIR ECONOMY MORE... A WELL-DESIGNED FREE TRADE AGREEMENT WITH AUSTRALIA WOULD HELP...AS LONG AS PRODUCT AND GOODS' SAFETY ARE A PRIORITY...WITH RIGOROUS TESTING AND REGULATIONS... AND WORKPLACE CONDITIONS ARE AT AN APPROPRIATE STANDARD: Treasurer Chris Bowen said on Sunday the key message from the G20 finance ministers' meeting in Moscow was that Australia faced ''strong headwinds'' with continued recession in Europe, growth slowing in China and ''slower than anticipated growth in some key emerging economies''. ''Australia's mining investment boom is drawing to a close,'' he said. ''Nevertheless, I have every confidence Australia is in a very strong position to meet these challenges.'' Read more: http://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/federal-politics/federal-election-2013/rudd-resists-call-as-early-vote-unlikely-20130728-2qssk.html#ixzz2aOLQYKBV N'

Truth Seeker

29/07/2013Ad, thanks for another fine piece, looking at this vexed question. :-) As you are aware, I have written my own thoughts on asylum seekers, and although I know there are no simple solutions, I have to admit to being increasingly annoyed with the puerile and self serving approach of the LNP and the greens. They both cry crocodile tears over the deaths at sea whilst actively producing and promoting the lies and spin that the people smugglers are now using to continue to fill their boats, and their coffers. Monumental hypocrites! Cheers :-)

nasking

29/07/2013 [b]Europe, China defuse solar energy trade spat[/b] Date July 28, 2013 European Union and Chinese negotiators reached an agreement to curb EU imports of solar panels from China in exchange for exempting the shipments from punitive tariffs. The accord would set a minimum price for imports of the renewable-energy technology from China. In return, Chinese manufacturers would be spared EU levies meant to counter below- cost sales, a practice known as dumping. The EU import taxes target more than 100 Chinese companies including Yingli Green Energy, Wuxi Suntech Power and Changzhou Trina Solar Energy. “[b]We found an amicable solution in the EU-China solar- panels case that will lead to a new market equilibrium at sustainable prices,” European Trade Commissioner Karel De Gucht said in a statement today in Brussels. [/b]He didn’t disclose China’s minimum-price offer, which must be accepted by the full European Commission, or indicate whether the accord includes a limit on the volume of imports from China. The goal is to limit Chinese competition against European manufacturers such as Solarworld AG in the EU’s largest commercial dispute of its kind, without resorting to anti- dumping duties. The case covers EU imports of crystalline silicon photovoltaic modules or panels, and cells and wafers used in them -- shipments valued at 21 billion euros ($US28 billion) in 2011. http://www.smh.com.au/business/carbon-economy/europe-china-defuse-solar-energy-trade-spat-20130728-2qs8x.html IT'S IMPORTANT TO HAVE AMICABLE DISCUSSIONS. N'

Ad astra

29/07/2013Patriciawa It would be so sad were you to retire completely from commenting on political blog sites, and of course on [i]TPS[/i]. So please return from time to time to leave us a brief comment, or one of your delightful pomes. I have noticed that the volume of comments on [i]TPS[/i] has lessened since the departure of Julia Gillard. Suddenly our beloved PM has gone - from being in the news many times a day to scarcely ever being mentioned at all. It’s sad and disheartening, all the more so because the current PM and his ‘Team Rudd’ spent three years undermining her and making life so much more difficult that it need have been. Internal sabotage is much more corrosive that external aggression. The ‘zing’ has gone out of political discourse, and the enthusiasm to comment is diminished. For my part, Kevin Rudd, the mastermind behind the erosion of Julia Gillard, owes Labor supporters big time. His only hope for redemption among many Julia Gillard supporters would be for him to win the election and keep Abbott’s destructive, ultra-conservative hands off the levers of power. I understand your situation, and empathize with your feelings. Take a rest, but please come back once in a while to say hello.

nasking

29/07/2013 SPEAKING OF A NEED FOR 'AMICABLE DISCUSSIONS': Several thousand supporters of Egypt's ousted Islamist president are marching on a military facility in Cairo in defiance of an army warning to stay away, risking a new confrontation after dozens were shot dead at the weekend... The European Union's foreign policy chief, Catherine Ashton, was due to meet on Monday with the army's general Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, who led the overthrow of Mr Morsi, and officials of the Freedom and Justice Party, the Brotherhood's political wing. http://www.abc.net.au/news/2013-07-29/muslim-brotherhood-marches-on-egypt-army-headquarters/4849946 YOU'D THINK A CIVILISATION AS OLD AS EGYPT'S WOULD BE MATURE ENUFF TO COME UP WITH AN AMICABLE SOLUTION. SADLY, EXTREMISM AND THE PRIVILEGED FEW PROTECTING THEIR INTERESTS ARE WINNING THE DAY... LET'S HOPE THIS CHANGES...SOON. FOR THE SAKE OF THE CHILDREN. FOR ONE. N'

Bacchus

29/07/2013I'll just put this thought out there: If we work towards a regional "solution" to people getting on boats to come to Australia, we need to be careful we don't provide a "honey-pot" for asylum seekers in our neighbouring countries. Making it easier to get processed and resettled in Indonesia or Malaysia may have the unintended consequence of attracting more people from the largest populations in host countries to these places, causing greater problems for them. Perhaps we need to work much harder with the UNHCR closer to the source - in Pakistan, Afghanistan, Iran etc. Just a thought...

nasking

29/07/2013 Ad, if your focus is going to remain on this moping attitude some have on here related to the overthrow of Julia Gillard I feel it only contributes to the lack of desire for some to comment more. It kept me away for a week recently. You write effective posts...that are receiving deserved scrutiny...I would not feed the melancholic attitude if I were you...I feel a real political shift happening here in QLD that has a great deal to do with the oft negative and callous policies of the LNP...and the resurgence of Rudd...you need to explore this. N'

nasking

29/07/2013 FROM THE URBAN DICTIONARY: mop·ey [moh-pee] adjective, mop·i·er, mop·i·est. languishing, listless, droopy, or glum. ---- UNINSPIRING. UNMOTIVATING. ------ LYN...KEEP UP THE GREAT WORK...YOU INSPIRE ME. N'

lyn

29/07/2013Hi Curi-Oz, Nasking and Patricia, Curi_Oz, Thankyou, you are very welcome, it is a pleasure to post your blog. I do get so much enjoyment out of linking our own readers blogs. Can understand your feelings eg. [quote]driving me potty (or possibly pottier). [/quote] Nasking that is so nice of you @ 11.38am. I think you are doing a wonderful job of inspiring our readers, we learn something everyday. Patricia, thankyou . I am so pleased to hear you are still reading & commenting. Cheer up you poor little Sweetie, we all love you and care about you ♥♥

Curi-Oz

29/07/2013AdAstra, Just received an email with the following tagline and thought how terribly appropriate it was to the leadership Australia is receiving from our political parties on this particular issue. [quote] Every hard-boiled egg is yellow inside. [/quote] It is very easy to declaim harsh responses to a situation, but the veneer is easily cracked to show the cowardice lurking within them. I am arriving at the conclusion that politics may be the art of getting the possible done, but the wide variety of possibilities are not seemingly being considered. So sadly, I must yet again traduce Gen. Blainey and suggest that the leadership of this country is emulating his fine standards, remembering that his reputation was highlighted by the original Murdoch press! Well, it seems so fashionable to call on military men to enhance one's poor arguments! *snide, sour & sarcastic*

nasking

29/07/2013 CHEERS LYN, CHRIS BOWEN JUST DID A BRILL JOB ON ABC 24 MAULING HOCKEY AND NEWMAN'S LNP. THAT LINK YOU PUT UP TO [i]NORTH COAST VOICES[/i] WAS HANDY: [b]As the federal electrion date looms ever nearer, this is Shadow Treasurer Joe Hockey attempting to cast doubt on the independence of Treasury’s advice.[/b] Sky News 26 July 2013: [quote]The federal opposition says it won't rely on Treasury's numbers to work out how much its policies cost. Instead shadow treasurer Joe Hockey says they have used the Parliamentary Budget Office, state government colleagues and independent advisers….. 'What I can say emphatically is that our numbers will be more reliable than anything the government publishes.'[/quote] He says the government is trying to 'bully' Treasury into delivering a certain set of numbers…. [b]Mr Hockey has previously said the coalition would detail costings of its policies once the PEFO was released.[/b] But now he's casting doubts on its independence…. [b]This was Joe Hockey 36 days previously as he formed part of a unanimous vote expressing full confidence in Department of the Treasury and Department of Finance and Deregulation advice.[/b] [b]Hansard 20 June 2013[/b] at approximately 1.28pm: Department of the Treasury and Department of Finance and Deregulation [b]Debate resumed on the motion: That this House expresses full confidence in the: (1) Department of the Treasury and Department of Finance and Deregulation; (2) Treasury Secretary, Dr Martin Parkinson and Finance Secretary, David Tune; and (3) following words by Treasury Secretary, Martin Parkinson: 'I can say on behalf of David Tune, the Secretary of the Department of Finance and myself—and get this right—were PEFO [the Pre Election Economic and Fiscal Outlook] to have been released on the 14th of May, it would have contained the numbers that were in the budget.' The SPEAKER: The question is that the motion by the member for Lyne be agreed to. Question agreed to. [/b] POSTED BY CLARENCEGIRL http://northcoastvoices.blogspot.com.au/2013/07/australian-opposition-shadow-treasurer.html HOCKEY COMES ACROSS LIKE HE IS TRYING TO CON THE VOTERS. CONSIDERING THE COALITION'S DODGY COSTINGS PRODUCED BEFORE THE LAST ELECTION WITH THE HELP OF A PRIVATE COMPANY THAT WAS FINED FOR ITS EFFORT THIS RECENT SHIFT INTO THE ALL-SPIN ZONE AND BACKFLIP BY THE SHADOW TREASURER LOOKS BAD...LACKING INTEGRITY. NOT A SMART MOVE. BUT THEN, I EXPECT NO LESS FROM THE ABBOTT TEAM. THEY ARE INCOMPETENT...A RISK TO THE ECONOMY. N'

Ad astra

29/07/2013nasking I am not moping; I don't do moping. I am simply reflecting what I sense others are feeling. I'm glad to read that the atmospherics are improving for Labor in Queensland. I believe Rudd will defeat Abbott. But it will take a solid win to erase the feelings of disappointment many feel about how Julia Gillard was treated, and Kevin Rudd's involvement in it.

nasking

29/07/2013 MEMORIES... TO THINK THE LIBERALS GAVE THESE CLOWNS ANOTHER GO...TELLS YA SOMETHING ABOUT THE DEPTH OF THE PRESENT LIBERAL PARTY: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-xV7TjFvgXU SHOWS ALSO HOW MUCH RESPECT THESE RIGHT-WING CATHOLIC LIBS HAVE FOR WOMEN. [b]PATTERN OF BEHAVIOUR.[/b] N'

nasking

29/07/2013 Ad, AS I SAID TO FIONA OVER AT [i]THE PUB[/i]: nothing will save the Leader of the Opposition. I was speaking this weekend to one of my wife’s family who is a diehard Liberal voter…she was really sh*tty with Newman and the LNP here in QLD…feels they have created too much instability…regretted voting for them. Had nothing good to say about Abbott. I was surprised because she is normally a staunch Liberal. I'VE WATCHED DOWNWARD SPIRALS IN MANY PREVIOUS ELECTIONS...ABBOTT AND TEAM SHOW ALL THE CHARACTERISTICS. I EXPECT SOMEONE WILL SEND HIM A POSTCARD WITH MUNCH'S [b]THE SCREAM[/b] ON IT SOON ENUFF. PERHAPS ORIGINATING FROM WENTWORTH? N'

Michael

29/07/2013Personally I'm glad Julia Gillard won't be facing Tony Abbott at the next Federal election. I am quite certain it would have been the most disgusting exercise in personal belittlement and vituperative attack on a national leader in this nation's political history. We saw three years of almost incredible ['dictionary' definition] personal pursuit, mockery, disdain dressed with disgust, caustic comment and deriding disparagement that I still find hard to believe occurred, let alone was countenanced, led, fed, guided and focused by Conservatives in Australian politics, media and business, who probably still believe she was 'fair game'. They certainly convinced many of the wider public she was. A target. A "liar". A "bitch". An election campaign with all the bile and spite that these last three years built up, vocabularised to become 'acceptable' social discourse, when tightly hemmed in by the five weeks of electioneering and hot exchanges of partisan positions on every aspect of Australian life from womb to tomb, such an election campaign closed in and clamping down on a Prime Minister dehumanised by harassment and mockery daily before the first day the election was called... May well have torn this country apart. It would certainly, if it did not destroy the woman who "just won't lie down", would have exposed in white heat an ugliness about how politics 'works' in this country that has shown me over these last three years how viciously politics can be worked against the interests of democracy as a contest of ideas, beliefs, and commitments, rather than an arena for personal vendetta. If Julia Gillard had led Labor into the next Federal election as a true contest of ideas and abilities, of policies and plans, then I believe that she could well have won such an election. It was never going to be that. Kevin Rudd believes he can win. I believe he can win. He has the measure of his opponents because he looks the likes of Abbott in the eye and sees a lesser man. Someone, quite simply, he can beat. That's his conviction. His political skill is that he conveys that conviction. Widely, convincingly. So much so that people laugh and grin and grab photo ops along with Kevin as if they're already at the victory party with him. Not Labor's. Australia's. I believe that in her heart of hearts Julia Gillard feels/felt pity for Tony Abbott, pity for a human being who knows only one form of contest - hit low, hard and dirty. I believe she finds/found it almost impossible to believe that anyone else (all of Abbott's team) could day in, day out, week in, week out, continue behaviour the diametric opposite of all that is fine, caring, or considerate in human beings. I believe that in her Labor heart (an organ Abbott constantly talks about as being weak because it is not hard) Julia Gillard could not/cannot find it possible to completely embrace the idea that her opponents have nothing more in mind than taking back political power (for its own sake) and turning around social reforms (to spite the "Left"). This inability to accept that viciousness can be the driving core of her opponents would, I am convinced, once they'd harnessed it with the mob in the hothouse of an election campaign, been an ugly dismantling of any and all constraints in attacking her. Julia Gillard is better than Tony Abbott. Before you say "that's not too hard", just say again, out loud - "Julia Gillard is better than Tony Abbott". An election campaign that targeted her... Well, is there any need to say anything more? Any person... "targeted"? I sincerely believe that the likely election we were looking at just four weeks ago, the election that promised a landslide victory to Tony Abbott and the forces behind him, would have done such damage to this country I doubt a generation passing would be long enough to undo it. What it would have done to Julia Gillard I believe no nation should have had on its conscience. But that's where Australia was heading, that's where it was being guided. Julia Gillard is better than Tony Abbott. But Kevin Rudd has his measure. Nothing could have been worse than Abbott unleashing and sanctioning hate on Julia Gillard at the barbaric federal election he wanted so much to have. Only one thing could be better than Kevin Rudd leading Labor to victory at the next election.

nasking

29/07/2013 A GOODIE FROM MUNGO: In other words, the shadow treasurer regards Treasury not only as incompetent but corrupt. Not only do Martin Parkinson and his colleagues get the numbers wrong, but they make them up to suit their political masters. So Hockey is going to bypass the only people in a position to know what is going on and get a few of his mates to do his costings for him - you can really trust them. The trouble is that this is exactly what happened in 2010. Then, the excuse was that the Coalition had submitted some of its policy costings to Treasury for checking, and the results had leaked - highly embarrassing as Treasury found that Hockey and the shadow finance minister Andrew Robb had got things hopelessly wrong. So they announced with some indignation that Treasury could not be trusted and instead they would go to private enterprise, a Perth firm of accountants called WHK Horwarth - the fifth largest in Australia, bragged Robb - who could possibly doubt their findings? And of course the Libs didn't especially when Howarth issued a very brief report saying, yes, it all added up. But Howarth had simply accepted what Hockey had given them: all the assumptions and all the estimates. All they had done was to check the arithmetic. It was clear case of garbage in, garbage out; but with the election only days away, Hockey and Robb got away with it - until it turned out to be a hung parliament, and Abbott set out to woo the independents to make him prime minister. The independents jacked up: they wanted proper costings and insisted Abbott submit his proposals to Treasury after all. Cornered, Abbott did so; and the answer came back that there appeared to have been questionable assumptions and double counting which added up to a Hockey black hole of nearly $11 billion. [b]In the Financial Review, Laura Tingle wrote that it proved that the whole gang of them were either liars or clunkheads (or both), and not fit to govern. Hockey, rather sheepishly, admitted that there was, it appeared, a difference of opinion. It wasn't the only factor that propelled Tony Windsor, Rob Oakeshott and Andrew Wilkie into Julia Gillard's camp, but it was certainly a significant one. [/b] And [b]the icing on the cake, from Labor's point of view, came when the Institute of Chartered Accountants found that the Horwath effort was not, as it purported to be, either an audit or a review, but simply an exercise in basic arithmetic, and as a consequence reprimanded and fined the fifth biggest firm in Australia. This time Hockey's comment was somewhat more terse: "I'm not getting into it, mate."[/b] [b]Those who forget history are doomed to repeat it[/b]. OK, this time Hockey plans not to go just to one firm, but to spread the burden of costing between the Parliamentary Budget Office, some friendly state treasurers, and a variety of private companies. But the fact remains that none of these agencies, however objective or well-intentioned they are, will have the same access and resources as does the federal Treasury; after all, evaluating both the broad picture and all the details is what it's there for. And of course there is unlikely to be a hung parliament this time, with independents needing to be brought on side. But there just might be; and in any case, the electorate, having been badly stung three years ago, is likely to be a bit more sceptical of Hockey's and Abbott's claims to have found truly honest, transparent and believable endorsement this time around. [b]Still, they will have their defenders. While most of the media reported Hockey's announcement with some incredulity[/b] (one obvious comment was that if he did not trust or believe Treasury, he might have some difficulty administering the portfolio), [b]The Australian ran a small story on page two by its economics editor, David Uren, under the heading: "Hockey weeds out rubbery figures." Now there's one institution the Coalition can always rely on.[/b] INDEED. N'

nasking

29/07/2013 HERE'S THE LINK: [b]Hockey's costings farce gets a second round By Mungo MacCallum [/b] Having not learnt his lesson at the last election, Joe Hockey has again decided that anyone could do a better job at costing the Coalition's policies than the one department actually designed to do this, writes Mungo MacCallum. http://www.abc.net.au/news/2013-07-29/maccallum-hockeys-costings-farce-gets-another-outing/4849878 N'

nasking

29/07/2013 WATCHED NBC's MEET THE PRESS TODAY... PRESENTER DAVID GREGORY USED AN OVER-THE-TOP WALL STREET JOURNAL EDITORIAL TO BASH THE OBAMA ADMIN... THE MURDOCH EMPIRE TOOK OVER THE WSJ A FEW YEARS AGO SO YOU CAN EXPECT THEM TO CRAP ON OBAMA. THE TRUTH IS THE REPUBLICANS HAVE WORKED OVERTIME SABOTAGING THE AMERICAN ECONOMY...BEEN A BIG HURDLE TO GROWTH AND PROGRESS. THEY, LIKE TONY ABBOTT'S TEAM HERE, SEEM TO CONTRIBUTE LITTLE BUT 'NO' AND NEGATIVITY. THEY ARE FAR TOO INFLUENCED BY BIG OIL, ARCHAIC INDUSTRIES, RUSH LIMBAUGH, THE NRA, FOX NEWS, THE DRUDGE REPORT, THE KOCH BROTHERS, CLIMATE CHANGE DENIALISTS, WHITE SUPREMACISTS AND BACKWARD LOOKING RELIGIOUS LEADERS. THIS IS NOT A REPUBLICAN PARTY THAT BELIEVES IN WORKING TOGETHER IN A BI-PARTISAN WAY TO MOVE THEIR COUNTRY INTO A POSITIVE APPROACH TO ADAPT TO MASSIVE GLOBAL TRANSITIONS. THEY ARE AN UNMOTIVATING AND UNINSPIRING GROUP. A PARTY OF NAYSAYERS AND WHINERS. PAST LEADERS OF THE REPUBLICAN PARTY MUST BE SPINNING IN THEIR GRAVES. N'

nasking

29/07/2013 THIS IS THE KIND OF IDIOCY YOU GET FROM MAJOR LEADERS OF THE AMERICAN REPUBLICAN PARTY... HIGH SCHOOL SPATS DURING A TIME THAT ALL AMERICAN CONGRESSMEN AND WOMEN, AND SENATORS...NEED TO PUT THEIR NOSES TO THE GRINDSTONE AND GET ON WITH THE JOB OF CREATING JOBS AND OPPORTUNITIES...PUSHING INNOVATIVE PROJECTS...PASSING A MOTIVATING AND INCLUSIVE IMMIGRATION BILL...PROVIDING AFFORDABLE EDUCATION WITH FIVE DAY A WEEK SCHOOL DAYS AND CLASS SIZES THAT DON'T GIVE THE IMPRESSION TO STUDENTS THEY ARE JUST ONE OF A HERD...ALLEVIATING THE DEBT BURDEN ON CITIES AND LOCAL ADMINISTRATIONS...STIMULATING POSITIVISM AND DIVERSE JOB SECTORS...AND APPLAUDING HEALTH REFORM THAT WORKS... NOT HAVING TIME WASTING, ATTENTION-SEEKING, CELEBRITIES STARVED FOR THE LIMELIGHT SPATS: FRANKLIN, Tenn. — Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul hit back at New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie in the two Republicans' ongoing spat over national security. Christie last week criticized Paul's opposition to warrantless federal surveillance programs, saying it harmed efforts to prevent terrorism. Paul told reporters after speaking at a fundraiser outside Nashville on Sunday that Christie's position hurts GOP chances in national elections, and that spending priorities of critics like the governor and Rep. Peter King of New York do more to harm national security. "They're precisely the same people who are unwilling to cut the spending, and their `Gimme, gimme, gimme – give me all my Sandy money now.'" Paul said, referring to federal funding after the hurricane last year. "Those are the people who are bankrupting the government and not letting enough money be left over for national defense." King in a phone interview late Sunday called Paul's criticism of Sandy aid "indefensible." "This was absolutely life or death money that was essential to New York and New Jersey," King said. Christie, at a forum in Colorado on Thursday, pointed to a "strain of libertarianism" coursing through both parties as a "very dangerous thought" more than a decade after the Sept. 11 attacks. Christie was asked whether he was referring to Paul, a fellow potential Republican presidential candidate who has been at the forefront of the party's libertarian wing. "You can name any number of people and he's one of them," said Christie. "These esoteric, intellectual debates – I want them to come to New Jersey and sit across from the widows and the orphans and have that conversation. And they won't, because that's a much tougher conversation to have." Paul on Sunday rejected arguments that the National Security Agency's collection of hundreds of millions of U.S. phone and Internet records are necessary to prevent terrorism. LOAD OF BS. THE REPUBLICAN PARTY DECIDED TO SLEEP WITH THE LOOPY LIBERTARIANS AND FOX NEWS... NOW THEY LIE IN THE BED OF THEIR OWN MAKING. [b]PROBLEM IS...THE WORLD HASN'T GOT THE TIME TO WAIT FOR THEM TO WAKE FROM THEIR POST-TEA PARTY HANGOVER SLUMBER. [/b] N'

nasking

29/07/2013 THE LINK: [b]Rand Paul Hits Back At Chris Christie Over Surveillance[/b] http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/07/28/rand-paul-chris-christie_n_3668411.html N'

Ad astra

29/07/2013Folks Here is today’s [i]Essential Report[/i]. Apart from the TPP unchanged on 51/49 to the Coalition, which is neither here or there, scroll down to the items on asylum seeker policy for some surprises, the go to the last item for 29 July to see who is judged ‘Best leader of the Liberal Party’. http://essentialvision.com.au/category/essentialreport

nasking

29/07/2013 RUBBISH...JUST AN EXCUSE TO SCREW OVER THE TEACHER UNIONS...UNDERMINE TEACHER PAY AND CONDITIONS...BRING IN MORE CORPORATE INFLUENCE OVER SCHOOLS...PUSH MORE RELIGION IN PUBLIC SCHOOLS...DESTROY THE NATIONAL CURRICULUM...HAVE TEACHERS PUSHED AROUND BY BOSSY LOCAL RELIGIOUS AND BUSINESS CHARACTERS...NOT ON!: Dr Napthine says progress has been made on the final funding figure for Victoria and he plans to speak with Prime Minister Kevin Rudd again this week. But he says the issue of how much say the Commonwealth will have in school operational matters remains the sticking point. "I would've thought that other states similarly would have believed local control of schools gives the best educational outcome," he said. "That's what we should be on about. What's in the best interests of our children, what's in the best interests of getting positive educational outcomes and having local principals and local school councils running local schools." http://www.abc.net.au/news/2013-07-29/significant-progress-made-in-talks-on-education-reforms-but-stu/4850820 IF RUDD'S ALP GO DOWN THIS ROAD MANY TEACHERS AND THEIR FAMILIES WILL GO BALLISTIC. THE ALP WILL HAVE LOST THEIR TRUST BIG TIME. IT'S ENUFF THAT WE HAVE TO TOLERATE SCHOOL CHAPLAINS IN PUBLIC SCHOOLS...AND TOP PRIVATE SCHOOLS STILL GETTING SO MUCH MONEY... AND PUTTING UP WITH THE MEDIA MISUSING THE NAPLAN RESULTS...AND ACCOMODATING INTRUSIVE NATIONAL TESTING AS IT IS. NOR HAVE THE ALP MADE ANY KIND OF FUSS ABOUT THE WA AND QLD LIBERALS MOVES TO TURN PUBLIC SCHOOLS INDEPENDNT. TRUST IS LOW AS IT IS. N'

Ken

29/07/2013Bacchus I don't think a regional solution should lead to refugees being "resettled" in Indonesia, Malaysia, etc. With outside support, they could be processed in those countries but then we have to find third countries for resettlement. Australia should be one of those third countries, but so should a number of others - e.g. USA, Canada, New Zealand, and perhaps some European countries. The issue then becomes one not of processing but how long people would spend in camps in those countries before a country for resettlement was found. If that period becomes too long, then, yes, there is a problem. Michael A perspicacious comment. You are probably right. Against Gillard, Abbott had been setting the ground work for such a campaign for three years. And I agree that it would have set back political dialogue in this country for many years. Gillards recently published comments in the Monthly magazine are also relevant: namely, that a gender based attack was glossed over, although, as she said, if a sign "ditch the black bastard" the first Indigenous Prime Minister, or even against Obama, it would have meant the end of a political career. There are a number of aspects to the problems but, yes, it wold have gotten very dirty.

42 long

29/07/2013Just thought of a REAL boat problem. USA Tea Party Types migrating here and bringing all their "cultural" baggage with them. Wouldn't hear a word from the President's Press. (Murky's Musings). Just imagine all that TALENT. (USA TALIBAN. with GOD and money backing them.)

Bacchus

29/07/2013Sorry Ken - badly worded. I didn't mean resettled in Indonesia or Malaysia, rather resettled [b]from[/b] camps in those countries. I see this as a potential "honey-pot" for asylum seekers currently languishing in camps in host countries closer to the source. Would setting up better regional processing arrangements lure more people towards Indonesia & Malaysia, to the detriment of those countries?

Ken

29/07/2013Bacchus Agree that is a possibility. I did mention in the earlier discussion on asylum seekers that more attention should be paid to UNHCR processing centres closer to the source countries. As to the recaptcha - would love to know what an "historical toneesh" is!!!

nasking

29/07/2013 AND THE ALP NEED TO BE AWARE OF THE FOLLOWING... MANY TEACHERS INCLUDING PRINCIPALS DESPISE TONY ABBOTT AND CHRISTOPHER PYNE...AND THEIR 'PERFORMANCE PAY' IDEAS... AND THEY APPRECIATED THE EFFORTS OF THE PREVIOUS RUDD GOVT...THE MONEY AND COMPUTERS THAT FLOWED INTO SCHOOLS DESPERATE FOR ANY KIND OF SUPPORT AFTER THE HOWARD DROUGHT...THE ASSISTANCE PROVIDED ENSURING IMPROVED SCIENCE AND LANGUAGE LABS, BETTER LIBRARIES, MORE MONEY FOR UPDATING TECH TOOLS, TEXTBOOKS AND OTHER RESOURCES...BUILDING NECESSARY SCHOOL HALLS...SCHOOL GARDENS... IT ALL MADE A HELLUVA DIFFERENCE TO BOTH STUDENT AND STAFF MORALE...AND HAS CREATED MORE EFFECTIVE TEACHING SPACES...MUCH APPRECIATED... HOWEVER, THERE HAS BEEN A CERTAIN AMOUNT OF AMBIVALENCE CREATED BY THE OBSESSION WITH TESTING AND POSTING RESULTS...SOME EDUCATORS ARE WARY OF THIS BEING USED BY FUTURE GOVTS TO IDENTIFY 'FAILING SCHOOLS' AS WAS DONE IN THE USA...IN ORDER TO CLOSE SCHOOLS...AND CREATE CHARTER AND OTHER TYPES OF INDEPENDENT SCHOOLS....CAUSING UNDUE PAIN TO SOME HARD WORKING TEACHERS AND STUDENTS. IF THE FEDERAL ALP LOOKS LIKE IT IS HEADING DOWN THAT ROAD I KNOW A NUMBER OF EDUCATORS WHO WILL BE TEMPTED TO VOTE GREEN THEN LIBERAL... BECAUSE ONE THING TEACHERS HATE IS PARTIES THAT PURPORT TO SUPPORT THEM BUT IN FACT ARE NOTHING BUT CORPORATE PUPPETS STABBING THEM IN THE BACK. THEY FEEL IT WOULD BE BETTER TO DEAL WITH CONSERVATIVES IN THIS CASE WHO THEY CAN TAKE ON HEAD ON... AND OF COURSE IF TURNBULL ENTERED THE PICTURE I KNOW FOR A FACT MANY EDUCATORS WOULD VOTE LIBERAL IF THEY THOUGHT THE ALP WERE REALLY JUST PUPPETS PUTTING IN A SYSTEM TO BACKSTAB THEM. IN FACT, I HAD A DISCUSSION WITH THREE TEACHERS AT A LUNCH A FEW WEEKENDS BACK WHO SAID EXACTLY THAT. THEY LIKE THE ALP...BUT ARE WARY OF THEM HAVING BROUGHT KLEIN FROM NY AND ARNIE DUNCAN FROM CHICAGO/WASHINGTON HERE A FEW YEARS BACK. JUST SAYIN' N'

Michael

29/07/2013Like to reinsert a link Lyn placed here earlier today. Anyone who wants to know what deeply dyed in the wool Australian Conservatives think about should read this article: http://australian-conservative-truth.blogspot.com.au/2013/07/rudd-eats-bolt-alive-for-breakfast.html because it demonstrates just how vapid (but no less ugly and vicious) attack dogs like Bolt and Abbott are without any definitively considered and arrived at political philosophy. A philosophy I find mind-bogglingly self-deluding, but at least evidence of some neurons being fired up, as distinct from knuckledusters fitted and bovver boots laced up.

nasking

29/07/2013 42 long, something we should worry about are the [b] violent American biker gangs[/b] that are migrating here... and some of these [b]dodgy wealthy business characters.[/b] More scrutiny required. They will have a much bigger and delitarious IMPACT on the Australian way of life. N'

Ad astra

29/07/2013DMW Thank you for the links to the many articles in [i]The Conversation[/i] about asylum seekers, the Asylum Seeker Resource Centre, and the Centre for Policy Development document. I have bookmarked them all. Do you have a link to the submissions to the Houston Panel? TT I note your comments. This subject is one of the most difficult in federal politics today. No one has the final ‘solution’. Nasking Thanks for your complimentary remarks. I agree that all Slogan-Abbott and Scott Morrison have done is to add fuel to the fire of resentment that is burning in much of the electorate. To them, boat arrivals are a political plus. They like to paint a picture of a national emergency for which they alone have the counter, a military one! I see that 40% of people in the online poll, for what it’s worth, believe the election should be held [b]after[/b] September 14! Mungo’s article was spot-on. Ken I enjoyed reading your comments. This comment stood out: “[i]The policies announced by Government are addressing some of these issues – no settlement in Oz for boat arrivals, the “no advantage” test, and so on. But these are the “sticks” and there are few if any “carrots”. To curtail the boat arrivals, people need to be given hope that they do have a chance of being resettled within a reasonable time – when they see others who have been waiting for years in camps, it is little wonder they try to “jump the queue”.[/i] There is so much to do, and so little time. Truth Seeker Thank you for your kind words. You are put your finger on it when you say: “[i]They both cry crocodile tears over the deaths at sea whilst actively producing and promoting the lies and spin that the people smugglers are now using to continue to fill their boats, and their coffers.”[/i] Bacchus You raise an interesting point about the honey pot. Curi-Oz I like your analogy: “[i]Every hard-boiled egg is yellow inside. 

It is very easy to declaim harsh responses to a situation, but the veneer is easily cracked to show the cowardice lurking within them.”[/i] Michael I enjoyed reading your comment and agree with your conclusion: “[i]Nothing could have been worse than Abbott unleashing and sanctioning hate on Julia Gillard at the barbaric federal election he wanted so much to have.”[/i] Let’s anticipate Kevin Rudd leading Labor to victory at the next election.

nasking

29/07/2013 FROM KEANE AND DYER @ CRIKEY: And that’s the biggest achievement of management of the boom by the RBA and federal government—the biggest investment boom in our history hasn’t all ended in tears. And that is a far better achievement than the transitory nature of budget deficits or surpluses. One of the reasons why the high dollar didn’t kill non-mining industries is because—despite the pleading and rent seeking—most got on with adjusting to a more competitive environment. And so did their workers: Australia’s labour productivity has significantly lifted in the last 18 months, despite the incessant chatter from business, the opposition and their spokespeople journalists at The Oz and the AFR that the Fair Work Act is a huge national handbrake on productivity. http://www.crikey.com.au/2013/07/29/grattan-canada-show-the-mining-boom-didnt-kill-the-economy/ WHEN YOU TAKE INTO ACCOUNT WE HAD TO DEAL WITH THE GFC...A MINING BOOM...HUGE COMPETITION FROM OVERSEAS RETAILERS VIA THE INTERNET...MASSIVE PRIVATE DEBT RELATED TO INFLATED HOUSING PRICES...A HOUSING BOOM THAT COULD HAVE CRASHED... AND INCESSANT TALKING DOWN OF THE ECONOMY BY ABBOTT AND HIS MSM ALLIES... I THINK WE'VE DONE BLOODY WELL. :) WHY WOULD WE RISK A CHANGE TO A COUPLE OF ECONOMIC DUNCES? N'

Casablanca

29/07/2013KHTAGH, Check this out, complete with pictures: [i]Hidden in the wall between the bathroom and bedroom was 23 kilograms of honeycomb, honey, house insulation and dead bees.[/i] Read more: http://www.canberratimes.com.au/act-news/sticky-situation-for-canberra-couple-20130728-2qsze.html#ixzz2aPrUgyeY

Ad astra

29/07/2013Hi Lyn I’ve just finished your links. Thanks for the links to pieces about asylum seekers. Victoria Rollison’s piece was great reading. Doug Evans’ post on his solution to the asylum seeker was interesting in that not once were the drownings or people smugglers mentioned. Isn’t it fascinating how such a core element in the asylum seeker issue can be airbrushed out of the ‘solution’? This illustrates Victoria Rollison’s point about the Greens. I was astonished to read in [i]Independent Australia: Tony Abbott’s latest 15 lies[/i]: http://www.independentaustralia.net/2013/politics/tony-abbotts-latest-15-lies/ What a grotesque set of lies this man perpetuated in just one speech. Yet it is only in the Fifth Estate that this is revealed.

nasking

29/07/2013 DAVID SPEERS ON SKY NEWS SOUNDED LIKE HE WAS READING FROM THE COALITION QUESTION LIST AND TALKING POINTS WHILST INTERVIEWING MARK DREYFUS. HE WANTS TO BE CAREFUL WITH SOUNDING LIKE A LIBERAL PARTY PARTISAN... VIEWERS ON THE LEFT ALREADY HAVE A SUSPICION SKY NEWS IS GRADUALLY BEING TRANSFORMED INTO AUSTRALIA'S VERSION OF FOX NEWS... I CAN SEE VIEWERS SUCH AS MYSELF ABANDONING SKY NEWS IF THIS CONTINUES... AND I IMAGINE THAT ALP MINISTERS WILL REFUSE TO BE INTERVIEWED THE WAY MANY IN THE AMERICAN DEMOCRATIC PARTY AVOID FOX NEWS LIKE THE PLAGUE... AND WON THE MOST RECENT ELECTION REGARDLESS. N'

nasking

29/07/2013 BTW, I STOPPED WATCHING PAUL MURRAY LIVE A COUPLE OF WEEKS AGO. NO LONGER INTERESTED IN BIASED OPINION SHOCK JOCK STYLE. JUST LIKE I STOPPED WATCHING HANNITY...AND O'REILLY ON FOX NEWS A YEAR AGO. N'

Janet (jan@j4gypsy)

29/07/2013Michael at July 29. 2013 01:57 PM Thank you. Precisely.

janice

29/07/2013Good evening Ad astra, Lyn and Swordians. I have been reading all the posts and following our Tweety Bird's links (Thanks Lyn) every day. Like Patricia, I feel like someone switched off the light and I can't seem to find much to interest me on the political scene now. Whilst I find the abbott and his crew the absolute pits and am glad Rudd appears to be getting the better of him, I doubt very much if even a landslide Rudd win will excite me at all, although I will feel relief. I made an effort to compile a post on your excellent AS piece, Ad Astra but gave up when it wouldn't come together :) deciding it was better to shut up than to submit a messy post. And Michael, I agree with your comments regarding Julia Gillard and take some comfort from your thoughts.

DMW

29/07/2013Ad @ 4:35 PM, list of published submissions to The Expert Panel on Asylum Seekers: http://expertpanelonasylumseekers.dpmc.gov.au/published-submissions There quite a few ... many hours of reading.

Ad astra

29/07/2013janice It was good to see you again. I understand your feelings, and why you feel the light has been switched off. Thank you for your kind comment about this piece; I can understand why you gave up writing about the asylum seeker issue. It is so complex, so beset with sharp angles, so intractable, that I doubt if anyone has a complete answer, anyone at all. All we get is incomplete answers, fragmented comments, and partisan spin. Do drop in from time to time to say hello.

Ad astra

29/07/2013DMW Thanks for the link.

Casablanca

29/07/2013AA I can't recall anyone pursuing the line that Anne McNevin argues in this article, namely, that what the people-smugglers are selling is passage to a place where real protection is possible. [b]Set up a protection racket[/b] Anne McNevin. July 29, 2013 [i]Both government and opposition focus on deterrence, and that is not the way to beat people smugglers,[/i] Read more: http://www.canberratimes.com.au/federal-politics/political-opinion/set-up-a-protection-racket-20130728-2qsml.html#ixzz2aQxIGh6Z

DMW

29/07/2013Ad, in response to your questions I offer my 'answers'. In a (vain) attempt to be brief some answers are short and may need further 'fleshing out' as time goes by. In some cases there may be more questions raised than answers given for which I won't apologise as if that happens I hope it causes some reasonable discussion and to and froing so that we all might be better informed. [i]Should the intake be higher? If so, how much higher? Should there be a cap?[/i] There needs to be some limit, after all there is no way we could accommodate even half a percent of the 15 million or so refugees worldwide (about 77,000 people). The proposed 27,000 seems 'reasonable' but I would add there needs to be a bit of flexibility such that if the need drops so can our intake and if, as an example only, there is a flare up in a near northern neighbour that causes a mass exodus we could cope with taking extra people. []Is there an imperative to stop asylum seekers coming to Australia by small boats? Does the loss of life at sea (around 1,000 in recent times) make this imperative stronger?[/i] The second question implies that the answer to the first is yes. I do not think it is imperative completely stop people travelling here by boat no matter how rickety. We can most likely never completely stop people trying to get here that way but we can do things that encourage 'better and easier' ways of doing it. It is not my place, or anyone's place to tell someone else how, when or why they should flee their home country. To be ridiculous, if a group of Afghanis found a way to dig a tunnel under the sea from Kabul to Canberra I'd take them with open arms and send them to build tunnels for the Very Fast Train. [i]Do you believe most people in this country want to stop these boat arrivals and the drownings?[/i] More than one person here has in the past commented (most likely in frustration) along the lines of [i]I hope they all drown. [/i] I suspect most people more want to stop hearing about it and having it shoved into our faces 24/7. [i]Is this our problem to solve alone, or is it a regional and global problem? Is it reasonable to seek a regional solution that involves all nations in our region?[/i] The 'depth of antagonism' is our problem alone and ours to solve. Mass movements of displaced people is a global and regional 'problem' that will not abate quickly and may well become a bigger 'problem'. Australia needs to work work with any and all willing participants to find solutions. We need to be wary of using 'regional solutions' as a proxy for fobbing the 'problem' off to others. The five questions on [i]cruelty [/i] I will roll into one. I do not think 'cruel' is the right word to use and it is indicative of the hysteria around the whole area. Given the depths we have plumbed the RRA is possibly the only political answer to this political problem. Having written that I also note that 'political responses' to policy challenges have a funny way of coming back to bite in the bum. I suspect that the bite when it it comes is going to be much worse than the bark that has arisen in response to this proposal. [i]Why is it that so many objections to the RRA are being advanced, ... [/i] A political response to a policy issue will always draw political responses. [i][b]... the object of the exercise is to dissuade people from getting on boats in the first place?[/b][/i] Good luck with that in the end we will never fully stop the boats we can only hope to minimise the flow. [i]Is Australia obliged to take into its own population those who demand to come here by boat, ... Is it fair to give admission to those who can afford to pay people smugglers for boat passage, ...[/i] We have no obligation to [u]permanently[/u] take into our population any refugee. We are obliged to give them asylum and ensure that wherever they end up here, there or somewhere else, they are not put in further danger or risk of further persecution. Whew I am running out of puff and no doubt boring some people to tears if they have chosen to get this far. Due to another life I will have to come back to attempting answers to further questions.

lawriejay

29/07/2013For what it is worth I dreamt that the federal election was held on 23 November 2013. Tony Abbott concelebrated a 40 hour marathon mass, commenced on Thursday 5pm 21 February, with fellow celebrant Georgie Pell attended by alter boys Hockey Andrews Pyne Hunt along with Barny Joyce, who was reported to the Dean of the Diocese for farting during the offertory. They all failed to show for mass on Sunday after Labor was elected to Govern with an increased majority of 17 seats. Three independents were elected, Barnaby Joyce lost his bid for New England and was being treated for nervous dyspepsia and flatulence at Tamworth Base Hospital.

Catching up

29/07/2013That would be preferable to his effort at the last election, when he took off on that 24 hour frantic, non stop campaigning, annoying Campbelltown police in the early hours of the morning, among others.

Catching up

29/07/2013As for Pell, I believe he will be too busy protecting himself, as the year goes on, to be of much help to Abbott.

DMW

29/07/2013Casablanca @ 9:51 PM The proposition [i]that what the people-smugglers are selling is passage to a place where real protection is possible [/i] certainly is an interesting take on it and I can see merit in the argument. Deterrence like prohibition have a long history of failure. Prisons and incarceration have never stopped people breaking laws and 'Wars on Drugs' or whatever have more often than not been dismal favours. To me, a big part of what Anne McNevin is saying is understand what is being 'sold' to the customers and either offer them a better product or find a way to take away the desire by removing the products appeal. Think I might have to crawl back into the cave and ponder this at greater length and depth as there is something in it.

Casablanca

29/07/2013AA I can't recall anyone pursuing the line that Anne McNevin argues in this article, namely, that what the people-smugglers are selling is passage to a place where real protection is possible. If she is correct then the PNG Pact will not met its objective. [b]Set up a protection racket[/b] Anne McNevin. July 29, 2013 [i]Both government and opposition focus on deterrence, and that is not the way to beat people smugglers,[/i] Read more: http://www.canberratimes.com.au/federal-politics/political-opinion/set-up-a-protection-racket-20130728-2qsml.html#ixzz2aQxIGh6Z

Casablanca

30/07/2013[b]Australia can't simply build fences at sea[/b] Donald Rothwell, Professor of International Law, College of Law,ANU. Updated Mon Jul 29, 2013 10:26am AEST [quote]Identifying with precision Australia's maritime borders for the purposes of implementing 'Operation Sovereign Borders' is challenging. The Coalition faces a potential conflict between its 'Operation Sovereign Borders' policy and the principle of freedom of navigation which underpins the law of the sea.[/quote] http://www.abc.net.au/news/2013-07-29/rothwell-australia-cant-simply-build-fences-at-sea/4849664 [b]A better way to prevent asylum tragedy[/b] By Peter Job [quote]The search for a 'solution' to boat arrivals has been framed by the assumption that asylum seekers pose a threat. Claims that "tough" asylum seeker policies are motivated by the goal of preventing deaths at sea falter on the overwhelming fact that they have consistently failed to do so, writes Peter Job, a long-time advocate for refugees. [/quote] http://www.abc.net.au/news/2013-07-29/job-preventing-deaths-at-sea-through-safer-journeys/4849358

Marilyn

30/07/2013There is no such thing as a solution because there is no question. Everyone has the right to seek asylum from persecution without fear of punishment or discrimination. The rest of your questions are tosh.

Marilyn

30/07/2013The panel of three ridiculous old men has been dismissed by the parliamentary human right committee a complete and utter tosh. It didn't even give a passing glance at human rights law and obligations. This so-called issue is only a story because the media keep lying and the pollies keep whining about how to get around the law. HOW MEDIA MAKE A MYTH Since the refugee convention was ratified and came into international law in 1954 it has been utterly legal for anyone to arrive in Australia and seek protection under the law whether we like it or not. In 1992 the parliament enshrined the refugee convention into Articles 36 and 65 of the migration act and there it still sits regardless of how often the Canberra Press Gallery, Fairfax, the ABC and Murdoch media choose to ignore the facts. In 2001 when the TAMPA was asked by Australia to rescue hundreds of people on the sinking Palapa John Howard went outside that law and set up trafficking routes to Nauru and Manus Island to hold just 1600 people, he forced 500 back to Indonesia and killed 370 people in the process, wasted $2 billion and then many of the refugees ended up in Australia damaged and suing us. The federal court case brought on by Eric Vadarlis and Julian Burnside for the people on their way to Nauru was won and the government was ordered to bring the people back to Australia - they were on Australian territory and were being trafficked against their will at gun point to a spot in the Pacific where there were no refugee laws and no protections. This speech a few years later by Julian gives a good outline of how the case worked out. http://www.safecom.org.au/burnside2.htm Howard ignored the courts, then the HIgh court reprehensibly decided not to hear an appeal to bring them back because they were already in Nauru and out of our jurisdiction. It took until the Gillard government under Chris Bowen decided to try and make a dirty trading deal with Malaysia that the removal of people from our soil to other countries where we know they are not protected was brought to the high court. The court rightly found that the deal was invalid because it breached the refugee convention and other Australian laws. That meant also that Howard's trading deals with Manus Island and Nauru had been unlawful and therefore invalid all along. Rudd, with the agreement of the liberal party, closed Nauru and Manus Island and brought believed on advice that shoving refugees to Nauru and Manus Island was unlawful, which had been the position of the UNHCR from the first day it was mooted. Since late 2008 the Iraqi war has gone to even further hell in a hand basket with christians and other minority groups like the Kurds forced to run for their lives, Sri Lanka's vicious civil war ended with the massacre of 40,000 or more civilians, the jailing of 300,000 and the near total destruction of the Tamil areas as we have seen on our TV screens and in reports from Amnesty INternational and every other human rights organisation in the world with Australia also calling for an inquiry by the government into gross human rights abuses by the Rajapaksa regime. http://www.channel4.com/news/foreign-office-presses-sri-lanka-on-war-crimes In 2008 the Taliban spread across Afghanistan and Pakistan with the displacement of 3 million Pakistanis and the increased and continuing genocide of the Hazara. Pakistan has withdrawn all protection now for 2.6 million Afghans after more than 30 years. This Oxfam report details the plight of those forced to flee within Pakistan. http://www.oxfam.de/sites/www.oxfam.de/files/PHFBriefingNoteFINAL.pdf In 2009 Iran had a widely known bogus election that sees a major crack down on dissidents to this day causing more and more to flee their homes to see safety. http://www.nytimes.com/2009/06/25/world/middleeast/25iran.html?_r=0 http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/interactive/2011/mar/22/middle-east-protest-interactive-timeline Tunisia, Bahrain, Syria, Libya, Egypt x2 have all had uprisings causing millions to flee their homes so Gillard's answer was three old white public servants tasked to find a way to "stop the boats", even though over 95% of the people involved were found to be refugees so what we were doing again was wilfully turning away people we knew very well did face a very real fear of persecution. The three so-called experts decided that breaking the law to start Manus and Nauru again must be done regardless of the lack of human rights protections, that the country must be excised from itself, that refugees must be granted no advantage if they come by sea but those pesky refugees don't see things from some safe lounge room. They also suggested no family reunion which was a recipe for disaster and has seen thousands more intact families arrive since it was started in 2012, we have seen over 20,000 people locked up or dumped in poverty without a single claim being assessed and still those pesky refugees think coming here is better than staying to have their heads cut off or be blown to bits or tortured in Malaysia or Indonesia. The new myth started by the Daily Telegraph and repeated endlessly by the Canberra press is that Rudd dismantled a brilliant and successful policy that stopped the boats but this committee looking into the report by the three old white men stacked up to scrutiny; http://www.aph.gov.au/Parliamentary_Business/Committees/Senate_Committees?url=humanrights_ctte%2Freports%2F2013%2F9_2013%2Findex.htm They literally dismissed the report with three sentences: The evidence that this approach will work is not yet supported by any downward trend in boat arrivals. While the committee is sympathetic to the view that this is still a ‘work in progress’, it is not the committee’s role to assess on a hypothetical basis whether implementation of the Expert Panel’s recommendations in their entirety at some point in the future would satisfactorily meet Australia’s human rights obligations. On the basis of the evidence before it, the committee considers that the measures as currently implemented carry a significant risk of being incompatible with a range of human rights. To the extent that some of those rights may be limited, the committee considers that the reasonableness and proportionality of those limitations have not been clearly demonstrated" Yet the myth is that Rudd dismantled a lawful and legitimate policy - even though our own high court found that to be illegal. http://www.abc.net.au/news/2011-08-31/high-court-rules-on-asylum-seeker-challenge/2864218 It's amazing how they live in their ignorant bubble isn't it where facts don't apply. And of course since Gillard reopened Nauru and Manus Island they have been forced to remove families due to illness and terrible conditions, forced to start assessments and the number of people arriving doubled and then tripled because those pesky refugees don't want to stay home and die and don't want to stay in our rancid prisons being tortured in Indonesia as shown in this report. http://www.hrw.org/news/2013/07/01/confronting-refugee-abuse-indonesia-s-detention-centers This story shows that Rudd was right to dismantle the dreadful prisons on Nauru and Manus Island and Gillard and the Canberra press are all completely wrong - Rudd dismantled a criminal human trading exercise after all. And now they continue to claim that Indonesia has to "stop the boats" even though the government has been aware for over a year that Pakistan is taking away all protection for Afghans and that some will come our way. http://www.smh.com.au/world/midnight-deadline-looms-for-afghan-refugees-20130618-2ofii.html

lyn

30/07/2013Today’s Links Abbott’s “tow backs” are a recipe for disaster by @independentaus Operation Sovereign Borders” involves an increased naval presence to our north and would shake up responsibilities between various units of defence. The policy has been categorically repudiated by powerful voices in the defence community, including . The Australian Defence Association http://www.independentaustralia.net/2013/politics/defence/abbotts-tow-backs-are-a-recipe-for-disaster/ Australia can't simply build fences at sea by Donald Rothwell 'Operation Sovereign Borders' policy, which incorporates its long-standing position on turning back asylum seekers boats when safe to do so, raises significant issues with respect to how an Abbott government would seek to protect Australia's borders consistently with international law. http://www.abc.net.au/news/2013-07-29/rothwell-australia-cant-simply-build-fences-at-sea/4849664 Seeking asylum from Australian pollies by George Negus As I write, Rudd’s latest off-shore solution, Manus Island, has been condemned as a “hell-hole” and a “gulag” and Abbott’s spanking new Colonel Blimp plan is to turn the waters off the West Australian coast into a virtual war zone by sending in the troops. http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2013/jul/29/asylum-from-politics-australia Least-worst option and minimising PNG. by @johnmenadue The coalition has been the principal cause of this toxic situation. It broke with bipartisanship on refugees because it felt it was to its political advantage to focus our fears on the foreigner. I don’t think the coalition has genuinely wanted the boats to stop whilst ever it was in opposition. http://johnmenadue.com/blog/?p=629 A letter to Tony Abbott: “Not everybody dies at sea” by @MigloMT Not everybody dies at sea. Or in a ceiling installing insulation for that matter. Rather than trying to gain political traction over select deaths, show some concern about those deaths that you cant use for political mileage. http://theaimn.com/2013/07/29/a-letter-to-tony-abbott-not-everybody-dies-at-sea/ Let them all come’ is ‘stop the boats’ for unthinking progressives by Bernard Keane Let them all come” is a progressive version of “stop the boats”, a slogan that substitutes emotion for thinking and personal morality for good policy, a phrase that elevates intentions above outcomes. To “let them all come” would be to encourage more asylum seekers to undertake boat trips to reach Australia, knowing they will be resettled here if http://www.crikey.com.au/2013/07/29/let-them-all-come-is-stop-the-boats-for-unthinking- Asylum is the greatest moral challenge of our time by Barry Jones The prime minister’s announcement of the agreement with Papua New Guinea has come as a shock and I would need to spend more time reflecting about it before I formed a judgment, but I have been amazed by the enthusiasm that Peter O’Neill has expressed for it and I can see that it might destroy the people smuggling trade http://theconversation.com/barry-jones-asylum-is-the-greatest-moral-challenge-of-our-time-16445 Morgan: 52-48 to Labor, Essential: 51-49 to Coalition by @PollBludger Essential also finds 61% approval for the government’s new asylum seekers policy against 28% disapproval, and concurs with Galaxy in having the two parties almost equal as best party to handle the issue. Labor is favoured by 25% (up eight on mid-June), Coalition by 26% (down 12) http://blogs.crikey.com.au/pollbludger/2013/07/29/morgan-52-48-to-labor-essential-51-49-to-coalition/ Go On by @awelder Fairfax reporting of the Gillard government was misleading and not at all free, of press gallery groupthink and a desire to deliver Fairfax's audience to different political interests rather than serve them. This is yet another example where the lofty rhetoric of this editorialist crashes to earth in a cloud of bulldust http://andrewelder.blogspot.com.au/ Ellis: The coming Rudd landslide explained by @independentaus But Abbott’s macho shiftiness and ceaseless whingeing, and his reputation for physical violence, repelled many women, and he began to be unelectable when his policies – on broadband, on Gonski, on the very fast train, on a Budget surplus – proved to be idiotic. http://www.independentaustralia.net/2013/politics/ellis-the-coming-rudd-landslide-explained/ Fact-checking Australia's likely next PM by @OnLineOpinion How many of the above are deliberate lies and how many reflect genuine misinformation? What do Mr Abbott's colleagues – many of whom identify with faith communities which believe strongly in truthfulness – make of this pattern of behaviour? http://www.onlineopinion.com.au/view.asp?article=15286 Ok, Latest score from the Coliseum: Lions 5,445.3223, Christians 0! by rossleighbrisbane “Three years is up, Mr Rudd,” Mr Abbott told reporters in Sydney on Sunday. Stop running away from the public, stop thinking about yourself, start to appreciate that it’s time for a bit of democracy in this country http://theaimn.com/2013/07/29/ok-latest-score-from-the-coliseum-lions-5445-3223-christians-0/ Hockey's costings farce gets a second round by Mungo MacCallum closer than Abbott anticipated. The return of Kevin Rudd has meant this is not a time for arrogance or hubris. But apparently his shadow treasurer, Joe Hockey, has not got the message: not only has he decided to treat the punters like mugs, http://www.abc.net.au/news/2013-07-29/maccallum-hockeys-costings-farce-gets-another-outing/4849878 Rudd’s comeback and Murdoch’s counterattack by Mungo MacCallum he has an election to fight. As a student of China himself, Rudd should recognise the campaign against him for what it is: an orchestrated attack by a power elite who cannot bear the thought of losing their own privileged positions. http://www.themonthly.com.au/issue/2013/august/1375315200/mungo-maccallum/rudd-s-comeback-and-murdoch- Is the cost of living really the cost of economic change? by @bluntshovels So what is ‘cost-of-living’? The latest NATSEM (PDF) report on household incomes and spending showed clearly that overall, Australian incomes have grown. http://ausvotes2013.com/2013/07/29/is-the-cost-of-living-really-the-cost-of-economic-change/ Why won't concrete fly? It's a key question for Australia's economy by @GrogsGamut Firstly, the key ingredient of concrete is cement, the production of which is one of the most carbon-intensive industries. Thus the introduction of the carbon price has clearly had an impact. So if you do want to go round looking for evidence of the carbon price hitting industries, then concrete production is where you’ll find it. http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/grogonomics/2013/jul/29/concrete-wont-fly-questi Ignore the Kouk by @macro_business Economic weakness will be a huge advantage to the incumbent government if handled correctly. The Opposition has less credibility in times of economic uncertainty than it does in times of prosperity. It has spent the last six years painting itself into a corner on austerity, whining about every stimulus policy and ceaselessly berating government http://www.macrobusiness.com.au/2013/07/ignore-the-kouk/ Costs of reform rarely mentioned by reformers by @1RossGittins Unfortunately, those economists who belong to the economic rationalist faction often fall well short of this ideal. They don't offer dispassionate choices so much as passionately advocate one option over others, often exaggerating the likely benefits and brushing aside the direct costs http://www.rossgittins.com/2013/07/costs-of-reform-rarely-mentioned-by.html It’s All About The Dame Nellie Melbas by @sortius Turnbull is flat out lying when he says FoD will be “up to $3000″, Abbott is lying when he says ”It will take 80 years before the whole of Tasmania has broadband rolled out under this government”, this is not a simple error, these are deliberate deceptions. http://sortius-is-a-geek.com/?p=3195 NBN- Spelling out the consequences of Telstra takes Metro by @SteveJ_CBR If the Turnbull Node Plan really becomes "let Telstra take Metro" then it cannot be held to its published Broadband Plan. All the Copper services (DSL/FTTN) simply evaporates from the spreadsheet. NBN Co become a collection and connection service for Telstra, making almost nothing from 75% of Fixed line services. http://stevej-on-nbn.blogspot.com.au/ NBN the American way by @LarvatusProdeo NBN doubters should take a look at the IBISWorld A Snapshot of Australia’s Digital Future to 2050 report. This is from the blurb: The report predicts that 46 per cent of Australia’s current industry revenue will substantially benefit from the new utility: 23 per cent of the nation’s revenue, will not function without this new utility http://larvatusprodeo.net/archives/2013/07/nbn-the-american-way/#more-29484 Tassie NBN “will take 80 years”, claims Abbott by @renailemay even under the worst possible estimates, there is just no way that it’s going to take 80 years to roll out the NBN to Tasmania. Even if the whole NBN project runs ten years late, which is extremely unlikely, that would only place the project’s completion data at around 2030 http://delimiter.com.au/2013/07/29/tassie-nbn-will-take-80-years-claims-abbott/ Today’s Front Pages Australian Newspaper Front Pages for 30 July 2013 http://www.thepaperboy.com/australia/front-pages.cfm News headlines http://www.hotheadlines.com.au/

2353

30/07/2013This has to be a conflict of interest. http://www.abc.net.au/news/2013-07-29/latika-bourke-fawcett-defence-committee-lobbyist-parliament/4851188 Imagine the howls of protest if Fawcett was not a LNP Senator.

Ad astra

30/07/2013LYN'S DAILY LINKS updated: http://www.thepoliticalsword.com/page/LYNS-DAILY-LINKS.aspx

jaycee

30/07/2013I fully agree with Michael and Janice and , I suspect many others on this site in the treatmant of Julia Gillard and the hung parliament. I do, however slot home a majority of the blame to the machinations of the MSM. journos' and their cowardly obsequience to their masters. The claim that they were "protecting their jobs" has the hollow ring of a gestapo thug ruminating on the unfairness of his fate whilst "spit-polishing" his jackboots...and the casual observation that they were doing what was expected of them smacks of the indifferent unconcern of a person in charge of turning on the gas-taps at a Buchenwald extermination camp. The cold and cruel dissection of the past Prime Minister and the subsequent silence of the MSM. indicates a coiterie of confederates unwilling to bear or take responsibility for directing the less-informed of the nation down a treacherous and dangerous path that will have repercussions for ALL of us. They (the MSM.) may now feel comfortable in their "victory", but OUR memory and the stored memory of the internet will come back to jouge them....and judge them heavily and most harshly!

TalkTurkey

30/07/2013Tony Burke sounding like a seasoned professor of logic and jurisprudence telling a mob of lazy silly end-of-first-term freshers how to lift their game (but as if he doesn't really think they're up to the discipline and thinking.) The Abborrtt Coalition is running for cover and it won't find it. And as Burke continues he is DESTROYING the LNP for its nonsense. There is no coming back for them. They're dead in the water, to use a phrase that I hope goes home to them.

KHTAGH

30/07/2013AA As I have said before this is a very nasty subject perpetrated by very nasty people, with no easy answer regardless of what slogan Abbott says. I'm sure there are praises to dog in the Lieberal party room with every death at sea. Casablanca Many thanks for the link, very interesting, I'm currently getting ready for the new swarm season only 6 or so weeks away, lots of people don't realise just how big a job it can be to remove something like that from a house. Pity it was all dead, there looked to be lots of good viable honeycomb in the wall, it also looks like there was a wax moth infestation too , notice the small white cylinders on the wall stud & what looks like spider web on the comb(they attack stressed hives & eat the wax).

TalkTurkey

30/07/2013On Twitter AshGhebranious said My God! Margie is looking a little bald today. .. so I replied, (nasty as usual), Election still not been called! LNP all APPALLED! Margie is there Tearing her hair Both Abborrtts going BALD! :~) Meanwhile Abborrtt is there freaking out because he KNOWS the way his boat is sinking. And so do those around him. At least Patricia, Janice, all those who have lost a bit of heart, we've got this, we're getting rid of the rottenest creep ever to infect the body politic in this country, and we the Fighting 5th Estate HAVE been important in that! Already! So now let's pick up the corners of our mouths, set our jaws as before andjust makesure we don't miss this all-important target of aborting Abborrrtt and the Abborrrrttians. He's not dead (metaphorically of course, maybe) yet and we still need Us to make sure.

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30/07/2013Hi Lyn Your links today were a good mix of items on the asylum seeker issue, economics, and the NBN. Barry Jones wrote a balanced piece that at least attempted to address some of the many aspects of asylum seeking, and Bernard Keane nicely challenged the ‘let them all come’ attitude. Ross Gittins, as always, was sound, pointing out that any reform has its costs, some never articulated by the proponents. The pieces on the NBN put the lie to the Fraudband claims of being cheaper for consumers. And Slogan-Abbott seems to have no compunction in lying about the NBN, now claiming it will take 80 years to roll out in Tasmania. The [i]LP[/i] piece was informative. This quote from [i]A Snapshot from Australia’s Digital Future to 2050[/i] is particularly telling: “[i]The report predicts that 46 per cent of Australia’s current industry revenue will substantially benefit from the new utility: 23 per cent of the nation’s revenue will not function without this new utility, and a further 23 per cent of industry revenue will use it to drive step-changes in their business. 15 industry classes are likely to demise if they do not reinvent themselves to embrace the digital future; and some may simply be unable to do so. “The report finds by 2050, this new utility will generate around $1 trillion in revenue for Australia – almost eight times the $131 billion it generates today. Also, Australia will no longer be known for its dependency on the export of natural resources over the next half century. It will become known as much an exporter of services such as tourism, business services, health and education services. The export of tourism alone could match the 2012 mineral exports totalling around $175 billion by 2030.”[/i] Yet Slogan-Abbott instructed Malcolm Turnbull to [i]‘Demolish the NBN”[/i], and since tech-head MT just couldn’t bring himself to do that, we are offered a second rate Fraudband. From so-called champions of industry and commerce, that is weak and politically opportunistic.

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30/07/2013DMW Thank you for addressing some of the questions I posed. Your answers are thoughtful and persuasive. If only journalists on the Fourth Estate would do the same and leave partisan politicking aside. I look forward to you coming back after you have drawn breath. Casablanca Thank you for the links to the Anne McNevin and Peter Job articles, both good reading. jaycee Your words are telling. Isn’t it curious how Julia Gillard has been virtually airbrushed out of contemporary politics? TT Tony Burke does sound authoritative. He his more than a match for motor-mouth Morrison. KHTAGH You are right – the asylum seeker is issue is nasty because it has been made that way, going way back to the Howard days.

Michael

30/07/2013Abbott has clearly gone ga-ga. Telling Tasmanians they will have to wait "80 years" for Labor's NBN to reach them all is so weirdly hyperbolic it can't be seen as anything but... weirdly hyperbolic. Tell Tasmanians it will "take them 3 years longer than they were promised", tell them "someone's just discovered fibre frays after six months in the ground anywhere south of King Island", tell them "Malcolm will be down soon to explain to them just about everything they want to know about anything"... tell them at least something feasible, sensible, possible. But a putative Prime Minister in the 21st Century telling anyone that anything (!!) in digital technology will take "80 years"???? Loopy, fibres loose in the noggin. FLITN. Fibre's not being cut off at the node to save it being used to the premises, it's being used to try and tie together Abbott's dislocated thinking. [Hang on, tents are made of fibres, aren't they? Got it! The Coalition will use all that unneeded fibre to make their tent city in Nauru. Waste not, want not, the Carlishun way.]

TalkTurkey

30/07/2013ABC BIAS! Thanks Independent Australia This is so lividifying! http://www.independentaustralia.net/2013/business/media-2/beating-the-drum-for-the-liberal-party/

KHTAGH

30/07/2013Michael & AA I find it funny how Slogan Abbott, said it will take 80 yrs for us to all get the NBN down here, seeing we are the most advanced state for the roll out so far that must mean it will take the rest of Aust 100 yrs, we are fully signed off (the whole state)the only delays are from the physical aspect of running it into peoples homes. It is only 15 klms away from me as the crow flies now. It is supposed to be run past my place early 2014. I think Abbott is suffering from the symptom of:- 'In a panic logical thinking & the mouth are instantly separated'. AA in reply before as you said it started with the Rodent, I might add where were all the people complaining about the PNG solution then, conspicuously quiet.

TalkTurkey

30/07/2013Ad astra Just looking at the links of Lyn's you refer to. Barry Jones, Bernard Keane, Ross Gittins. I had read and admired them all too. (How many would I have read without Lyn?) . . . * . . . Crickets . . . * On your site Ad of course. Thanks both. Hugely. I've been with TPS for nearly 3 years, it is ALWAYS eventful and informative. Down with Dead Trees! :)

BSA Bob

30/07/2013jaycee @ 8.50 When you mention journalists "protecting their jobs" are you referring to a particular article or statement?

jaycee

30/07/2013BSA. ...It seems to be part of the general "agreement" debate as to possibly why so many of the MSM. high-profile journos' joined in the group-think and the vulgar criticism of Gillard and the hung-parliament. Although, I have read it alongside other apoligising commentry speculation.

BSA Bob

30/07/2013jaycee Thanks for that, I think there's a bit of backtracking already. I think it's about positioning themselves for the history books. I've said before that the books worth reading about this period will mostly be written by people we haven't heard of yet, most of the current crop will be making their excuses. Watched 7.30 for the first time in a while, looking at Chris Uhlmann's lamenting what they portray as a race to the bottom on AS issues. I have no recollection at all of Chris mentioning Abbott's determined descent in this direction prior to Rudd's plan. Basically standard ABC defensive "they're each as bad as the other" tactic. Always a sign the ALP's doing something well.

jaycee

30/07/2013BSA. I did do some checking on the subject and IA. has had a couple of articles reffering to the group-think in the MSM. As for Uhlmann, I'll never forget his smarmy-smirk when he was caught "off-camera" at the first "town-hall debates" that were orchestrated by the media. He's a dirrrty, dodgy bit of shite!

lyn

31/07/2013Today’s Links Coalition's asylum seeker policy caught in alleged conflict of interest after company-funded visit to Nauru by Lexi Metherell Opposition immigration spokesman Scott Morrison travelled to Nauru to make the policy announcement at the expense of the logistics company Toll Holdings, a provider of tents. http://www.abc.net.au/news/2013-07-30/coalition-accused-of-conflict-of-interest-over-nauru-tent-plan/4854280 Refugee policy: I’m not feeling good by @OnLineOpinion Our political process has been poisoned by an artificial crisis created by John Howard and milked by him and his successor Tony Abbott for everything it is worth. To try and cut Abbott off at the pass Rudd has had to resort to tactics that dive lower than Abbott. But how low can we go. http://www.onlineopinion.com.au/view.asp?article=15291 Fiji and The Rudd Solution by @archiearchive Like the confected outrage allegedly found in low level Indonesian responses and the NIMBY comments quoted from a few Manus Islanders these Fijian comments will be used by sections of the Australian Media in their never-ending need to embarrass the Australian Government. Giving legitimacy to an illegitimate dictator. http://archiearchive.wordpress.com/2013/07/30/fiji-and-the-rudd-solution/ Abbott's 'tent city' for asylum seekers: tabloid soundbites first, facts second by Katharine Murphy Imagine if you could jet off to Nauru courtesy of a major Australian corporation, unveil a policy without any accompanying explanatory documents or costings, and generate wall-to-wall headlines in the process . That’s some bang for your buck. And that’s precisely what the Coalition has achieved over the past 12 hours http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2013/jul/30/tony-abbott-nauru-tent-city?CMP=twt_gu Coalition signals five-year 'tent city' processing plan for Nauru by Katharine Murphy Abbott said on breakfast television that there had been no consultation with other players in the region prior to Tuesday morning's news reports. The proposed expansion on Nauru follows a commitment last week by the Coalition to put a "three-star general" in charge of Australia's border protection effort – http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2013/jul/30/coalition-tent-city-processing-nauru?CMP=soc_568 EXCLUSIVE: Ettridge action against Abbott continues — in Canberra by @independentaus The David Ettridge court action against Opposition Leader Tony Abbott continues, though it is now to be heard in Canberra rather than Brisbane. Managing editor David Donovan reports http://www.independentaustralia.net/2013/politics/exclusive-ettridge-action-against-abbott-continues-in-canberra/ Retailers can rejoice in Rudd's policy flow by Robert Gottliebsen Tony Abbott is still in the “attack Kevin Rudd” mindset and is waiting for the election bell to be rung before explaining his vision. Rudd believes it will be too late. http://www.businessspectator.com.au/article/2013/7/30/economy/retailers-can-rejoice-rudds-policy-flow Under siege? by @fakeedbutler In November 2012, the average Australian earned, in a week, before tax, about $1,080. That’s an annual income of $56,160. At the same time in 1997, it was $30,836. In other words, average wages have increased by about 82 per cent in that time. http://ausvotes2013.com/2013/07/30/under-siege/ What we should demand from media coverage this election by @WeMatterMedia polls are a favourite plaything of most media outlets and even I can admit to finding the week to week fluctuations of the polls as a source of intrigue and entertainment – but that’s all they are: Entertainment. The polls give us a vague idea of the trends in the electorate, but the obsession with them needs to calm down. http://jbau.com.au/2013/07/29/what-we-should-demand-from-media-coverage-this-election/ John Lord’s Election Diary Update July 30 2013 by @saint13333 I’m inclined to the view that Tony Abbott believed Labor wouldn’t last the distance and as a result neglected any major policy discussion. So I don’t believe they have anything major to present. That’s why they printed that booklet of ideas that aren’t policies. http://theaimn.com/2013/07/30/john-lords-election-diary-update-july-30-2013/ Realignment by @Piping_Shrike Abbott’s unpopularity comes from precisely the reason the Liberals elected him as leader in the first place, his job is to restore the brand of what is arguably Australia’s last political party. It is the lingering suspicion of a political agenda that is more for the party he leads, and its ideological hangers-ons, http://www.pipingshrike.com/2013/07/realignment-2.html?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=realignment-2 Fix You – How the Coalition in NSW are “fixing” Public Transport by @madwixxy All I can say is if this is how the Coalition go about fixing things, we will be in dire need of a renovation rescue after one term of an Abbott government should he win. http://wixxyleaks.com/2013/07/30/fix-you-how-the-coalition-in-nsw-are-fixing-public-transport/ Trains, Dogs, Numerical Lies, Rats, Slogans And Gods!' by @knarfnamduh And now the NO Coalition advises that they’ll keep Ruddy’s THE PNG SOLUTION, especially if it works! Chortle, chortle! We’ll get back to OPERATION SOVERIGN BORDERS a little later but first to other significant thought bubbles, like polls! http://deknarf.wordpress.com/2013/07/30/graphical-manipulations-45-trains-dogs-numerical-lies-rats-slogans-and-gods/ Open Letter to Peter van Onselen on Rudd’s greatest moral challenge is that he rabbits on too much by @EmpoweringFem Yeah right, just like Abbott would. I see you are now trying to look objective and not biased. It’s just a ploy to avoid criticism. And Robust? Very strange choice of words. I would say antagonistic, recalcitrant, bellicose and demeaning. http://eleana108.wordpress.com/2013/07/28/open-letter-to-peter-van-onselen-on-rudds-greatest-moral-challenge-is-that- Former 2UE talkback host Michael Smith takes regular spot on 2GB by @mumbrella Smith was sacked from his job as an afternoon talkback host at the Fairfax Radio network’s Sydney station after management declined to broadcast his interview with Victorian Australian Workers Union boss Ben Kernohan allegedly linking Prime Minister Julia Gillard with union fraud 16 years before. http://mumbrella.com.au/embattled-2ue-talkback-host-takes-spot-on-2gb-170225 Dumbing down the NBN by Mark Gregory Industry attacks on NBN Co are nothing new and Hackett’s remarks display yet another attempt to hobble the NBN and enshrine the industry’s ability to fleece customers while providing a third world digital network. http://www.businessspectator.com.au/article/2013/7/30/technology/dumbing-down-nbn#ixzz2aUrNUGRD Albo slams Turnbull FTTP on demand “lottery” by @renailemay If Australians want to gain the same broadband service delivery under the Coalition’s plan as they would under Labor’s, they will need to pay several thousand dollars more — and there will likely also be ongoing yearly costs ranging into the hundreds of dollars extra, if the Coalition follows BT’s model. http://delimiter.com.au/2013/07/30/albo-slams-turnbull-fttp-on-demand-lottery/ 'NBN' cable replaces rat-chewed Telstra fibre by @joshgnosis 2GB radio host and fierce critic of the Australian government's AU$37.4 billion National Broadband Network (NBN) Ray Hadley claimed to have discovered pictures of an exposed NBN cable on the Minnamurra Bridge on the South Coast of New South Wales — only it wasn't actually NBN Co's cable, but rather Telstra's temporary fix for a cable destroyed by rats. http://www.zdnet.com/au/nbn-cable-replaces-rat-chewed-telstra-fibre-7000018711/ NBN: Kohler v Turnbull Questions - Top Ten. by @SteveJ_CBR 3. Your Broadband Plan is really only half a Plan, it says nothing about it's most important second part: the replacement of FTTN/Copper network with a full FTTP network, mentioned a number of times. http://stevej-on-nbn.blogspot.com.au/2013/07/nbn-kohler-v-turnbull-questions-top-ten.html Today’s Front Pages Australian Newspaper Front Pages for 31 July 2013 http://www.thepaperboy.com/australia/front-pages.cfm News headlines http://www.hotheadlines.com.au/

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31/07/2013LYN'S DAILY LINKS updated: http://www.thepoliticalsword.com/page/LYNS-DAILY-LINKS.aspx

nasking

31/07/2013 BAD STUFF: A logistics company that stands to profit from the Coalition's ''tent city'' on Nauru funded the trip of its immigration spokesman Scott Morrison to the remote island to announce the plan to house up to 2000 asylum seekers in tents. The trip to Nauru was facilitated by Toll Holdings, which has multimillion-dollar contracts to help handle asylum seekers and is understood to have chartered the flight to Nauru for the Coalition and a journalist and photographer from News Corporation. http://www.theage.com.au/federal-politics/political-news/coalitions-tent-city-trip-funded-by-logistics-company-that-provides-tents-20130730-2qws3.html#ixzz2aZDPJTTs ARE TOLL HOLDINGS OUR HALLIBURTON, KBR?...AND IS MORRISON ACTING LIKE DICK CHENEY? NOT SURPRISINGLY NEWS LTD IS INVOLVED...AS WAS NEWS CORP, FOX NEWS BACKING CHENEY AND THE WARS AND PRISONS AND DETENTION CENTRES THAT HALLIBURTON AND KBR WERE INVOLVED IN PROFITING FROM. BAD SIGN. BRINGS BACK BAD MEMORIES...IRAQ WAR...PRIVATE PRISONS... EVEN DOGS USED ON WHARFS HERE. N'

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31/07/2013Folks We are getting on the road now for Melbourne. I'll be back this afternoon.

nasking

31/07/2013 CHARGED MY PAD SO DELAYED RESPONSE. LYN, PER USUAL YER ON TOP OF THE ISSUES...GOOD WORK. THIS FROM YER ABC LINK: The Coalition's pledge to build a tent city for up to 2,000 asylum seekers on Nauru has been caught up in an [b]alleged conflict of interest controversy.[/b] Opposition immigration spokesman Scott Morrison travelled to Nauru to make the policy announcement at the expense of the logistics company Toll Holdings, a provider of tents. Toll's own website says: "We deliver camp and base logistics in remote locations". The company has had Australian Government contracts on Nauru for a year and the ABC's PM program understands Toll regularly charters flights to the far flung island. This week it had room for Mr Morrison and a News Corporation journalist and photographer. [b]The Federal Government says the situation is extraordinary, but the Coalition says there is no reason the trip should not have been funded that way.[/b] [b]Opposition Leader Tony Abbott confirmed the arrangement. "It's wholly privately funded and there's no reason whatsoever why it shouldn't be funded in that way," he said.[/b] THE FACT THAT ABBOTT THINKS THIS CONFLICT OF INTEREST AND COSYING UP TO BIG COMPANIES IS FINE TELLS US A GREAT DEAL ABOUT WHO WILL BE DICTATING COALITION POLICY. WE HAVE SEEN ABBOTT AND TEAM GETTING TOO CLOSE TO RUPERT MURDOCH AND NEWS LTD, GINA RINEHART (BARNABY JOYCE TOO), NOW TOLL HOLDINGS... IF I WERE SMALL BUSINESS AND UNIONS I WOULD BE VERY WORRIED ABOUT THESE RELATIONSHIPS. THE ALP ARE NOT IMMUNE. CERTAINLY POLITICAL PARTIES HAVE TO BE ABLE TO DEAL WITH COMPANIES...BUT IT'S WORRYING WHEN LARGE ONES GET PRIVILEGED ACCESS...CREATES CONFLICT OF INTEREST EPISODES...BRIBING POSSIBILITIES...UNCOMPETITIVE BEHAVIOUR...LACK OF LEVEL PLAYING FIELD...INSIDER TRADING OPPORTUNITIES...EVEN POTENTIAL ESPIONAGE AND UNDERMINING OF NATIONAL SECURITY... AND DODGY, CORRUPT SITUATIONS LIKE WE'VE SEEN IN NSW...WHERE SOME COMPANIES AND INDIVIDUALS GET AN UNFAIR ADVANTAGE. POLITICIANS SHOULD BE REPRESENTING MORE THE PEOPLE... CORPORATIONS ARE NOT PEOPLE. NOT ON MR. MORRISON. N'

nasking

31/07/2013 ABBOTT PRETENDING TO STAND UP FOR SMALL BUSINESS. WHAT A CON-ARTIST. N'

nasking

31/07/2013 PAUL RAMSAY HOLDINGS A TOP DONOR TO AUSTRALIAN LIBERAL PARTY...NOT EXACTLY A SMALL BUSINESS: Paul Ramsay Holdings Pty Ltd. owns and operates a network of hospitals in Australia. The company offers healthcare services, such as primary care, in-patient care, emergency care, and mental health services. The company also operates a regional television in Australia. Paul Ramsay Holdings Pty Ltd. was incorporated in 1965 and is based in St Leonards, Australia. http://investing.businessweek.com/research/stocks/private/snapshot.asp?privcapId=32371021 HMMM... N'

nasking

31/07/2013 [b]Millions in party political donations unaccounted for[/b] SMH The largest donor to the federal Liberal Party, Paul Ramsay Holdings, does not show up in the party's donation disclosures. Ramsay's 2012 donations of $505,000 is part of a multimillion-dollar discrepancy between what the federal political parties say they receive as donations and the donors' own accounts. In all, nearly $3 million which donors say they gave to both parties last year is either absent from party accounts or hidden in an accounting loophole only Parliament can close. The discrepancy, which amounts to about one-sixth of the total receipts declared by the two parties, makes it impossible to know categorically how much money is being paid to political parties, by whom, or for what purpose. In the case of the Liberal Party, donors told the Australian Electoral Commission they gave $3.6 million in 2012, but the party disclosed donations of just under half that amount. The ALP disclosed total donations of $131,500, although donors said they gave $912,891. The discrepancies are the result of legislation that puts different responsibilities on donors and recipients, and which serves to mask the source and intent of political funding. An ALP spokesman said the party had ''long advocated for reform of political disclosure laws''. ''All donations are declared by the ALP consistent with the treatment and definition of gifts under Australian tax law,'' the spokesman said. And yet, just three of more than 30 entities that told the AEC they donated to the federal Labor Party in 2012 are recognised as donors within the party's disclosures. About one in three donors who disclosed payments to the Liberal Party are absent from the party's disclosures of donors. Fairfax Media was unable to get comment from the Liberal Party. http://www.smh.com.au/federal-politics/political-news/millions-in-party-political-donations-unaccounted-for-20130413-2hsjp.html NOT GOOD. N'

nasking

31/07/2013 Former Qantas chief, John Menadue, said: "Corporate donations are a major threat to our political and democratic system, whether it be state governments fawning before property developers, the Prime Minister providing ethanol subsidies to a party donor, or the immigration minister using his visa clientele to tap into ethnic money." Political researchers Sally Young and Joo-Cheong Tham from the Australian National University concluded: "There is inadequate transparency of funding. Moreover, there is a grave risk of corruption as undue influence due to corporate contributions and the sale of political access." WIKIPEDIA INDEED. ABBOTT IS FULL OF IT. N'

nasking

31/07/2013 SLACK STUFF BY NT GOVT: [b]Federal Health Minister Tanya Plibersek is demanding that the Northern Territory Government return more than $18 million in Commonwealth funds spent on building a medi-hotel at Royal Darwin Hospital. The 100-bed facility was built using money provided by the Federal Government and was intended to house bush patients needing treatment at the hospital. But the Territory Government said it could not afford the estimated annual $5.5 million running costs for the medi-hotel. Instead, it has begun using the facility to house people detained under new mandatory alcohol rehabilitation laws. So far, only two people have been sent there to begin three-month compulsory rehab programs. One of them escaped but was subsequently recaptured several days later. At the time the decision to use the medi-hotel as a rehab centre was announced, Health Minister Robyn Lambley said the CLP Government could not afford purpose-built rehabilitation centres as it had said it would in the run-up to last year's election. The overall cost of the mandatory alcohol rehabilitation scheme is believed to be about $100 million a year. In a letter to Mrs Lambley, Ms Plibersek says the $18.6 million provided for the building of the medi-hotel must be returned to the Commonwealth by the end of next month. She says the Federal Government will reinvest the money in other health programs in the Darwin and Palmerston areas. The letter also says that $2.7 million paid to the Territory for short-term patient accommodation projects at Gove and Katherine Hospitals needs to be returned because the Territory Government is not proceeding with those projects. Mrs Lambley says the Territory won't be returning the money. [/b] http://www.abc.net.au/news/2013-07-31/federal-government-demands-nt-give-back-money-for-darwin-medi-h/4855444 PLEASED TO SEE RUDD AND PLIBERSEK ON ABC 24 PUTTING SO MUCH EMPHASIS ON BUILDING OF CANCER CLINICS...CANCER RESEARCH...HOSPITAL EXPANSIONS...AND RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN CANCER AND TOBACCO. THE LIBERAL PARTY LINKS TO BIG TOBACCO ARE NOT GOOD. N'

nasking

31/07/2013 I AM OF THE STRONG BELIEF THAT THE CORPORATISATION OF POLITICS WHICH IS BAD ALSO HAS HAPPENED TO THE PUBLIC BROADCASTERS... THE ABC SHOULD NOT HAVE MURDOCH'S HARPER COLLINS AS A PARTNER FOR ABC BOOKSHOP... NOR SHOULD IT HAVE A FORMER LIBERAL AND FAIRFAX MAN MARK SCOTT RUNNING THE SHOW... I ALSO NOTICED ANDREW WEST CRITICISING THE ALP ON ABC 24 NOW: Andrew West is a long-time journalist and broadcaster. He has been a senior reporter at The Sydney Morning Herald, The Sun-Herald and The Australian. He is the author of two books, Bob Carr: A Self Made Man (Harper Collins, 2003) and Inside The Lifestyles of the Rich and Tasteful (Pluto, 2006). His piece on Kevin Rudd's faith was featured in The Best Australian Political Writing (MUP, 2008) and his profile of the Anglican Archbishop of Sydney, Peter Jensen, was a cover story in The Monthly in Dec-Jan 2005-06. His work has also appeared in leading international publications, including The Monthly, The New York Times, The South China Morning Post and The Christian Science Monitor, where he has been a contributing correspondent. In 2009 he presented and produced The New Politics for RN's Background Briefing. In 1997 and 1998, Andrew was an editor and reporter with a news agency in Washington, D.C. He is a graduate of the University of Sydney (BA Hons., politics and modern history) and Columbia University in New York City (MSc.), which he attended on an International Rotary Foundation Ambassadorial Scholarship http://www.abc.net.au/radionational/andrew-west/3142266 I WOULD LIKE TO SEE MORE DISCUSSION ON THE ABC OF LIBERAL PARTY CORPORATE CONNECTIONS AND CORRUPTION TOO. BUT I DOUBT WE'LL GET IT WITH MARK SCOTT RUNNING THE SHOW, AND SO MANY ABC STAFF BEING FORMER FAIRFAX, NEWS LTD AND BULLETIN WORKERS. IF YOU WANT TO TALK ABOUT THE INCESTIOUS RELATIONSHIPS AND JOBS FOR MATES AND FAMILY IN POLITICS...THEN WE MUST ALSO FOCUS ON THAT IN THE MAINSTREAM MEDIA... I FIND THAT JUST AS TROUBLING. MORE INDEPENDENT COMMENTATORS ABC PLEASE. AND LESS ADS ON SBS. THE ROT EXPANDS IN THE PUBLIC BROADCASTERS. HOW CAN WE TRUST WHAT THEY SAY ABOUT POLITICS? AND THAT DEFINITELY APPLIES TO THE CORPORATE MEDIA TOO...SKY NEWS BEING LINKED TO THE BIASED MURDOCH EMPIRE FOR ONE. N'

nasking

31/07/2013 I AGREE THAT THE ALP HAVE TO BE CLEANED UP. BUT SO DO THE LIBERAL PARTY. N'

nasking

31/07/2013 AND DON'T GET ME STARTED ON THE NATIONAL PARTY. AWB. HMMM... WHITEHAVEN COAL. FORMER LEADERS RELATIONSHIP WITH DUBAI COMPANIES. LIVE EXPORTS. REGIONAL RORTS SCHEME. GINA AND BARNABY. N'

nasking

31/07/2013 I CAN'T BELIEVE THAT ROSS FITZGERALD WRITES A COLUMN FOR MURDOCH'S THE AUSTRALIAN TOO? I KNEW ROSS AT UNI. SEEMED A NICE ENUFF FELLA...GOOD DRY SENSE OF HUMOUR...GENERALLY KIND IN THAT TUFF AUSSIE WAY. HIGHLY INTELLIGENT. ECCENTRIC. FRANKLY, I WOULDN'T TAKE A PENNY FROM MURDOCH'S MORALLY BANKRUPT EMPIRE. BUT THAT'S JUST ME. N'

nasking

31/07/2013 INDEED: Prime Minister Kevin Rudd said he was disgusted by the allegations aired during the Icac hearings. He did a press conference just before the findings were made public so he did not comment directly on the findings Obeid and Macdonald acted corruptly. He said: My view is very simple - anyone who is responsible for corruption or illegal behaviour should face the full force of the law http://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/jul/31/corruption-icac-reports-nsw-labor-live SOME IN THE NSW ALP HAVE A LOT TO ANSWER FOR. THEY HAVE CAUSED THE PARTY A LOT OF DAMAGE. SAD TO THINK THERE ARE SO MANY GOOD ALPers IN NSW WHO PUT THE COMMON GOOD FIRST AND HAVE HAD TO PUT UP WITH THIS CRAP FOR SO LONG. I THINK THE VOTERS NEED TO THINK CAREFULLY AND NOT JUST THROW OUT GOOD, EFFECTIVE ALPers IN A KNEE-JERK RESPONSE TO THIS ICAC RESULT. THERE ARE PLENTY OF WORRYING CHARACTERS IN THE NSW LIBERAL PARTY TOO... AS REVEALED BY A FORMER CATHOLIC PRIEST RECENTLY... AND ABBOTT'S CONNECTIONS TO THAT ANTI-ONE NATION SLUSH FUND ARE PROBLEMATIC, ALSO ANDREW ROBB AND HIS CONNECTIONS TO DATA MINING. N'

Janet (jan@j4gypsy)

31/07/2013Hi Ad and Lynnie. What a wonderful team you are and what an amazing job you continue to do. (And hullo all again.) Trying to get back into the swing of a little "Twitterstuff" reporting. Let's see how it goes :-). [i]Tim Rust ‏@tim_rust1[/i] What Julia might have done 30 years ago was news for months but #TollGate #TentGate is over after 24 hours? [i]david ewart ‏@davidbewart[/i] Abbott for whom the toll tolls AshGhebranious ‏@AshGhebranious On my last count, Abbott has promised about 15 white papers in two years after he is elected #auspol #abcnews24 [i]Stan Steam ‏@StanSteam2[/i] Bop! Bop! Zip! Pop! #auspol @moir_alan https://twitter.com/StanSteam2/status/362337488313909249/photo/1 [i]David Horton ‏@watermelon_man[/i] Look, it's not just my slight tendency to bias is it? I mean, you all think the Right in Australia have become total fucking lunatics, yes? [i]Brenden ‏@brendens31[/i] Coalition's 'tent city' trip funded by logistics company that provides tents http://www.smh.com.au/federal-politics/political-news/coalitions-tent-city-trip-funded-by-logistics-company-that-provides-tents-20130730-2qws3.html … via @smh [i]Naomi Parry ‏@drnaomi[/i] Great article - scary too. http://newmatilda.com/2013/07/30/rudds-risky-rushed-populism … mango ‏@ByronBayMango Coalition accused of conflict of interest over Nauru policy #AUSpol http://www.abc.net.au/news/2013-07-30/coalition-accused-of-conflict-of-interest-over-nauru-tent-plan/4854280 … @abcnews [i]les victor ‏@otiose94[/i] "Almost every coal mine on east coast of Australia is unprofitable today" says consultant #auspol #coal http://www.abc.net.au/radionational/programs/breakfast/increased-pessimism-in-mining-sector-report/4852028 … [i]Climate Commission ‏@ClimateComm[/i] Over 1 million Australian households have solar PV - How to get the next million solar roofs? http://theconversation.com/how-do-we-get-to-the-next-million-solar-roofs-16515 … via @ConversationEDU [i]Ben Cubby ‏@bencubby[/i] The Broken Hill-Nyngan solar power plant will be the largest in the southern hemisphere. http://bit.ly/1clRmSD [i]Naomi Klein ‏@NaomiAKlein[/i] Fossil Fuel Divestment Is About More Than Reducing Emissions | The Nation http://www.thenation.com/blog/175509/fossil-fuel-divestment-about-more-reducing-emissions … via @thenation [i]Lorraine Hyde ‏@HydecomLorraine[/i] Blinded to one of Australia's finest moments http://www.abc.net.au/news/2013-07-29/harcourt-blinded-to-one-of-australias-finest-moments/4849630 … The truth that Abbott &Co refuse to acknowledge. Shame on them! #auspol [i]Cif Australia ‏@Cif_Australia[/i] Kevin Rudd: mastering paradoxical polling, politics and the press - by @Dr_Tad http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2013/jul/31/kevin-rudd-polls … #auspol [i]Sophie Black ‏@sophblack[/i] Good wrap of reaction to Manning verdict from NY Times' The Lede, meanwhile US cable news barely covering story http://ow.ly/ntIi9

lyn

31/07/2013Hi Janie our little Gypsy, Hullo to you. Great to see you, thankyou so much for your wonderful twitterverse. You haven't lost your touch, brilliant work. You are our team too you know a VIP.

nasking

31/07/2013 INTERESTING HOW MANY WHO REFER TO 'STEM' ARE PUSHERS OF CHARTER SCHOOLS AND PUBLIC-PRIVATE EDUCATION PARTNERSHIPS. HMMM...

nasking

31/07/2013 FUNNY HOW WE HAD EFFECTIVE PUBLIC SCHOOLS AND UNIS IN THE PAST THAT PROVIDED COMMUNITIES WITH EFFECTIVE SCIENTISTS, ENGINEERS AND SO ON...WITHOUT INTERFERENCE FROM BIG COMPANIES IN PUBLIC EDUCATION. YET INTERESTINGLY, THESE DAYS WE HAVE AN OBSESSION WITH LETTING PRIVATE INTERESTS INFILTRATE OUR PUBLIC SYSTEM... MIGHT THIS HAVE SOMETHING TO DO WITH PROFITEERING, UNDERMINING IMPACT OF UNIONS AND TURNING TEACHERS OFT INTO LOWER PAID CORPORATE PUPPETS ON CONTRACTS EASILY DISPOSED OF? N'

Michael

31/07/2013Confession is a very serious sacrament of the Roman Catholic Church. Tony Abbott abuses the concept with gay abandon when he asserts probity through 'transparency by disclosure' over matters such as a commercial organisation that is benefitting already from Federal Government contracts, and with some expectation of gaining more, finances trips by Opposition politicians to places specifically to be involved in such future contracts. To wit, Bwana Morrison's free trip as 'Immigration Minister in Waiting', and thus potentially the ultimate responsible party in a Coalition government for whatever happens on Nauru under the control of the Australian government, to Nauru. Abbott has said previously that "sometimes it is better to ask forgiveness than permission" after making unilateral political decisions. Using 'confession' as a get out of jail free card. "Yes we took a commercial interests' money. Didn't we just tell you that? It's all right then, everybody knows." A junior Jesuit could drive a truck through that. A bully caught out harassing others, when there's nowhere to hide, might assume his challenging admission is exactly the same as exoneration. It isn't. Confession is about accepting the need for penance, not providing lip-service for escaping responsibility. Someone didn't teach another junior Jesuit some thirty years ago his catechisms at all well. Only the excuses have stuck.

nasking

31/07/2013 WHO WILL GET CUSTODY OF THE YACHT? THE PENTHOUSE?: The lawyer, William Zabel, has a somewhat mild-mannered look in the picture on his website. (He's even got a bow tie.) But nobody who's written a book called "The Rich Die Richer — And You Can Too," and who has represented several others in Deng's exact situation, should be taken lightly. The Times drily summed up one of his recent cases this way: More recently, he represented Christina Lurie, the former wife of the Philadelphia Eagles owner Jeffrey Lurie, who divorced after 20 years of marriage. Ms. Lurie remained a part owner of the team. Much of the Murdoch fortune is tied up in prenuptial agreements, but the paper identified some key areas Deng could be targeting, including custody of the two children she had with Murdoch and the Fifth Avenue penthouse and yacht the couple shared. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/07/30/wendi-deng-divorce-lawyer-rupert-murdoch_n_3675623.html?utm_hp_ref=media LIFE OF THE TOO BLOODY RICH FOR THEIR OWN GOOD AND INFAMOUS. N'

nasking

31/07/2013 INTERESTING HOW THE AUSSIE MEDIA HAVE GENERALLY IGNORED THIS: Clive Palmer’s Coolum Sands resort is in the seat of Fisher. At this time the billionaire was a life member of the LNP. Over Easter, Brough had breakfast with Palmer at the resort. Joe Hockey joined them but was not a party to the request Brough made: that Palmer fund Ashby’s litigation. When Slipper revealed this only weeks ago, his version of events was backed by a spokesman for Palmer, Andrew Crook: “I can confirm that during a meal at the Palmer Coolum resort, Mr Palmer, Mal Brough and Joe Hockey the matter of financing James Ashby case was raised [sic]. Mr Palmer declined.” The Guardian has confirmed that remains Palmer’s position. But Brough told the Guardian: “I asked no one for financial assistance.” News Limited flew Ashby down to Sydney to see Steve Lewis and the lawyers. The lawyers were to prove extraordinarily generous. Ashby’s case would be handled personally by the head of the firm, Michael Harmer, who was willing to take on the Speaker of the House of Representatives and the commonwealth on a no win, no fee basis. The case might cost millions. The damages would be lucky to run to $30,000. McClellan told the Guardian that Harmers backed Ashby because the firm has a deep commitment to social justice: they were taking on another fight for the little guy. McClellan agreed that a win for Ashby would be a feather in the firm’s cap. The lawyers and Lewis worked for 10 days. McClellan was brought in to handle the press. Brough was in contact with Ashby and Doane throughout, keen to have updates, anxious to talk, wanting to know when the action would begin. Up in Brisbane, he was trying to find a job for Doane either with Clive Palmer or the LNP president and transport magnate, Bruce McIver. Brough wrote: “Her resume is very impressive.” http://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/jul/12/ashbygate-peter-slipper-james-ashby FUNNY TO WATCH THE LIBERAL PARTY ACTING LIKE CLEANSKINS TODAY. TICK TOCK... N'

nasking

31/07/2013 JANET, THNX FOR THE TWEETS: TIM RUST [b]What Julia might have done 30 years ago was news for months but #TollGate #TentGate is over after 24 hours?[/b] NOT IF WE CAN HELP IT. I HAVE A LOT MORE TO SAY ABOUT THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN TOLL AND THE COALITION, AND A NUMBER OF OTHER COMPANIES. THE COALITION TEAM IS MADE UP OF A LOT OF MORALLY DODGY CHARACTERS...AND CON-ARTISTS...LAWYERS, BUSINESS PEOPLE, SPORTS CHARACTERS, LAND OWNERS, INVESTORS...RELATIONSHIP TO RELIGIOUS AND MINING AND GAMBLING AND INVESTMENT BANK AND MEDIA AND COMMUNICATIONS INDIVIDUALS...AND THEIR ADVISORS, LOBBYISTS, THINK TANKS... THE LIGHT OF SCRUTINY WILL SHINE INTENSELY. I WOULDN'T GET TOO COCKY IF I WERE THEM. N'

nasking

31/07/2013 ALSO, I HAVE A FRIEND WHO KNOWS A HECKUVA LOT OF PEOPLE AND HAS BEEN FILLING ME IN ON SOME VERY INTERESTING INFO RELATED TO A NUMBER OF MINISTERS AND OTHERS IN THE QLD LNP. MINING LICENSES...PROPERTY DEVELOPMENT...DISABILITY...AND OTHER AREAS. N'

nasking

31/07/2013 CAN WE EXPECT MORE OF THIS TYPE OF ABUSIVE STUFF UNDER A COALITION GOVT IF ABBOTT WINS?: [b]Sinned or sinned against? The impact of 'gay conversion' programs Christian ministries in Australia are running programs they believe can help gay people become straight, but what effects are these schemes having?[/b] REBECCA BAILLIE: For decades so called ex gay ministries in America have promised to convert the sexualities of gays and lesbians. PARISHNER: The month of hell consisted of tiny needles being stuck into my fingers and then pictures of explicit acts would be shown and I'd be electrocuted. REBECCA BAILLIE: [b]Last month one of the world's largest ex gay organisation, US based Exodus International closed down. Its leader publicly apologised to people who had suffered as a result of its ex gay therapies.[/b] http://www.abc.net.au/7.30/content/2013/s3814607.htm ARE THESE CHRISTIAN MINISTRIES TAX EXEMPT? WILL THEY PAY COMPENSATION TO VICTIMS?...AND THEIR FAMILIES, PARTNERS IF THEY COMMIT SUICIDE? N'

Michael

31/07/2013A bugbear of mine you might like to support by also emailing a complaint/request to the ABC. I sent the text below this afternoon after months and months of putting up with what I write about in it. It wasn't particularly wanting to hear what Abbott had to say today that got me posting to the ABC, it was wanting to hear what his answers were manifestly avoiding in the questions he was asked that I couldn't hear! "Please can we have a room microphone on, or a support soundman collecting sound from reporters asking questions during group interviews and even formal press conferences on ABC News 24? It is incredibly frustrating (not) hearing almost inaudible questions being asked of interviewees and then trying to work out what the question might have been from the phrasing of the answer. Prime Ministers, Leaders of the Opposition, let alone lesser luminaries, are asked questions considered important enough to be put to them, definitely important enough to be 'breaking into normal scheduling' telecast... and the audience doesn't hear them! Today (Wednesday, July 31), Tony Abbott gave a press conference in something trumpeted as a first time used/brand spanking new special room for such events, and not one single question asked of him was audible. And this is a daily occurrence on ABC News 24. It's unprofessional, it's embarrassingly inadequate as an information service, it's frustrating for viewers. Fix, please."

Catching up

31/07/2013Michael, subtitles often pick up the questions.

42 long

31/07/2013Queensland, The wild frontier. Land of governments being "in the business of MINING. A game where even the rich and Canny fall. Land where the universe is only 6300 years old, dynasaur bones and school curriculums where climate science must not be taught and intelligent design is "science". Where Evolution does not exist. Can do Newman, drafted in from inner space to sack the multitudes and play havoc as a result The "arranged" Costello audit. Sell off the assets to mates. Exorcise the word PUBLIC from the state of wonder which is OLD . Quality of life Sure there's plenty of it. . It is just that LESS people get to share it in the new "WINNERS TAKE ALL" which is the LieNP A pre -run of the big act from SHockey to follow federally which up till a few short weeks ago was so assured for the "phoney" abbott team. It's easier to do in "Fantastic" Queensland as it has NO upper house, as the federal set-up does.

nasking

31/07/2013 MEMORIES FROM JULY 2011...LOOKS LIKE RUDD AND THE OTHERS INVOLVED PROVED MORE THAN A FEW PEOPLE WRONG: Doubts have been cast over Australia's efforts to win a seat at the United Nations Security Council. LEIGH SALES, PRESENTER: [b]Australia's attempt to win a seat at the United Nations Security Council could be on shaky ground. [/b] Diplomatic sources have told the ABC that the bid's not going well, with even some close neighbours refusing to support it. Critics say the major effort to garner votes is now distorting the country's foreign policy interests and dragging the Foreign Minister to all corners of the globe. http://www.abc.net.au/7.30/content/2011/s3280520.htm MIGHT BE A GOOD IDEA TO LET RUDD GET ON WITH THINGS. N'

Catching up

31/07/2013Confession means, one has to admit guilt and promise not to do it again. I would say that Abbott is abusing the process.

nasking

31/07/2013 MICHAEL, I AGREE: "[b]Please can we have a room microphone on, or a support soundman collecting sound from reporters asking questions during group interviews and even formal press conferences on ABC News 24? It is incredibly frustrating (not) hearing almost inaudible questions being asked of interviewees and then trying to work out what the question might have been from the phrasing of the answer.[/b] I NOTICED THAT TOO OFT ABBOTT SEEMS TO HAVE ONLY A FEW REPORTERS ASKING HIM QUESTIONS WHO SOUND LIKE THEY HAVE BEEN CHOSEN TO FEED HIM THE COALITION TALKING POINTS AND DOROTHY DIXERS. LITTLE APPROPRIATE SCRUTINY. REMINDS ME OF GW BUSH'S CAMPAIGNS. N'

42 long

31/07/2013They ALL do. It's a get out of hell card that has no expiry date. You have a religion based on guilt but an oh so convenient OUT, of confessional, for those who are not outside the privileged in house believers (Excommunicated). It's a monop(o)loy too in a way.

Catching up

31/07/2013I wonder how many reporters are turning up. Many lately appear to have only one voice asking questions. One sweep of the cameras, showed three journalists. I suspect there was only one, at another. That was a new venue Abbott was at today. Yes one would expect to hear and see questioners.

nasking

31/07/2013 LOL. THE RUDD CAMP HAS BROUGHT IN OBAMA FOLK TO PUSH SOCIAL MEDIA PRESENCE. INTERESTING THEY DIDN'T USE MICHAEL TAYLOR (MIGS) AND LYN HERE CONSIDERING ALL THEIR EXPERIENCE. TALK ABOUT THE ELITE LOOKING AFTER THE ELITE. YET THE MAINSTREAM PARTIES DON'T MIND USING US TO SPREAD THEIR MESSAGES 24 HRS A DAY...FREE OF CHARGE. NEW CAPITALISM...AIN'T IT GREAT? Sigh. N'

Catching up

31/07/2013nasking, does not work, unless one admits guilt, accepts responsibility and genuinely promises not to do it again. No get out of jail card. God, it seems knows all.

42 long

31/07/2013Snakes and ladders with a changing board. ALL players are EQUAL but some are MORE EQUAL than others.( And I am NOT Jealous)

nasking

31/07/2013 Queensland, The wild frontier. Land of governments being "in the business of MINING... 42 long, YER COMMENT ABOVE CONTAINS MANY TRUTHS...BUT THE EDUCATION SYSTEM HAS IMPROVED...A MUCH SMARTER STATE THAN WHEN I CAME BACK FROM CANADA/UK IN THE 80s... BEATTIE/BLIGH PUSHED RATIONAL SCIENCE... UNFORTUNATELY, STILL WAY TOO MUCH RELIGIOUS INFLUENCE ON CERTAIN COMMUNITIES...INCLUDING THE ISLANDER COMMUNITY...AND IN THE REGIONAL, RURAL AREAS. SADLY, WE HAVE AN LNP FULL OF RELIGIOUS WACKOS WHO ARE PROBABLY KEEN TO PUSH THEIR MYTHICAL NONSENSE AND UNENLIGHTENED IDEAS ON OUR VULNERABLE, MALLEABLE STUDENTS. MY DAD ALWAYS REMINDS ME THAT MONEY, GREED FOR POWER, GUILT AND ABUSE OFT LIE BENEATH THE OBSESSION WITH RELIGION...TOO OFT THE HOLIER-THAN-THOU ARE BLEEDIN' HYPOCRITES...HIDING SEXUAL URGES...PAST ABUSE AND SO ON. N'

Ad astra

31/07/2013Hi Lyn Now in Melbourne, I’ve caught up with your links. What an interesting lot they were. I see the Ettridge action against Abbott is still proceeding. Robert Gottliebsen’s comments about Abbott won’t please him at all. There are a number of useful articles about asylum seekers and the NBN. It seems to me that Slogan-Abbott is falling further behind and it’s showing. Janet Welcome back and thank you for your additional links, again providing more evidence of Abbott’s decline.

Roger

31/07/2013You write: [quote]"How does Australia rank in accepting refugees? Australia accepts the third largest number of refugees (including refugees and other humanitarian entrants) for resettlement in the world after the USA and Canada."[/quote] In the first complete paragraph on p. 13 of http://www.aph.gov.au/binaries/library/pubs/bn/sp/asylumfacts.pdf, this claim is confirmed for the year 2008. How does this square, I wonder, with Mr. Denmore's claim that: [quote]"Australia ranked 49th last year in the list of countries hosting refugees, accounting for 0.3% of the total"? [/quote]

Bacchus

31/07/2013Roger, The difference in in the words "resettlement" and "hosting." Pakistan was hosting 1,641,718 refugees & Asylum seekers in 2012 - Australia hosted 49,932.

nasking

31/07/2013 JUST VOTED FOR RUDD IN THIS COURIER MAIL POLL...HE'S WAY AHEAD (IT'S AT BOTTOM OF PAGE...SCROLL DOWN): http://www.couriermail.com.au/news/queensland/party-games-testy-coalition-mps-not-happy-playing-second-fiddle-to-kevin-rudd-on-asylum-seeker-policy/story-fnihsrf2-1226688256751 N'

nasking

31/07/2013 [b]wonder how many reporters are turning up. Many lately appear to have only one voice asking questions. One sweep of the cameras, showed three journalists[/b] CATCHING UP, I BET MOST REPORTERS ASSIGNED TO THE NEGABORE ABBOTT THINK BEFORE EACH SESSION: [b]KILL ME NOW[/b] :D N'

nasking

31/07/2013 BUSH'S DUMB WAR... HOW MANY TERRORISTS CAME FROM SAUDI ARABIA? BUT OF COURSE BUSH DIDN'T INVADE HIS OIL MATES...DID HE? NO, HE CONVENIENTLY CHOSE THE ONE COUNTRY THEY NEEDED FOR PIPELINES...KNOWING THE AFGHANIS WERE PROFESSIONAL FIGHTERS FROM HUNDREDS OF YEARS EXPERIENCE THE WAR WOULD HE PROTRACTED... GO ON AND ON FOR THE CORPORATE WAR PROFITEERS: The number of civilians killed and injured in Afghanistan rose by a quarter in the first six months of this year, according to the United Nations. Homemade Taliban landmines are still the deadliest threat to ordinary Afghans, and the insurgents caused around three-quarters of all recorded civilian losses and injuries, said the UN in a report that charts rising violence in the wake of Nato troops' accelerating departure from the country. But there was a sharp increase in civilians harmed in ground battles between Afghan government troops and insurgents, the second leading cause of casualties and a worrying new trend as fighting intensifies and insecurity spreads. "Civilians again increasingly bore the brunt of the armed conflict in Afghanistan in early 2013," the report warned. "[They] experienced the grim reality of rising civilian deaths and injuries coupled with pervasive violence which threatened the lives, livelihood and wellbeing of thousands of Afghans. http://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/jul/31/afghan-civilian-casualties-rise-quarter-2013 HOW MUCH HAS THIS WAR COST AUSTRALIA MR. HOWARD? AND THAT STINKER OF A FIASCO IN IRAQ? BRAVE LIVES...AND TAXPAYER' MONEY? WHO BENEFITTED? LIBERAL PARTY ACTING LIKE FCKN CLEANSKINS...F-35 COSTS? GRRR.... N'

nasking

31/07/2013 GRAHAM RICHARDSON IS A PLAGUE ON THE ALP. TO THINK THAT MAN IS MAKING BIG BUCKS PONTIFICATING ON SKY NEWS...MURDOCH'S SKY NEWS. YEA...I GUESS THAT MAKES SENSE. LIKE ATTRACTS. N'

TalkTurkey

31/07/2013If you listen to nothing else all month . . . LISTEN TO THIS! Hope this link is right, otherwise I'll find it soon, anyway you're looking on the page for Margo Kingston telling Truth on 2BOBBRADIO http://www.2bobradio.org.au/ or maybe 2bobradio.org.au

nasking

31/07/2013 YET ANOTHER EXAMPLE OF HOW BANKRUPT AND CORPORATISED THE PUBLIC BROADCASTER IS... THE DRUM HOSTED BY JULIA BAIRD, THE SISTER OF THE NSW LIBERAL TREASURER, DID NOTHING BUT TAKE THE PISS OUT OF RUDD AND FEDERAL LABOR TONIGHT...IT USED A CHARACTER FROM 2UE TO HELP...ONE OFTEN ON SKY NEWS. NO DISCUSSION ABOUT SCOTT MORRISON AND TOLL HOLDINGS. NIL. NOTHING. JUST SLAM THE ALP. IT ENDED WITH A SPRUIK FOR RICH MAN DICK SMITH WHO GETS TO PROMOTE HIS CALL FOR NUCLEAR ENERGY ON THE TAXPAYERS' DOLLAR COURTESY OF THE DRUM...AND A DOCO TOMORROW. THE ABC DESERVES A KICK UP ITS CORPORATISED BUTT. IT'S ENUFF THAT MURDOCH EMPIRE TWIT JOE HILDEBRAND GETS TO MAKE STUPID SHOWS FOR THE ABC... WTF IS GOING ON IN THAT PLACE AT TAXPAYERS' EXPENSE? AND WHY DID THE ALP KEEP MARK SCOTT IN PLACE? JUST NOT ON! MY WIFE AND I WERE DISGUSTED BY THE DRUM'S APPROACH. IT'S BEEN BIASED AND CRAP FAR TOO OFTEN. WHEN YOU MISS THE TOLL/MORRISON CONNECTION DURING DISCUSSIONS OF INAPPROPRIATE POLITICAL CONNECTIONS YOU KNOW SOMETHING STINKS IN THE ABC. N'

nasking

31/07/2013 HOW STUPID ARE SOME OF THE LABOR PEOPLE?...ED HUSIC TAKEN TO LUNCH BY RICHO...WOULDN'T YOU THINK HE AND OTHERS WOULD AVOID RICHARDSON LIKE THE PLAGUE? GRRR... N'

nasking

31/07/2013 I'M OUT. THE ALP CAN DEFEND ITSELF FROM NOW ON. N'

nasking

31/07/2013 AND JOSH FRYDENBERG DEFENDING LIBS OVER TOLL CONNECTION. THE LIBS ARE FCKN BANKRUPT. FCKN HAD IT WITH THE MAINSTREAM PARTIES. N'

nasking

31/07/2013 AND I MIGHT ADD, I REALLY FEEL FOR THE MAJORITY OF LABOR POLLIES WHO I RECKON ARE HONEST AND DOING A TOP JOB...WORKING FOR THE PEOPLE. IT'S THESE OTHERS MAKING DUMB AND GREEDY DECISIONS THAT ARE STUFFING THINGS UP. AS FOR THE COALITION...IT STINKS TO HIGH HEAVEN...BUNCH OF MORALISING HYPOCRITES. I JUST WISH RUDD AND GILLARD HAD DONE MEDIA REFORM, CHANGED THE HEAD OF THE ABC, GOT RID OF THE RICHO SMOOZERS YEARS AGO...AND KEPT AWAY FROM MURDOCH. AS FOR ABBOTT...I HAVE WATCHED AND COMMENTED ON MANY ELECTIONS IN MANY COUNTRIES...AND RARELY HAVE I COME ACROSS SUCH A WEIRD, DISHONEST, SCHEMING RELIGIOUS ZEALOT LIKE HIM. HE'S BIZARRE. AND A CULTURE WARRIOR STUCK DANGEROUSLY IN THE PAST...WITH HIS HEAD UP THE BACKSIDE OF TOO MANY MEGA-MANIACS IN BUSINESS. NO WONDER THE VOTERS DON'T TRUST HIM. N'

nasking

31/07/2013 AND THE AUTHORITY FIGURES WONDER WHY THE PEOPLE ARE LOSING TRUST IN THE SYSTEM... GW BUSH, CHENEY AND TEAM WALK FREE...AND SO MANY ON WALL ST WHO BROUGHT US THE GFC... IT'S NUTS AND UNJUST. A CORPORATE ARISTOCRACY WORKING OVERTIME FOR THE CORPORATE INTEREST...AND THE FEW: THIS FROM GUY RUNDLE: Manning will be sentenced tomorrow. He’s already been subjected to months on end of low-level torture—sleep deprivation, extended solitary confinement—under the guise of suicide prevention. By all reports he has been tempered in the fire and was actively assisting in his own defence. He has a long and hard road to walk in the years to come, his actions arising from the best and most universal human drive: towards truth and moral witnessing; his life undone by other, no less human needs: for love and connection. He is far from the last man or woman who will be thus tested on these matters, a defining one of our age, in the years to come. http://www.crikey.com.au/2013/07/31/manning-didnt-aid-the-enemy-but-his-country-will-lock-him-up-for-life/ THE STENCH OF INJUSTICE IS OVERWHELMING... THE PRIVILEGED FEW HAVE JUST PUT ANOTHER NAIL IN THEIR COFFIN. N'

TalkTurkey

1/08/2013Good Morning Lynnie Cold and still dark in Adelaide And I hope all is warm and bright in your morning.

lyn

1/08/2013Good Morning Talk Turkey, Nice to see you happy and bright in this lovely morning. Sorry about Adelaide weather but you know it doesn't matter can't change my outlook or attitude not yours either TT. :):):)

lyn

1/08/2013Today’s Links The man who will watch every word Tony Abbott says by Nick O'Malley As the head of the Obama campaign's digital rapid response team, Mr McGregor was responsible not only for immediately responding to attacks from the Romney campaign and affiliated political action committees but for seizing on Romney mistakes to harness or drive negative media momentum. http://www.bordermail.com.au/story/1674826/the-man-who-will-watch-every-word-tony-abbott-says/?cs=12 Kevin Rudd: mastering paradoxical polling, politics and the press by @Dr_Tad Rather than being poll-obsessed, Rudd has been systematically out-manoeuvring his opponents in order to dominate them politically. These opponents include not just the Coalition and the Greens, but those in his party who represent the “old politics” he routinely attacks. To do this, Rudd deploys two key weapons http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2013/jul/31/kevin-rudd-polls Icac NSW Labor corruption reports recommend criminal charges - live reaction by The Guardian Tony Abbott has used the report's findings to launch a stinging attack on the Labor prime minister Kevin Rudd. Abbott said that senior federal ministers also had questions to answer for being "close associates" of Obeid and Macdonald. He singled out foreign minister Bob Carr, http://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/jul/31/corruption-icac-reports-nsw-labor-live?CMP=soc_567#block- Great Scott’s mad Tollgate by @independentaus The bizarre Scott Morrison’s corrupt night flight to Nauru and what followed – an offer the smugglers couldn’t refuse – will be seen, in the twenty-two days before Parliament resumes, as a giant tapeworm devouring him and the Liberal Party. http://www.independentaustralia.net/2013/politics/great-scotts-mad-tollgate/ July 31- Tents and Tiffanie by @Canb_Occasional Days like this, in fact, years like this, are just what I need. It’s hard to practice objectivity when you have a rabid faith freak like Abbott and his hollowed out shell of an immigration minister sitting in their lair dreaming up plans to kill anyone fitting the description of ‘non-white, potentially scary and possibly on/near a boat http://canberraoccasional.tumblr.com/post/56930084416/july-31-tents-and-tiffanie Playing Political Football with the Economy by @saint13333 Two months ago, Hockey said: “We have always said that the only numbers we can actually rely on are the numbers released by the secretary of the Department of the Treasury and Finance, 10 days into the election campaign. Because they belong to the public servants rather than these numbers which belong to the government.” http://theaimn.com/2013/07/31/playing-political-football-with-the-economy/ FactCheck Q&A: Treasury forecasts and youth unemployment by @ConversationEDU Verdict: Peter Shergold is correct. Treasury is more likely to underestimate figures during boom times, and overestimate when things take a turn for the worse. This is due to the nature of forecasting. – Graeme Wells http://theconversation.com/factcheck-qanda-treasury-forecasts-and-youth-unemployment-16507 Bugger the utilities! by @LarvatusProdeo if the LNP is elected we can’t discount entirely the possibility that the Renewable Energy Target (RET) may be eliminated. After all economists always say that with an appropriate price on carbon a RET should not be necessary and the LNP reckon their ‘Direct Action’ plan will achieve our targets, so why not dump the RET? http://larvatusprodeo.net/archives/2013/07/bugger-the-utilities/ Toll Holdings: Tents R Us by @no_filter_Yamba From pages 133 to 138 of Toll Holdings Appendix 4E Preliminary Final Report for year ended 30 June 2012 there is a complete list of companies controlled by Toll - feel free to knock yourselves out figuring exactly who might be filling Tones' campaign coffers. http://northcoastvoices.blogspot.com.au/2013/08/toll-holdings-tents-r-us.html Can cuddling up with the commercial media save the ABC from Abbott’s axe? by @ethicalmartini Since at least 2009, Rupert Murdoch and his extended family are on the record demanding that the BBC in Britain and the ABC in Australia get out of the way of private profit taking. News International executives and senior columnists have also argued for the down-sizing or full privatisation of public broadcasters, http://ethicalmartini.wordpress.com/2013/07/31/can-cuddling-up-with-the-commercial-media-save-the-abc-from-abbotts-axe/ Is insecure work one of the missing pieces in the cost of living puzzle? by @bluntshovels The data around cost of living pressures shows that average households have higher incomes, compared to CPI. Incomes have risen strongly and prices have fallen for some goods. (This is not universal, with renters and those on Newstart particularly under pressure from rising costs of housing http://ausvotes2013.com/2013/07/31/is-insecure-work-one-of-the-missing-pieces-in-the-cost-of-living-puzzle/ Five year freeze on super changes by @macro_business The Rudd Labor Government will make no major changes to superannuation tax policy for five-year periods, promoting confidence and stability in the superannuation system. This will be enshrined in legislation by a re-elected Rudd Labor Government. http://www.macrobusiness.com.au/2013/07/five-year-freeze-on-super-changes-2/ Australia's absurd interest rates debate by @GrogsGamut The rate is so low that it has fairly well slaughtered the Liberal Party standard line that interest rates will always be lower under a Coalition government. The lowest cash rate during the Howard government was 4.25 per cent - for five months in 2001-02. The cash rate has now been below 4.25 for the past 15 months. http://www.abc.net.au/news/2013-07-31/jericho-australias-absurd-interest-rates-debate/4854044 What is a “National Emergency”? by @AshGhebranious The ONLY time something gets to a level of “National Emergency” is when a nation is at war or under attack http://ashghebranious.wordpress.com/2013/07/31/what-is-a-national-emergency/ Tony, self praise is no recommendation! by Truth Seeker I don’t know about you, but I find it passing strange that many people, according to the polls, believe that the LNP are better at managing the economy http://truthseekersmusings.wordpress.com/2013/07/31/tony-self-praise-is-no-recommendation/ Today’s Front Pages Australian Newspaper Front Pages for 1 August 2013 http://www.thepaperboy.com/australia/front-pages.cfm News headlines http://www.hotheadlines.com.au/

TalkTurkey

1/08/2013Cannabis is KNOWN to be anticarcinogenic. Best known agent to arrest Glaucoma! Antiepileptic, efficacious in regulating late-onset diabetes, mood problems, pain relief in cases in which opiate narcotics fail ... so many other things but the world's pharmacological and medical authorities refuse to acknowledge it. WHY? http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/jj-mccullough/marijuana-legalization_canada_b_3669081.html

Michael

1/08/2013Sharing here an email I sent through to ABC News Breakfast this morning: Virginia Trioli's muttered "he insists on it" when Michael Rowland observed during the conclusion of their session with Barrie Cassidy this morning that Kevin Rudd's hard hat during a visit to what appeared to be a construction site had his name on it, was both unfounded on the evidence of past similar events, and if either Michael or Virginia had bothered to look, since Tanya Plibersek's name was on the helmet she was wearing, too, something particular to their visit. The naming was clearly a sensible/marketing effort by the hosts of the visit to ensure the right 'lid' was on the right head. The habit of narky asides, however, and it is a habit from the ABC Breakfast couch, adds nothing to the reporting of news. Please look at what you are commenting on, please accurately listen to what is said before you smirkily editorialise on it, and please treat an audience setting out to watch what is brought to air as a serious 'first information exposure of the day' news program with a due degree of respect - we could, after all, be watching 7 or 9 at the same time if froth, turned lips and rolled eyes sufficed for insight and analysis.

Ad astra

1/08/2013LYN'S DAILY LINKS updated: http://www.thepoliticalsword.com/page/LYNS-DAILY-LINKS.aspx

jaycee

1/08/2013This Egyptian resurgance for the reinstatement of Mr. Morsi is a furfy. I like the way demagogues like the religious right use the "broad interpretations" of democracy to get a "mandate" to implement overbearing / bullying theocracy! And any "democratic process" that uses religious / indoctrinated coercion as a means of compliance of favouritism of voter intention is no more than "politics from the pulpit", and is to abuse the very democratic process that it uses to gain office. Morsi/ muslim brotherhood ; out!...secularism ; IN!

nasking

1/08/2013 JOE HOCKEY SAYS HE'S CONCERNED ABOUT THE COST OF CIGS AND BEER FOR PENSIONERS...YET WANTS TO RAISE THE GST...WHICH HITS THE POOR. JOE MAKES NO SENSE.

TalkTurkey

1/08/2013Michael I didn't hear the snarky muttered aside "he insists on it" but I heard Rowlands say smirkily that Rudd's got his own hard hat, and yes I saw that Tanya's hard hat too had her name on it, I drew the same conclusion, good PR on part of the construction mob, they might present the hats or keep a collection of hats to show a gallery of their important visitors over time. Trivioli as I commented on Twitter was desperate to turn attention off the Abborrrtians' addiction to Tobacco and onto Obeid & Co. I am very very sick of her. And Rowlands is pathetic, Trivioli's nancy-boy, never anything important to say, very much her offsider. I'd be ashamed to be so patently [i]her[/i] junior, [i]a man's a man for a' that![/i] Understudy to *J*U*L*I*A*, that'd be fine: to Trivioli of the snide comment and self-amusement No thank you! They behave like they think they are Media Nobility. Vastly smug. BTW Michael I always enjoy your posts.

nasking

1/08/2013 FROM THE GUARDIAN LINK ABOVE: [b]For all their claims they had war-gamed Rudd’s return, the Coalition look shaken, off-message and whiney on almost every issue, unable to lay a glove on him. The Greens were similarly at sea until the PNG deal gave them something they could plausibly attack Rudd on.[/b] MY WIFE REMARKED A COUPLE OF DAYS AGO SHE THOUGHT THE COALITION FORCES LOOKED RATTLED. JOE HOCKEY LOOKED STUFFED THIS MORNING BEING INTERVIEWED BY JON FAINE. ABBOTT GOT ALL EXCITED ABOUT THE NSW ICAC REPORT...AND MY WIFE YAWNED AND SAID HE WAS "OVERREACHING LIKE THE PAPERS". I AGREED. SHE ALSO THOUGHT THE AVERAGE VOTER HERE IN QLD COULDN'T GIVE A STUFF ABOUT NSW STATE LABOR. IT'S THE LNP CAUSING US HEADACHES. AS USUAL, SHE'S RIGHT. N'

nasking

1/08/2013 FROM 2003...TELLS YA ABBOTT IS A SCHEMER...DODGY...DISHONEST...AND AN ARROGANT SOD: Tony Abbott: No such thing as the public's right to know By Margo Kingston September 5, 2003 Print this article Email to a friend Workplace relations and public service minister Tony Abbott said yesterday he would not reveal the donors to his 'honest politics' trust because "there are some things the public has no particular right to know'. His latest refusal to reveal his donors comes after the Chairman of the Australian Electoral Commission, Justice Trevor Morling, took control of the AEC's investigations of Mr Abbott's honest politics slush fund and the AEC commissioned new legal advice on whether to demand disclosure. Justice Morling criticised aspects of the AEC's handling of the matter to date, and it is now possible that the AEC will order Mr Abbott to give sworn evidence on the trust. Asked what things the public had no right to know about, Mr Abbott said: "Where do you start?" "I don't propose to nominate a list, I don't propose to enumerate them. Short of the AEC changing its mind, they are not entitled to know who those donors were unless the donors choose to volunteer that information." Mr Abbott also refused to reveal the name of the lawyer he advised the AEC in 1998 had told him no disclosure of donations was required . Asked why, he said: "I just believe private conversations should be private." Mr Abbott would not comment on why he had detailed this private conversation to the AEC in a letter seeking exemption from disclosing his donors, and this week released the letter to the Australian Financial Review. http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2003/09/05/1062549026867.html THE MSM NEED TO GO BALLISTIC ON THIS GUY...THE PUBLIC DESERVE IT...WOULD PROBABLY APPLAUD THEM FOR DOING SO. BY GAWD HE'S HAD AN EASY RUN OF IT...IF THIS WAS THE UK OR AMERICA HE WOULDA BEEN EATEN ALIVE BY NOW. ABBOTT IS NOWHERE NEAR THE GREAT OPPOSITION LEADER SO MANY IN THE MSM MAKE OUT...IT'S JUST THAT THEY'VE BEEN TOLD TO TAKE IT EASY ON HIM...OR THINK HE'S ONE OF THEM. GIVE ME TEN MINUTES WITH HIM AND I'D SHOW THIS COUNTRY WHAT A FRAUD AND WEIRDO HE IS. N'

nasking

1/08/2013 I WONDER IF THIS WILL COME BACK TO BITE THE O'FARRELL GOVT?: [b]O’Farrell backs Packer’s casino dream[/b] Saturday, July 27, 2013 By Darin Robertson An impression of James Packer's casino on Sydney Harbour. James Packer’s $1.4 billion Crown Casino development at Barangaroo on Sydney Harbour was approved by the NSW government on July 5. The high-rollers’ casino will reach 70 storeys, with 350 six-star rooms and 80 luxury apartments. It will be designed to attract the so-called whales of the gambling world. Premier Barry O’Farrell approved the project, saying it would boost the state’s economy. Packer will pay a $100 million upfront fee, and $1.4 billion will end up in government coffers over 15 years. The casino itself is expected to generate Packer $1 billion revenue a year for the first 10 years. The development proposal has not yet met any community consultation or environmental assessment. O’Farrell told the ABC on July 4 the approval was “not a licence to build”. It’s “a licence to go to stage three of the process and consider some conditions that the government have imposed.” The conditions include a 29% tax on non-rebate gaming and no licence for pokies. The casino’s go-ahead rules out a counter-proposal by Echo Entertainment. Echo’s $1.1 billion bid was to transform The Star, its casino at Pyrmont, into a major integrated resort, featuring two new luxury hotel high rises. But O’Farrell said a review by a business panel concluded that “competition would improve the tourism dollar in NSW”. So a second casino was approved rather than a revamp of the current one. The project remains controversial. The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) is investigating an alleged secret proposal by Packer to Echo executive John O’Neill. The Sydney Morning Herald said on July 13 Packer allegedly proposed to “keeps his Crown casino empire out of Brisbane if the executives of Echo Entertainment, owner of the Star, agreed to let him into the Sydney market”. Packer denies the charge. But an ACCC spokesperson told the SMH that investigators would probe “potential breaches of international and cartel law”. The investigation is in response to O’Neill telling the Australian Financial Review: “James Packer categorically said that if we behaved ourselves vis-a-vis Sydney, he would stay out of Queensland.” NSW Australian Institute of Architects president Joe Agius said the Barangaroo casino is an “assault on public interest”. “What will be the impact of such a monumental building on the low-scale and people-friendly community facilities proposed for the harbourside of Barangaroo Central?'' The Conversation said on July 9: “If Crown’s latest venture is to be a financial success, it is likely to ultimately come at the cost of the well-being of a large number of Sydneysiders.” http://www.greenleft.org.au/node/54627 VERY INTERESTING. N'

nasking

1/08/2013 IS JOE O'BRIEN A CONSERVATIVE? I NOTICED THAT HE GOES OUT OF HIS WAY TO BASH THE ALP WHENEVER HE GETS THE CHANCE. IN FACT, MOST OF THE ABC DO. THEY DON'T CARE ABOUT THE LIBS AND THEIR CONNECTIONS TO BIG BUSINESS. THAT TOLL RELATIONSHIP IS BAD. N'

nasking

1/08/2013 FROM LYN'S LINKS ABOVE...NORTH COAST VOICES: [b]Tony Abbott sprung pinching pennies while pleasing powerful mates.[/b] The Sydney Morning Herald 30th July 2013: [b]A logistics company that stands to profit from the Coalition's "tent city" on Nauru funded the trip of its immigration spokesman Scott Morrison and a journalist and photographer from News Corporation to the remote island to announce the plan.[/b] [b]The trip to Nauru was facilitated by Toll Holdings, which has multimillion-dollar contracts already to help handle asylum seekers and is eager for more business in the area.[/b] [b]Other news outlets were not invited to travel with Mr Morrison, leading to News Corporation's newspapers reporting an “exclusive” story[/b] that the Coalition would set up a “tent city” on Nauru to house at least 2000 asylum seekers. [b]It is understood Toll Holdings chartered the flight for the Coalition and News Corporation.[/b] [b]Contacted on Tuesday morning, Mr Morrison's office had no policy documents to accompany the announcement, and a spokeswoman advised reporters to get their information from what had been reported in newspapers. [/b] Mr Morrison has since issued a press release with broad details of the policy. [b]News Corporation - formerly known as News Limited - is controlled by Rupert Murdoch, who has made no secret of his support for Opposition Leader Tony Abbott and disdain for Labor…..[/b] http://northcoastvoices.blogspot.com.au/2013/08/toll-holdings-tents-r-us.html VERY BAD STUFF. N'

nasking

1/08/2013 NOT MUCH OF AN EGALITARIAN COUNTRY WHEN YOU GET EDDIE OBEID BEING PROVIDED WITH AN EXTRA LONG PLEA OF INNOCENCE AND GENERAL GRUMBLE ON TV...INCLUDING THE PUBLIC BROADCASTER...REPEATED AD NAUSEUM... YET HOW MANY INDIGINEOUS PEOPLE ARRESTED FOR MINOR CRIMES GET TO DO SAME? THEY HAVE NO VOICE. N'

nasking

1/08/2013 ONE WAY TO KEEP YOUNG POORER MINORITIES OUT OF JAIL IS TO PROVIDE THEM WITH EDUCATION OPPORTUNITIES...ENSURE THEY HAVE EXTRA ASSISTANCE WITH LITERACY AND NUMERACY...GET THE KIND OF RESOURCES THEIR PEERS GET IN SOME PRIVATE SCHOOLS... YET INSTEAD OF ACCEPTING MORE FUNDING FOR PUBLIC SCHOOLS BY WAY OF THE FED GOVT'S OFFER THE LNP IS MORE CONCERNED ABOUT PUTTING MORE YOUNG PEOPLE IN JAIL...AND BUILDING JAILS...CREATING A LARGE PRISON POPULATION. TELLS YOU A LOT ABOUT THE NEWMAN GOVT'S PRIORITIES. N'

Catching up

1/08/2013Do we need the Obama team to pick up Abbott's mistakes. They are so blatant, they are hard to miss. These sites miss nothing and report all. Once in cyber space, they are there for all to find.

Catching up

1/08/2013That charity lady standing beside Abbott looks miserable. Yes, Tracy looks as she would like to be anywhere but there. No, Abbott, all the charity will have to do, is to replace the car FBT with real money. I suspect, that many that gets the FBT in this sector, actually use the car for work. Anyone have access to the figures. ABC 24 PS Any funds taken away, can be replaced in a open and transparent manner. Mr. Abbott, the scheme has not been changed. All that is being asked, is proof that they are keeping to the rules.

Catching up

1/08/2013Mr. Abbott, if there are no rorts, all will continue to get the benefits of the FBT, as they now do.

Catching up

1/08/2013Joe also looks miserable. Now for other questions. Raving on Melbourne traffic. Andrews looks a little worse. Slogans, motherhood statement and exaggerations as usual. Over reaching as usual on the the yesterdays revelations. No questions on his outburst. back to who should fund infrastructure.

Bloss

1/08/2013NASKING I CAN'T SEEM TO FIND MUCH ABOUT JOE O'BRIEN HE COULD WELL BE ANOTHER GOOD CATHOLIC BOY FROM A GOOD CATHOLIC SCHOOL AND HE DOES SEEM TO TAKE DELIGHT IN BASHING THE ALP. THE FREAKING ABC 24 ALWAYS SEEM TO HAVE TECHNICAL PROBLEMS WHEN A LABOR MINISTER IS HOLDING A PRESSER EVEN AT PARLIAMENT HOUSE! I WAS LISTENING TO TONY BURKE THIS MORNING FOR ABOUT 1 MINUTE BEFORE THE ABC LOST THE FEED AND APOLOGISED FOR TECHNICAL PROBLEMS OVER WHICH THEY HAVE NO CONTROL (WTF????) AND MOVED ON TO THE NEXT STORY. YET THEY MANAGE TO BROADCAST TONY ABBOTT FROM SOME FREAKING RAT HOLE IN THE SIMPSON DESERT. TONY ABBOTT IS TALKING ON ABC 24 AS I WRITE THIS ABOUT THE EDDIE OBEID ISSUE (FREE COALITION KICKS ALL ROUND) AND THE DISASTROUS EAST WEST LINK IN MELBOURNE ABOUT WHICH HE KNOWS NOTHING. IT MAKES MY BLOOD BOIL. AT LEAST THE VICTORIAN JOURNALISTS ARE NOT LETTING HIM OR HOCKEY GET AWAY WITH SOME OF THEIR BULLSHIT ABOUT THE EAST WEST LINK.

nasking

1/08/2013 ABBOTT SCREWS UP AGAIN...SAYS IT'S IMPORTANT TO FUND THE EAST-WEST LINK BUT HASN'T READ A BUSINESS CASE...HAS JUST RELIED ON THE INFO COMING FROM SUPPOSED HIGH UP CONTACTS IN INFRASTRUCTURE AUSTRALIA. ONCE AGAIN ABBOTT NOT DOING HIS HOMEWORK...NOT PUTTING IN THE HARD YARDS. WILLING TO USE A HUGE AMOUNT OF TAXPAYERS' DOLLARS BASED ON HEARSAY. WHO ARE THESE 'HIGH UP' CHARACTERS HE HAS SPOKEN TO? IS IT REALLY JUST A CASE OF BUSINESSMEN WHO WANT TO BE INVOLVED URGING HIM TO FUND THE MASSIVE PROJECT? WAS OBVIOUS HOCKEY PANICKED...HE INTERRUPTED AND STARTED BABBLING ON ABOUT 'COST BENEFIT ANALYSIS'...WHICH ABBOTT THEN COPIED. N'

Ad astra

1/08/2013Hi Lyn I’ve enjoyed reading your links this morning. Several of them feed into my next piece, which is about Slogan-Abbott’s steady disintegration. Grog and Truth Seeker posted informative pieces, and again Bob Ellis was amusing. Thank you again for some great reading.

nasking

1/08/2013 ABBOTT DISCUSSING CIGARETTE TAX AND TOBACCO LINKS MAKES AN INAPPROPRIATE JOKE LIKE SOME JOCK AT UNI. [quote]JOE AND I ALWAYS SAY THERE IS NOT A CIGARETTE PAPER OF DIFFERENCE BETWEEN US[/quote] FOLLOWED BY HIM AND HOCKEY GIGGLING LIKE THEY ARE PISSED UNDERGRADS. BLOODY JUVENILE, IMMATURE STUFF. I DON'T THINK THE REPORTERS WERE IMPRESSED. TOBACCO AND CANCER ARE SERIOUS ISSUES. N'

lyn

1/08/2013Good Morning Ad, Thankyou for your comment I get so pleased when you enjoy "Today's Links. Next piece sounds like a blockbuster [quote]Abbott’s steady disintegration. [/quote] I think Abbott is overreaching more so yesterday and today with his comments regarding the Obeid investigation, eg naming everybody. there is this : [quote]Senator Sinodinos and the virtuous circle of political donations[/quote] Senator Sinodinos has said he cannot remember the donations made in his time as both chairman and party treasurer. http://www.smh.com.au/nsw/senator-sinodinos-and-the-virtuous-circle-of-political-donations-20130227-2f6d7.html#ixzz2agFI9CUl

nasking

1/08/2013 I WONDER IF ONE OF THE 'HIGH UP' PEOPLE ABBOTT SPOKE TO ABOUT THE EAST-WEST LINK IS ROD EDDINGTON?...YET ANOTHER MURDOCH EMPIRE LINK: Sir Roderick Ian Eddington AO (born 2 January 1950, Perth, Western Australia) is an Australian businessman. [b]He is currently chair of the government body Infrastructure Australia, a director of News Corporation, continuing his long association with that company[/b], and has served in other senior positions including as CEO of British Airways. Wikipedia I NOTICED THE QLD MINISTER FOR TRANSPORT AND MAIN ROADS IS A FORMER NEWS LTD WORKER TOO: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scott_Emerson CURIOUSER AND CURIOUSER. N'

Michael

1/08/2013Without Julia Gillard as a punching bag the Coalition have nothing. Nothing! And don't they look it? What we are seeing is exactly how they really are without a smug smile of guaranteed winning to gloss the 'items of excrement' we now observe them as daily.

nasking

1/08/2013 LIBERAL MITCH FIFIELD GAVE THE GAME AWAY THIS ARVO ON CAPITAL HILL...HE COMPLAINED THE GOVT WAS TALKING TO THE BANKS ABOUT A REVENUE EARNING MEASURE BEFORE TALKING TO THE PEOPLE... THIS COMING FROM A COALITION AND ITS MEDIA ALLIES WHO CRITICISE THE GOVT FOR NOT TALKING TO BUSINESS ENUFF PAVING THE WAY FOR A CHANGE... THE COALITION CAN'T HAVE IT BOTH WAYS. IT'S JUST A POLITICAL GAME FOR THEM. NO MATTER WHAT THE GOVT DOES THEY CAN'T GET IT RIGHT AS FAR AS THE COALITION AND THEIR MEDIA ARE CONCERNED...IT'S ALL ABOUT SCORING POLITICAL POINTS. IF THE GOVT TRIES TO STOP THE BOATS THE COALITION TRY TO UNDERMINE THE MEASURES AND KEEP THE BOATS COMING. THEY HAVE NO INTEGRITY. IT'S ALL ABOUT POLITICS. THE COALITION ARE ASKED ABOUT POLICY...AND ALL THEY DO IS ATTACK THE GOVT... RELENTLESSLY NEGATIVE. YOU KNOW WHY THEY DON'T WANT TO ANSWER THE QUESTIONS? BECAUSE THEIR POLICIES ARE A SHAM...SOME UNPALATABLE. THEY DON'T WANT THE PEOPLE TO KNOW THE TRUTH. AUSTERITY MEASURES HURT THE MANY...TO BENEFIT THE FEW. THE COALITION DON'T WANT THE PUBLIC TO KNOW THEY PLAN TO UP THE GST WHILST CUTTING TAXES FOR THE SO CALLED 'WEALTH CREATORS'. THEY DON'T WANT THE PEOPLE TO KNOW THEY PLAN TO DUMP THE NBN... TO HELP THE MURDOCHS, PACKER AND THEIR OTHER ALLIES. [b]THE COALITION DON'T WANT THE VOTERS TO KNOW HOW MUCH THEY PLAN TO RIP THE HEART OUT OF PUBLIC SCHOOLS AND PUBLIC HEALTHCARE[/b] IN ORDER TO DRIVE PATIENTS AND STUDENTS INTO PRIVATE SYSTEMS THAT BENEFIT THEIR BIG-END-OF-TOWN SUPPORTERS. THEY DON'T WANT VOTERS TO KNOW THEY SUPPORT BIG TOBACCO BECAUSE IT HELPS THEM CREATE JOBS AND THEIR SUPPORTERS BENEFIT FROM THE SHARES IN THOSE COMPANIES...INCLUDING THE PRIVATE HEALTHCARE AND PHARMACIES THAT DEAL WITH THE HEALTH AND ADDICTION-RELATED FALLOUTS OF THESE CANCER STICKS. THE [b]COALITION DON'T WANT THE VOTERS TO KNOW THE TRUTH[/b] ABOUT THEIR OBSESSION WITH NUCLEAR ENERGY...JOHN HOWARD DID NOT PUSH THIS ISSUE BECAUSE HE SUDDENLY FELT LIKE IT ONE DAY...IT'S THE PLAN MAN. THE [b]ABBOTT COALITION ARE BIG FAKES[/b]...THROWING VERBAL SPEARS AT THE GOVT DAY IN AND DAY OUT... BECAUSE [b]THEY DON'T WANT YOU TO KNOW THE PLAN.[/b] [b]LOOK TO QLD, WA...THE UK...THE AMERICAN CONSERVATIVE STATES...AND SEE THE UNFOLDING PLAN.[/b] N'

nasking

1/08/2013 GOOD JOB LYN: [b]The prominent federal Liberal Arthur Sinodinos was treasurer of the NSW Liberals when the party received more than $30,000 in donations from a company he chaired, Australian Water Holdings, which was bidding for state government contracts.[/b] Despite this, Senator Sinodinos has said he cannot remember the donations made in his time as both chairman and party treasurer. Australian Water Holdings' links to the Labor powerbroker Eddie Obeid were revealed by a Herald investigation last year. Mr Obeid has been accused by the Independent Commission Against Corruption of conspiring to make tens of millions of dollars from the awarding of coal exploration licences. Nick Di Girolamo, also a major shareholder in the company, is a prominent figure in the NSW Liberal Party... [b]Senator Sinodinos is regarded as a frontrunner for a cabinet position if Tony Abbott becomes prime minister this year...[/b] [b]Asked about political donations from AWH he said: ''I have no recollection of individual donations and am unable to speculate about the motivation of third parties making donations''. However, records show that AWH donated $60,453 to the NSW division of the Liberals between March 11, 2009, and May 13, 2011, including when the future senator was treasurer.[/b] [b]He attended his first board meeting as a director and deputy chairman of AWH in November 2008. He became chairman on November 3, 2010. A month later the company made its largest donation, $30,000, to the party...[/b] [b]Since 1992, Australian Water Holdings has won project-management contracts for water infrastructure in the north-west growth centre worth more than $500 million. It transformed itself from a non-profit syndicate to a private company in 1999.[/b] [b]Under the previous state government, Australian Water Holdings argued vehemently with Sydney Water that its original contract guaranteed it the sole right to project-manage all future water infrastructure in the area.[/b] [b]With the help of the family of Mr Obeid, Australian Water lobbied hard for a $1 billion privatisation deal of Sydney Water's work in the north-west. [/b] But it also agitated for a letter from the Labor government that would acknowledge the company's legal right to manage the remaining $500 million worth of infrastructure work in the growth centre. This letter, which was needed to help raise venture capital, was never issued under Labor. [b]But in early 2012 the Coalition government quietly gave the company an exclusive 25-year deal.[/b] Read more: http://www.smh.com.au/nsw/senator-sinodinos-and-the-virtuous-circle-of-political-donations-20130227-2f6d7.html#ixzz2ahyH1NUC LIKE I SAID...BIG FAKES. SHOW ME THE MONEY! FOLLOW THE MONEY... N'

nasking

1/08/2013 EXCELLENT...A VID HAS BEEN POSTED ON YOUTUBE AND FACEBOOK SHOWING THE ABBOTT EAST-WEST LINK STUFFUP TODAY: [b]Tony Abbott caught out telling more lies about Melbourne's East-West Link[/b] http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AgoYbAcWq9A&desktop_uri=%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DAgoYbAcWq9A IT'S A PATTERN OF BEHAVIOUR. N'

nasking

1/08/2013 A MUST WATCH: An Australian nuclear physicist has developed a new enrichment process and been granted approval by US regulators to develop it commercially, despite fears it could promote the proliferation of nuclear weapons. http://www.abc.net.au/7.30/content/2013/s3816411.htm A FEW YEARS AGO AT THE HEIGHT OF THE IRAQ WAR A BLOGGER GANDHI AND I PUT UP PICTURES OF POOR DEAD AND SUFFERING BABIES SHOWING THE EFFECTS OF DEPLETED URANIUM USED IN THE ATTACKS ON FALLUJAH... WE CONSIDERED THIS USE A WAR CRIME. IT SEEMS BRADLEY MANNING IS A BIGGER CRIMINAL IN THE USA THAN RUMSFELD AND HIS CRONIES. N'

nasking

1/08/2013 ARE THE QLD GOVT PUTTING THE FUTURE OF OUR WILD RIVERS AT RISK? MONEY IS SPENT FAST...TOXINS IN WATER CAN HAVE DELITARIOUS EFFECTS FOR MANY MANY YEARS: Queensland's government has said it will remove 'Wild Rivers' laws over waterways in the state's far west, prompting questions over protection for the unique environment as well as the possibility of billions of dollars of investment in gas resources. http://www.abc.net.au/7.30/content/2013/s3816406.htm SHORT-TERM GAIN...POSSIBLE LONG-TERM PAIN. AUSSIE REPORTERS SHOULD GO TO TEXAS AND OTHER STATES AND SEE THE WONDERS OF FRACKING. AND WATCH BOTH GASLAND FILMS FOLKS...EYE OPENING: http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=dzx7UXzK_z4 N'

lyn

2/08/2013Today’s Links The news you missed while reading the news by @awelder It's taken years and years, but superjourno Katharine Murphy has finally worked out that Tony Abbott is a bullshit artist. Better late than never - but my goodness we've had to put up with more than our share of press-gallery-consensus bollocks from her while she tried to have us believe that Abbott was infinitely to be preferred over that nasty Gillard woman http://andrewelder.blogspot.com.au/ Poll Way Aggregate: ALP 50.8%, L/NP 49.2% by @ThePollWay The only story that anyone confidently tell is that it’s close, very close. The Poll Way’s own numbers, however, do detect a small swing to the ALP at both a two-party preferred and primary vote level with primary vote scores coming in at: ALP 39.8%, L/NP 42.8%, GRN 8.8% and ‘Other’ 8.7%. http://thepollway.com/?p=51 ICAC, Abbott and rottenness at the heart by @independentaus Captain Catholic surely has learned that people who live in glass houses are better off not throwing stones.The Liberals and their country cousins ‒ the Nationals/Country Party ‒ are past masters at dodginess. http://www.independentaustralia.net/2013/politics/icac-abbott-and-rottenness-at-the-heart/ After every high comes a low ... by Dorothy Parker good old Dennis "the suit and tie" Shanahan lathering himself about the NSW corruption scandal - it's amazing he still hasn't managed to work out, much like Tony Abbott and Co. the difference between state and federal spheres - and then there's Greg "hang 'em high and hang 'em hard" strutting the street with his deputy sheriff's badge http://loonpond.blogspot.com.au/2013/08/after-every-high-comes-low.html#.UfoeFEpArX4 This policy brought to you by.... by Tracey Spicer This week, Fairfax revealed a logistics company which stands to profit from the Coalition’s “tent city” on Nauru funded the trip of Immigration spokesman Scott Morrison to the island to announce plans to house up to 2,000 asylum seekers.The other spare seats on Toll Holdings’ charter flight went to News Corp, which gave the trip largely uncritical coverage. http://thehoopla.com.au/policy-brought-by/ Conservatives and their road to a solar Damascus by Giles Parkinson “Can I say that Australians are very excited by solar. We closed the solar subsidy scheme in April, 2011, because it had become unaffordable and expensive. Since then, over 70,000 people in NSW have signed up (for rooftop solar). http://reneweconomy.com.au/2013/conservatives-and-their-road-to-a-solar-damascus-50194 ABC sets audience targets, but does it have The X Factor? by @crikey_news ABC journalists have been set audience targets, whether they know it or not. Is this about making sure the national broadcaster is producing what we want, or dumbing down Aunty? http://www.crikey.com.au/2013/08/01/abc-sets-audience-targets-but-does-it-have-the-x-factor/ Who is this man Abbott who would be PM? by @Qldaah The questions, not only challenge the character of Abbott but the very nature of the media in Australia. Ultimately, #BattleRort goes to the core question of the conscientious voter. When confronted with that ballot list of politicians on election day, we must ask; who really is this person that desires to represent me? http://greenshack.info/index.php/abbottonia/battlerort-reloaded.html The bigotry that dare not speak its name by @fakeedbutler a woman as our Prime Minister for the first time. Likewise, we also experienced a prolonged period wherein we were dragged through the muck of our collective subconscious, as that PM was subject to a level of physicalised, sexualised vitriol and, yes, hatred, beyond anything a male politician has experienced. http://ausvotes2013.com/2013/08/01/the-bigotry-that-dare-not-speak-its-name/ Tobacco Money- Can Cause Loss Of Political Will by The Global Mail To date, Abbott has done nothing to put to rest any conspiracy-minded suspicion about the personal and political links between the Tory-leaning and tobacco. He has resolutely refused to be drawn on whether Australia’s Opposition will support Labor’s proposed tax hike on ciggies. http://powerhouse.theglobalmail.org/tobacco-money-can-cause-loss-of-political-will/ Sugar Ray’ Rudd won’t be stopped by ICAC by @ConversationEDU This is not to say that Rudd is infallible or a sure winner come the election. However, it will take more than ICAC recommendations or a couple of weeks of reporting to knock Rudd off his game. http://theconversation.com/sugar-ray-rudd-wont-be-stopped-by-icac-16459 Eddie Obeid: corruption inquiry is a 'sham' and 'star chamber' by @bkjabour Former Labor powerbroker Eddie Obeid has labelled the independent commission which found him corrupt a "sham" and a "star chamber" and called on Liberal premier Barry O'Farrell to support him by fast-tracking a case against him through court. http://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/aug/01/eddie-obeid-icac-star-chamber Sir Lunchalot was always hungry by @CoffsOutlook The commission concludes that Mr Macdonald’s character and personality were such that … he was capable of easily being influenced by Edward Obeid Sr to act in inappropriate ways, and could be readily induced or motivated to undertake inappropriate measures to benefit Edward Obeid snr.” http://coffsoutlook.com/sir-lunchalot-was-always-hungry/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=sir-lunchalot-was-always-hungry Today’s Front Pages Australian Newspaper Front Pages for 2 August 2013 http://www.thepaperboy.com/australia/front-pages.cfm News headlines http://www.hotheadlines.com.au/

Ad astra

2/08/2013LYN'S DAILY LINKS updated: http://www.thepoliticalsword.com/page/LYNS-DAILY-LINKS.aspx

jaycee

2/08/2013Good morning fellow travellers....A little bit of observation.: Of course, the outrageous exclamations of the Obied clan reflect the shallow depth of "criminal breeding" (in a financial sense) of the family. Being only one or at best two generations "from the hut", they have not had inculcated in them from birth the exquisit nuance of "put your hands down..you're sprung!" acceptance, indelibly branded into the mindset of certain Liberal business types, whenever one is discovered with one's hand in the till. Downer and co. even A. Bond (who was taught the "hard" way) know, along with their "old school tie" fraternity that in matters financial-criminal...youse pays your money and youse takes your chances...and IF you get sprung, you employ the best criminal lawyers (a bit of the loot is always put aside to cover such inevitabilities..-"We always put a little away each week for our habit!") to get you..not off..but out of the media spotlight...and those lawyers not only have to be good, they ought to preferably sport "the old school tie" and even THEN..a tie MOST FAMILIAR to the presiding magistrate! The one thing one doesn't do if found irrefutably guilty is to "peach on a fellow".....you just shut the f*ck up, do your penance and never peach on a fellow....and possibly come out a "better man" (in an experienced criminal sense) for it. The Obied's will get better...as A. Bond got better (see who he drinks with now?)...but unfortunately, the "getting of wisdom" in the swindling financial / honest businessman world is best learnt with a bit of 'chokey' !

Janet (jan@j4gypsy)

2/08/2013Morning all. (Thanks for the lovely wave on Wednesday Lynnie. :-)) Some comments and additional reading from the Twitterati. The first is rather fascinating piece from journo Gay Alcorn (sister of Margo Kingston). Once again it stops short of taking the full extent of responsibility the media should for the inadequacies of its political reporting. And it mentions only one ‘new media’ site ‘[i]Ausvotes[/i]’, calling it ‘refreshingly non-partisan’, when there are so many more longer-term new media sites who remain real and actual competition for traditional media ([i]New Matilda[/i], [i]The Hoopla[/i] just for starters). (I don’t, by the way, see [i]Ausvotes[/i] as remotely non-partisan or as “new media”: it falls strongly into the ‘leaning to the right blog’ category for me.) [i]Gay Alcorn ‏@Gay_Alcorn[/i] My col for @theage. Some signs of hope in political coverage this election. http://www.theage.com.au/comment/political-coverage-the-real-winner-in-this-election-20130801-2r1jz.html … via @theage And then, we have this! It was a fascinating interview, with Mike and Bev feigning “surprise” that News Ltd could show bias. Will try and track the vision. [i]Michael Rowland ‏@mjrowland68[/i] Former @theage editor Mike Smith reckons there's a clear anti-Labor bias in the political coverage of the News Ltd. tabloids. #breakfastnews On the other hand, we have Cassidy going on being …pure pundit Cassidy: [i]ABC The Drum ‏@ABCthedrum[/i] The #ICAC findings almost guarantee the Government will lose crucial seats, writes Barrie Cassidy #auspol #ausvotes http://bit.ly/16bV0tB Others: [i]Gordon Graham ‏@GordonGraham[/i] Essential's results from May 2012 on banking regulations http://essentialvision.com.au/bank-regulation & a levy on financial transactions http://essentialvision.com.au/support-for-levy-on-financial-transactions … [i]wendy_harmer ‏@wendy_harmer[/i] Time for your medicine @gabriellechan on Rudd's "crazy brave strategy" Crash or crash through? http://thehoopla.com.au/time-medicine/ [i]sandyj ‏@bsadams25[/i] No moral limits to what Rudd will do to win http://www.theage.com.au/federal-politics/political-opinion/no-moral-limits-to-what-rudd-will-do-to-win-20130801-2r1z6.html … via @theage [i]Mike Carlton ‏@MikeCarlton[/i] Interesting names in this one: Eddie Obeid, Michael Costa, Arthur Sinodinos, Joe Tripodi. Oh what a tangled web. http://www.smh.com.au/nsw/investigators-turn-attention-to-three-former-ministers-20130801-2r2az.html … [i]Mike Carlton ‏@MikeCarlton01[/i] For larf-a-minute, knockabout comedy it'll be hard to top Richo in The Oz this morning. http://www.theaustralian.com.au/opinion/columnists/labor-party-drowning-in-guilt-by-association-thanks-to-icac-findings/story-fnfenwor-1226689758298 … [i]Greg Jericho ‏@GrogsGamut[/i] Corruption: the work of decent parliamentarians has been smeared | @Kimbo_Ramplin http://gu.com/p/3hyje/tw via @GuardianAus [i]WHTGED4U ‏@WHTGED4U[/i] Created Australia’s first ever Aviation White Paper http://whathasthegovernmenteverdoneforus.com #innovation #auspol [i]RN Breakfast ‏@RNBreakfast[/i] Australia is being officially advised to cut carbon pollution to 15% by 2020. Audio here: http://www.abc.net.au/radionational/programs/breakfast/cut-carbon-pollution-15-by-2020/4860260 … [i]Connect4Climate ‏@Connect4Climate[/i] How warming is killing off the trees that helped keep us cool http://ow.ly/nvGDa | via @MPRnews [i]John Pratt ‏@Jackthelad1947[/i] Scientists: Earth's melting polar ice "terrifying" #Auspol Ignores continues to expand fossil fuel exports. http://www.takepart.com/article/2013/06/13/climate-change-melting-polar-ice … [i]les victor ‏@otiose94[/i] Who owns #abbott & the Coalition? #auspol http://bit.ly/14FshdR [i]Ed Rekosh ‏@EdRekosh[/i] [video] Eloquent and precise defense of Manning leaks to @WikiLeaks by Jen Robinson @suigenerisjen | BBC https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bvzR6meCvlk&feature=player_embedded …

nasking

2/08/2013 TONY ABBOTT WANTS US TO BELIEVE HE AND RUDD ARE ON THE SAME PAGE WHEN IT COMES TO EDUCATION...BUT WE REMEMBER THIS: [b]I know politicians are going to be judged on everything they say but sometimes in the heat of discussion you go a little bit further than you would if it was an absolutely calm, considered, prepared, scripted remark. The statements that need to be taken absolutely as gospel truth are those carefully prepared scripted remarks.[/b] Quoted in "[b]Don't believe everything I say - Tony Abbott"[/b] on news.com.au (18 May 2010) AND THIS: The Coalition's education policy pushes 'autonomy' and 'independence' as keys to improved schools. But this privatisation plan will only help to further entrench difference and halt any upward social mobility in the education system, writes David Zyngier. [b]In his autobiography Battlelines, Tony Abbott lays bare his loyalty to the privatisation of schools, hospitals, transport and the provision of government services.[/b] The private sector is good - he seems to be arguing - and the public sector is bad. [b]In the book Abbott advocates for federal government control of state schools with a view to privatising them. [/b] Therefore it should be no surprise that the Liberal Party policy Real Solutions (page 40) pledges to: Put parents, principals and school communities, not unaccountable bureaucrats, in charge of determining how their school will be run to improve performance [and] … [b]work with the States and Territories to encourage State schools to choose to become independent schools[/b], providing simpler budgeting and resources allocation and more autonomy in decision making by instilling a 'students come first' culture amongst staff and ensuring the delivery of better education outcomes at the local school level. "[b]Autonomy" and "independence" are codes for privatisation that will further entrench difference; promoting privilege, hierarchy and social disadvantage and halting any upward social mobility within our education system which is already struggling to delivery equity as Gonski found.[/b] Schools that might benefit from more autonomy are the very ones that need the least help. [b]Autonomy, then, is a means for dismantling public schooling and freeing it from what the Liberal Party term vested interest groups - the teacher unions - that has been part of the economic and political philosophy of the Liberal Party since the 1990s.[/b] http://www.abc.net.au/news/2013-07-31/zyngier-privatisation-of-schools/4855838 OF COURSE ABBOTT AND PYNE WANT THE STATES TO HAVE ALL CONTROL OVER EDUCATION... QLD LNP AND WA LIBS HAVE BEEN INCREMENTALLY MOVING TOWARDS PRIVATISATION OF PUBLIC SCHOOLS... RIGHT UP 'BATTLELINES ABBOTT'S ALLEY. N'

nasking

2/08/2013 THE BANK LEVY IS A GOOD IDEA...I DON'T TRUST THE FINANCIAL SECTOR...YOU ONLY HAVE TO LOOK AT AMERICA, THE UK, ICELAND, SPAIN, GREECE...ARGENTINA YEARS AGO...TO SEE HOW THINGS CAN GO BADLY WRONG. IF CHINA COLLAPSES IMAGINE THE TSUNAMI. BETTER TO BE PREPARED.

nasking

2/08/2013 DON'T KNOW WHY ABC 24 DOESN'T RENAME ITSELF [b]ABC CONSERVATIVE OPINION 24[/b]? N'

nasking

2/08/2013 THIS IN LATE 2012 FROM THE POLITICALLY OPPORTUNISTIC NEWS LTD: [b]Big four 'exposed' to Chinese slowdown[/b] BY:SCOTT MURDOCH From: [b]The Australian September 19, 2012 [/b] [b]THE major banks are at risk of having their bad debts rise if the Chinese economic slowdown hits the profitability of Australian businesses.[/b] A report by ratings agency Fitch found the big four banks remained exposed to volatile wholesale funding markets, despite moves to diversify their funding sources. http://www.theaustralian.com.au/business/financial-services/big-four-exposed-to-chinese-slowdown/story-fn91wd6x-1226476858922 NEWS LTD NOW HAVING A GO AT GOVT FOR BEING PRUDENT? N'

BSA Bob

2/08/2013Nasking @ 11.42 ABC 24 doesn't call itself that because you're meant to think it's fair & balanced. On the subject of the bank levy, isn't it meant to simply cover the eventuality of a bank going down? They've got years worth of government funded guarantees since the GFC so they can hardly complain. But they might. And pass on the cost anyway. Tones & Sloppy might join in, explaining to us that our rightful ciggie money's being misappropriated.

nasking

2/08/2013 MORE BY PETER WICKS ON NSW LIBERAL GOVT TROUBLES: [b]For Whom The Bell Tolls – The political demise of Greg Pearce[/b] In my humble opinion the timing of Pearces sacking from O’Farrell is to try and ensure it is lost in the current ICAC fallout. This could be to save embarrassment or it could also be an attempt to avoid further scrutiny into Pearces appointments and also his role in some of the Coalitions major policies. The policies I speak of are the changes to household insurance that now include a fire-levy, something that in true Liberal style ensures the consumer pays more for less, while the insurance companies reap the rewards, and of course the change to workers compensation that saw over 30,000 protesters storm Parliament House in protest. The workers compensation changes in particular will save the insurance companies Billions of dollars, while punishing the public. Even the Victims Of Crime legislation which I wrote about not long ago favors insurance companies. The legislation was clearly designed to further punish the victims of paedophile priests and to save the church millions in compensation payouts, but it is the churches insurers who will probably be saved the most. Barry O’Farrell knew this was an issue and took the NSW Green Slip insurance changes away from Pearce recently because of Pearces vulnerability on issues surrounding insurance matters. Greg Pearces Deputy Chief Of Staff Natalie Ward was forced to quit recently. Ward is married to a lobbyist Simon Begg from a lobby firm named PremierState. Begg is the lobbyist for a number of insurance giants and also interestingly according to his firms website the states “industry leader in workers compensation”. Begg also spent time on the Liberal Party State Executive. Until an independent investigation is held into all of the decisions that involve insurance companies that this government has been involved in, particularly those above, then this government will have a dark shadow of doubt over it. My gut tells me this is just the beginning. http://wixxyleaks.com/2013/08/02/for-whom-the-bell-tolls-the-political-demise-of-greg-pearce/ WE REMEMBER THE GREINER GOVT CORRUPTION AND STUMBLES. FOCUS ON JUST NSW ALP MEANS VOTERS GET FOOLED AGAIN. BE NO LONGER EYES WIDE SHUT N'

nasking

2/08/2013 BRINGS BACK MEMORIES: [b]Greiner on the ropes over corruption Wednesday, June 24, 1992[/b] - 10:00 By Steve Painter SYDNEY — Despite declarations that he will fight it out, NSW Premier Nick Greiner will probably fall as a result of an Independent Commission Against Corruption finding that he acted corruptly. The finding concerned Greiner's appointment of independent MP Terry Metherell to a high public service position in return for his resignation from parliament. This brought on a by-election that returned an extra Liberal to the parliament. Environment Minister Tim Moore is also unlikely to survive after ICAC commissioner Ian Temby made a similar finding against him. The big question is whether the Liberal government will fall along with Greiner. Upper house Democrat Richard Jones says Greiner's stand may lead to a vote of no confidence in the entire government: "If the Liberal members of the cabinet passed a vote of confidence in the premier, it may be difficult for the independents to support a vote of no confidence in the premier alone." Following Temby's finding that there are reasonable grounds to dismiss Greiner, the premier's fate is in the hands of the three independents who hold the balance of power in the lower house: John Hatton, Clover Moore and Peter Macdonald. While the independents are vacillating, it is unlikely they could emerge with any credibility if they support Greiner. Meanwhile, some Liberal MPs want the premier to resign so the minority Liberal government can appoint a replacement. The most likely alternative to this is the replacement of the minority Liberal government by a minority Labor government, headed by Bob Carr. This variant is reportedly not favoured by the federal Labor Party, because the Keating government's slim chances in the next federal election hang fairly heavily on the unpopularity of the Greiner Liberals in the largest state. With state Labor governments extremely unpopular in Victoria, SA and WA, federal Labor appears to be depending heavily on the relative popularity of Goss Labor in Queensland and strong anti-Liberal votes in NSW and perhaps Tasmania. The corruption scandal looks like putting an ignominious end to Greiner, who in March 1988 became the Liberals' great hope nationally when he became the party's first NSW premier for 12 years. Since then, NSW has been a policy laboratory for the federal Liberal Party. The Liberals held out particularly high hopes for Greiner's harshly anti-union Industrial Relations Act, drafted while the NSW Liberals were riding high, but not passed into law until after Greiner emerged with a minority government from an election he was expected to In one parliamentary term, the Liberals had become as unpopular as Labor, which had been turned out of office in a huge electoral swing in 1988. Since the 1991 elections, the Greiner government has stumbled from disaster to disaster, and in particular has been unable to press home its attack on the unions. Instead of becoming the model for a federal Liberal government, Greiner's administration became living proof of the corruption and incompetence pervading the entire parliamentary system, and the bankruptcy of both the leading parties in Australian politics. Ironically, Greiner is quite correct when he points out, plaintively, that Temby said his actions, while corrupt, were not contrary to "known and recognised standards of honesty and integrity". With that sentence, Temby delivered a scathing indictment not just of Greiner, but of the entire Australian political system. Meanwhile, the next elections will be a test, not of policies or even personalities, but of which party is least unpopular. http://www.greenleft.org.au/node/3552 [b]Plus ça change, plus c'est la même chose[/b] N'

Michael

2/08/2013Soooo... If Abbott and co are now supporting Gonski for the next 4 years if elected, does this mean the recalcitrant states, WA, QLD, VIC and the NT will now 'magically' come on board, too? Which will mean Abbott can claim Gonski would never have happened without him. He'll 'own' delivering the national education reform that Labor couldn't come through on. But, if the aforementioned recalcitrants don't "magically come on board" (action which means going back on all the States-rights barrows they've been pushing for so long), then that leaves the Federal Coalition essentially nowhere effectively different than where they've been until making this announcement... so, what's the point? Well, the only point can be (apart from Abbott and co obviously running scared on what polling must be telling them about education issues in an election) is that, if the recalcitrants DO come on board, it displays that Abbott and the Federal Coalition organisation have so much whiphand over State Coalition organisations and State Coalition Premiers that all of the latter say "how high?" when Abbott says "jump". How likely, my friends, is this? Barnett and Newman giving an inch to Abbott for internal party priority reasons (saving his bacon) and look like States-rights sellouts doing it (while kowtowing to him)?. There's only one answer. Polling tells the Coalition they'll lose an election on education alone if they try and pee on Gonski and retain Howard's Kings School hand-outs for the children of the rich scheme. If the recalcitrants sign up with Labor for Gonski in the next week they're telling us they're signing up to get Abbott over the line. If they say they'll sign up with an elected Coalition government, then they tell the Australian electorate they are using children's education and thus lives as political gamepieces, and by extension always have been this by refusing to sign with Labor. If they don't sign up, they're telling us Abbott has no influence at all over Coalition Premiers or his own party's individual State organisations - he can say what he likes, announce what he likes, it won't happen without them. And Gonski can't happen without each State government's sign-on. This is the weirdest political announcement in years. States sign on, it's Abbott telling us how exposed and weak he was on education. States don't sign up, it's Abbott telling us how weak he is as the supposed preeminent Coalition leader in the country. He says "jump", the Premiers say, "no, you go jump". The Coalition is getting weirder and weirder by the day. And I, for one, am loving it!

TalkTurkey

2/08/2013As Abborrrtt [i]fails[/i] ever more catastrophically, in exactly the direction and for the very reasons I always predicted he must - (never forget I put a sizeable wager on Labor a full year ago) - so the usurper Rudd seems ever more assured of stealing *J*U*L*I*A*s victory. What a Machiavellian drama eh.

Catching up

2/08/2013Mr. Abbott is NOT supporting Gonski, far from it. He is keeping the funding model for four years. He is clawing back all the rest. Yes, one could be a cynic, and replace funding directed at the child, for what they love, vouchers. The funding model, is only a small part of Better Schools. Do not let your self be conned. Cassidy pointed out, Labor would not be in so much trouble, if the left the Gillard CEF in place. Yes, it actually added to the economy. All money collected, was redirected to developing new technology and work. No matter how Abbott dresses it up, his aim is for private hospitals and schools. Abbott, once again is reacting, and not in control of the agenda. Wonder what their private polling is telling them. With their apparent back flip of Better Schools, one can make a guess. Wonder what the same polls are telling him about his support for tax rorters, defending the big banks and cigarette companies. Not t a good look. I am sure that some do not appreciate his and Morrison talking down of the PNG scheme. Sure the smugglers are clapping hard.

Mal Kukura

2/08/2013Machiavellian is right Talk Turkey. Private hospitals & private schools as Catching up says are clear favourites in the privatize everything sweepstakes. Then of course there are all of the water and electric power utilities, the state police forces, ASIO, ASIS, Australian Defence Force and the AFP - the sky is the limit, Privatize the prisons, privatize immigration detention centres - merge Toll with Wakenhut. Buy for peanuts sell for huge profits. Another gold rush is on. All the while a prince sits somewhere in a dark place out of view - pulling electronic strings. He will be very unhappy if Kevin forms a new government in a few weeks time. It was in the bag until Joseph B Hokeidonian spread that red box menu around in Brisbane and provoked the blue tie misogyny speech that ended PM Gillard's term. The Prince will not be happy – nor will his Machiavellian advisors - the Prince of Darkness will demand -someone will have to pay. Buy for peanuts sell for huge profits. Another gold rush is on. All the while a prince sits somewhere in a dark place out of view - pulling electronic strings. He will be very unhappy if Kevin forms a new government in a few weeks time. It was in the bag until Joseph Hokeidanian spread that red box menu around and provoked the misogyny speech that ended PM Gillard's term. He will not be hapy and someone will have to pay.

jaycee

2/08/2013One gets the feeling that the LNP. and it's string-pullers are trying to form a "New Aristocracy" to rule over a new feudal kingdom. Rule of the priviliged. Now that the old aristocracy is losing/lost ground, the rising cashed-up bogans have found their voice and are joining with the "old-school" middle-class to form a super-class / super fiefdom. The MSM. are playing their unwitting (read ; moronic!)role in facillitating this ideal, along with competing support of religion. By the promotion of "reality bread and circus's", we almost have a completely pliant, dumbed-down voting platform that would elect whatever and whoever is not "evicted" at the end of "the show"!....it seems ideals and social policy have been usurped for "brass in pocket". Poor fellow my country....poor us!

TalkTurkey

3/08/2013Good Morning Lynnie I'm up early but I bet you beat me. Do you believe Mark Kenny about September 7? http://m.smh.com.au/federal-politics/federal-election-2013/pm-decides-election-set-for-sept-7-20130802-2r4x4.html

lyn

3/08/2013Good Morning Talk Turkey, I have just arrived here as I have been reading those Political Journalist's articles. No I don't believe Kenny or Hartcher or any of them. Hilarious how they are trying to spin Abbott's massive backflip on Gonski. Video Abbott http://media.brisbanetimes.com.au/news/national-times/abbotts-education-unity-ticket-4624679.html [quote]Abbott flip-flops on Better Schools funding by Australian Financial Review[/quote] From ‘con’ to status quo As late as Thursday he described the government’s deals with NSW, the ACT, South Australia and Tasmania as a “con” which provided no extra funding in the early years. On Friday he said: “We will adopt exactly the same funding envelope as Labor over the forward estimates. http://www.afr.com/p/national/abbott_backs_down_on_school_funding_opIixBAX4zHP1pbk4xGrhM

lyn

3/08/2013Today’s Links Government Releases Economic Statement by @electionwatch_ Mr Hockey and the Opposition's Finance spokesman Andrew Robb held a media conference after the government's announcement, claiming the budget has fallen $3 billion a week over the last 10 weeks. Mr Hockey also said he is concerned that nearly 800,000 people will be unemployed http://2013electionwatch.com.au/analysis/government-releases-economic-statement Economic statement: experts respond by @ConversationEDU The government warned that the 2013-14 budget deficit is expected to be A$30.1 billion, rising to $24 billion in 2014/15. However, $17 billion in savings, when combined with additional revenue raising measures, would return the federal budget to a $4 billion surplus by 2016/17. http://theconversation.com/economic-statement-experts-respond-16614 Abbott’s Gonski backflip will wreck school funding accountability by @ConversationEDU For six years the Coalition has repeatedly told us that the Howard government’s model for school funding was working. On Friday the Coalition made a shocking back-flip (with triple somersault and a pike included for good measure). Opposition leader Tony Abbott announced that he would guarantee the reforms for at least four years. https://theconversation.com/abbotts-gonski-backflip-will-wreck-school-funding-accountability-16662 Abbott’s unconditional surrender on Gonski education reforms by @crikey_news So all that rhetoric attacking the Gonski recommendations, all the febrile attacks on Labor over it, that’s all now to be forgotten: the Coalition will “match Labor dollar-for-dollar over the next four years”. http://www.crikey.com.au/2013/08/02/abbotts-unconditional-surrender-on-gonski-education-reforms/ Abbott's flip on school funding by Politifact Our ruling Abbott and co had consistently said two roads diverged on the future of funding for schools. Today it appears those paths now converge. The Coalition has taken the road already travelled, And admitted it will make none-the-difference. We rate this change of heart a Full Flop. http://www.politifact.com.au/truth-o-meter/statements/2013/aug/02/tony-abbott/abbotts-flip-school-funding/ Tony Abbott embraces 'Gonski' school funding plans by lenore Taylor The Coalition leader, Tony Abbott, had said he would scrap the Gonski funding model unless an “overwhelming majority” of states had signed on. Last week the Coalition shifted slightly, saying it would allow the new model to operate for one year, until 2015, while it negotiated a new system. http://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/aug/02/tony-abbott-embraces-gonski-schools Tony Abbott says Coalition will honour Gonski school funding plan for four years by ABC The Coalition has announced a turnaround in its support for the Federal Government's so-called "Gonski" school funding plan. Opposition Leader Tony Abbott says if the Coalition wins government, it will honour Labor's funding commitments across the four years of the budget forward estimates. http://www.abc.net.au/news/2013-08-02/coalition-to-support-gonski-school-funding/4861102 Abbott shifts towards realisation of Gonski funding by Sally Edsall , Teachers Federation 'Clearly this is a strategy to neutralise the strong pro-Gonski campaign as an election issue. Given that Mr Abbott has changed his position so many times already, the question remains whether his commitment will stay the distance after the election.' " http://www.nswtf.org.au/news/2013/08/02/abbott-shifts-towards-realisation-gonski-funding.html Transcript Hon Christopher Pyne MP 2UE 15 April 2013 interview Paul Murray Pyne: Well it’s not just $1 billion, New South Wales has to find $1.7 billion and that’s why this model is a ‘conski’ not a Gonski. http://www.sciencemedia.com.au/downloads/2013-4-15-5.pdf Growing gaps in Abbott's climate policy by Andrew Herington More significant is the growing gap between what Hunt is saying and the media grabs that his leader Tony Abbott keeps using. These suggest Abbott’s latent climate scepticism remains strong. He is targeting a different audience, while asking Greg Hunt to pacify those concerned about climate change. http://www.businessspectator.com.au/article/2013/8/2/policy-politics/growing-gaps-abbotts-climate-policy#ixzz2amWNZQBs The life and times of Troll Hadley by @independentaus For a man with a vocabulary as limited as Tony Abbott’s policy agenda, it strikes me as a surprising display of poor self-awareness for Hadley to criticise the intelligence of others. More so when you consider Hadley’s audience is a knuckle-dragging collection of conspiracy theorists, mouth-breathers, senile retirees and Daily Telegraph readers. http://www.independentaustralia.net/2013/business/media-2/the-life-and-times-of-troll-hadley/ Could this be Rudd's mining tax campaign Mk II? by Frank Chung The automotive and salary packaging industry has enlisted advertising and lobbying heavyweights, including the advisory group chaired by former Howard Government Treasurer Peter Costello, to formulate a hard-hitting emotional campaign attacking the government's proposed changes to the fringe benefits tax. http://www.adnews.com.au/adnews/could-this-be-rudd-s-mining-tax-campaign-mk-ii John Lords Election Diary Update No4 by @saint13333 At the end of the day I am left confused, bewildered and puzzled. For three years Mr Abbott has been telling everyone that he alone could stop the boats. And he has been so convincing, so unequivocal that his ‘’Stop the boats’’ slogan has been written into Australian political folklore. Now he wants to accommodate 6000 more on Nauru. Baffling to say the least. http://theaimn.com/2013/08/02/john-lords-election-diary-update-no4/ Premier O'Farrell sacks NSW Finance Minister by @no_filter_Yamba Under cover of the noise created by the corruption findings against former Labor minister Ian McDonald and Labor MP Eddie Obeid, Barry O'Farrell gets on with the business of sacking his own Finance Minister http://northcoastvoices.blogspot.com.au/2013/08/premier-ofarrell-sacks-nsw-finance.html For Whom The Bell Tolls – The political demise of Greg Pearce by @madwixxy If O’Farrell was in any way serious about being “scandal free” as he promised he should have sacked Greg Pearce weeks ago, months even. He should have also ensured that Pearce was sacked from government and had his membership to the Liberal Party cancelled and arranged for him to be expelled him from the Party for life http://wixxyleaks.com/2013/08/02/for-whom-the-bell-tolls-the-political-demise-of-greg-pearce/ Bank deposit levy well received by @macro_business At Loon Pond headquarters, however, it’s a parade of negativity with John Durie, David Crow, the Editorial, Bartho and the Herald Sun all finding fault. http://www.macrobusiness.com.au/2013/08/bank-deposit-levy-well-recieved/ Red tape becoming an election slogan by Stephanie Zillman Abbott announced to the NSW Business Chamber’s third annual Australian business congress in Sydney on Wednesday that if the coalition comes to power, “We will not forget small business.” Abbott added that a coalition government would have a dedicated small business minister sitting in cabinet. http://www.dynamicbusiness.com.au/legal/red-tape-becoming-an-election-slogan-02082013.html If only Treasury had been worrying about the right things, like stagflation.... by Steve Well, the ABC collective (the Australian, Bolt and Catallaxy, for those who have forgotten) gets a boost today by Sinclair Davidson doing a summary of about 2 years of Catallaxy posts (well, except for the ones mentioning what will be mentioned below) in a long column at the Australian http://opiniondominion.blogspot.com.au/2013/08/if-only-treasury-had-been-worrying.html Malcolm Turnbull Invents Time Travel by @mwyres How about this pearler? Mr Turnbull said he did not object to fibre-to-the-premises technology in itself, but given the rapid rate of technological change thought it was best not to provision for future demands with today’s technology.” http://michaelwyres.com/2013/08/malcolm-turnbull-invents-time-travel/ Debate: rebutting Turnbull - New Technologies by @SteveJ_CBR Just where are these mysterious New Technologies that are constantly invoked by Turnbull? If they aren't in the Labs and demonstrated as feasible, then they cannot appear in our homes in 10 years. But for every "great idea" demonstrated in a Lab, only a small fraction make it into production. http://stevej-on-nbn.blogspot.com.au/ Turnbull talks 1Gbps over FttN NBN by @joshgnosis Speaking at a Business Spectator lunch in Sydney yesterday, Turnbull said that this new standard is something that was not included in his fibre-to-the-node (FttN) National Broadband Network (NBN) policy, but suggested that it is something that could be assessed should the Coalition win the federal election later this year. http://www.zdnet.com/au/turnbull-talks-1gbps-over-fttn-nbn-7000018881/ Today’s Front Pages Australian Newspaper Front Pages for 3 August 2013 http://www.thepaperboy.com/australia/front-pages.cfm News headlines http://www.hotheadlines.com.au/

Michael

3/08/2013Re my long post yesterday about Abbott 'signing up' to Gonski... I've worked it out. He's lying.

lyn

3/08/2013Hi Michael You are correct, this is what the people are saying: Mark ‏ Abbott's promise 2 match #Gonski funding is a con-job!! ..funds won't be allocated as per the model ..more will go 2 private schools Denise Ryan ‏ Abbott's Gonski backflip an ‘election gimmick’ # http://www.northerndailyleader.com.au/story/1680662/abbotts-gonski-backflip-an-election-gimmick/?src=rss Tony Abbott (parody) ‏ If at first you don't succeed, adopt the policy as your own whilst attempting to maintain the illusion you're opposed to it. #gonski :):)

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3/08/2013LYN'S DAILY LINKS updated: http://www.thepoliticalsword.com/page/LYNS-DAILY-LINKS.aspx

Ken

3/08/2013Abbott's back-flip on Gonsksi is playing the matching card to Rudd's PNG solution. Both are reacting to what their internal polling is telling them about which party has the electorate's confidence on particular issues, and then trying to negate that so that it is less of an issue come voting. Rudd matches/negates Abbott's success with his "stop the boats" mantra, so Abbott realises that Gonski is actually a vote winner and has to back off and promise to match the funding. But, as others have pointed out, he has only promised in regard to funding and will change the details - of course, he won't explain that and just hope that a gullible electorate will think they will still get the full Gonski reform under him. It's all politics and spin - as usual!!!

Catching up

3/08/2013 The experts are coming out and it seems that Tony is once again lying. Abbott is not supporting the Better Schools. All he is talking about is the funding amount, and not even promising to follow what Gillard has put forwarded. Gonski is about more than funding. Abbott has said he will not follow the Labor prescription. Abbott is attempting a con. Abbott and Rudd are not on an UNITY ticket. I do not believe the election will be Sept 7, more likely Oct 5 or 12. I believe that Rudd will want to be at the Bali Group extraordinary meeting Aug 24. I believe he should be there, so there is a wholistic approach to the AS in place before the election is called. Then there are two UN meetings that Australia should be at, before that date. If the boats coming are a national emergency, the government should turn their attention to that, not elections. "sarcasm"

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3/08/2013Hi Lyn I’m still working through this morning’s links. As I’ve been slowed to dial-up speed, I’ve been using the iPad. There is an absorbing set on Abbott’s Gonski back flip, and on yesterday’s economic statement. It was revealing to read the several opinions about the economic statement on [i]The Conversation[/i]. What never ceases to amaze me is how varied the opinion of economists is on the same set of figures and policies. They seem to be driven more by their preferred theories of economics and their partisan preferences, than by the raw data. Which renders their offerings simply a set of polemics, of little value to students of economics. Because they are so light on analysis and logic, they fail to inform, enlighten, and educate. They serve only to demonstrate to students how NOT to write an analysis. This type of offering has become the norm among most economics correspondents, who use their writings as a vehicle for pushing their idiosyncratic economic viewpoints and ideologies. Laudable exceptions are Ross Gittins, Peter Martin, Laura Tingle and George Megalogenis. I have been busy with appointments and finishing my piece for tomorrow: [i]The quickening disintegration of Tony Abbott[/i]. There is plenty of material for such a piece!

Catching up

3/08/2013It appears Victoria is backing away from Better Schools. They looked likely to sign up last night. Told at nine last night, they could not make a decision. Yes, all Abbott is about, is stopping anymore from signing up. Abbott is not supporting better schools. All he has said, he will keep to the funding model, but will be making changes to application. Think more of the Oppositions love of the voucher system, which is completely different to funding following the child. Obne props up the private system. The other puts the public system on a equal footing. Please do not be conned. Shorten now on ABC 24 Victorian government does not work weekends.

Catching up

3/08/2013It also means they cannot meet until next Tuesday. Monday is a bank holiday. Victoria stands to lose $500 per years per child for six years. Why is Abbott so desperate for a immediate election.

nasking

3/08/2013 WHAT A DISASTER FOR THE LIBERALS WITH NAPTHINE'S VICTORIAN TEAM BACKING OUT OF AN EDUCATION DEAL AT THE LAST MOMENT... IT CONFIRMS TO AUSTRALIANS THAT THE COALITION ARE NOT BONA FIDE WHEN IT COMES TO EDUCATION FUNDING... LOOKS LIKE TYPICAL LIBERAL SCHEMING...PUTTING POLITICAL TACTICS FIRST...AND SAYING WE DON'T REALLY GIVE A SH*T ABOUT YOUR PUBLIC SCHOOLS. LOOKS LIKE SLIMEBAG ABBOTT HAD A WORD IN NAPTHINE'S EAR. AWFUL LOOK. YOU CAN'T TRUST THE LIBS. N'

nasking

3/08/2013 MY WIFE JUST SAID: [b]HOW COME ABBOTT AND PYNE WERE SO AGAINST GONSKI...THEN YESTERDAY SAID THEY WERE FOR IT...AND NOW THE VICTORIAN LIBERALS PULL OUT OF A DEAL? LOOKS SNEAKY TO ME...LIKE THE COALITION ARE PLAYING GAMES...I DON'T THINK THEY REALLY WANT TO DO IT...THEY JUST WANT TO SUCK ALL THE MONEY OUT OF PUBLIC SCHOOLS AND PUT THEM INTO PRIVATE SCHOOLS...THE IDEA OF BREAK IT AND THEN PRETEND IT WAS ALREADY BROKEN AS AN EXCUSE TO GET RID OF SOMETHING,[/b] N'

Jason

3/08/2013Insiders ABC ‏@InsidersABC 2m On #insiders tomorrow: @SenatorWong on the govt's economic statement + panel @MikeSeccombe Kerry-Anne Walsh and Brian Toohey.

Catching up

3/08/2013They have not did, and been careful not to, say they agree with Gonski. What they are saying, they will spend the same amount for four years. This is not much of a promise at all, as the big money is due to be spent after this. They are saying, they will not be spending it the same way. Expect announcements of vouchers after the election. The only thing they have agreed to, is to spend the same amount. Nothing more, nothing less. Better Schools is about more than money, It is about big reforms on how the money is spent.

Catching up

3/08/2013Did I hear right. The tents are disappearing from Nauru, to be replaced with permanent buildings. No wonder Toll was worried. Shame tthat the first building has to be a prison. Burke met with the people from Toll on Manus.

lyn

3/08/2013Hi Ad, Thankyou for your post to me @ 11:38 AM. I think there is lots more new material today for your next piece . Seems Kevin Rudd has upset a lot of people by saying he is too busy to call the election, Oh Dear! back to the speculating diaries Wonder what Abbott says to logistics company Toll Holdings and the 2000 coalition tents on Nauru now? (opposition readying itself to build an immediate 2000-bed tent city on the island if it wins the election 30th July) http://www.theaustralian.com.au/national-affairs/election-2013/were-here-were-staying-morrison-lays-down-law/story-fn9qr68y-1226687771731 [quote]Nauruan MP warns against tents, July 31, 2013 [/quote]The Coalition's five-year plan to dramatically expand detention facilities on the island would put up to 2000 people in ''tented accommodation'' and follow with more permanent housing. Up to 5000 people could be sent to Nauru, increasing the population of the island by more than 50 per cent. http://www.smh.com.au/federal-politics/federal-election-2013/nauruan-mp-warns-against-tents-20130730-2qxhp.html#ixzz2asyTdTiM Some more information for you:- [quote]Kevin Rudd announces new asylum seeker processing and refugee settlement deal with Nauru ABC 5 minutes ago [/quote] Asylum seekers who arrive in Australia by boat can now be processed in Nauru and, if found to be genuine refugees, can be resettled there under an agreement signed by Prime Minister Kevin Rudd and Nauru's president Baron Waqa. The memorandum of understanding is similar to a deal Mr Rudd struck with Papua New Guinea Prime Minister Peter O'Neill a fortnight ago. http://www.abc.net.au/news/2013-08-03/rudd-announces-asylum-policy/4863226 [quote]Brenden ‏ [/quote]Nauru was Tones policy, bloody Rudd stole his thunder. LOL [quote]eleanor bloom [/quote]It was Nauru who approached the Aus govt says Burke. [quote]David Marler[/quote] Remember when, Tony Abbott said, "..pick up the phone to the president of Nauru." 2010: http://ow.ly/nAU41 [quote]Plan for new Australian detention facility shows Kevin Rudd's dishonesty, Tony Abbott says @ 2:57PM [/quote]http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/plan-for-new-australian-detention-facility-shows-kevin-rudd8217s-dishonesty-tony-abbott-says/story-e6frg6n6-1226690642564 [quote]Rudd unveils Nauru asylum resettlement agreement @ 3:52PM [/quote] Nauru President Baron Waqa has met Mr Rudd in Brisbane to sign off on the plan. http://www.heraldsun.com.au/news/special-features/rudd-unveils-nauru-asylum-resettlement-agreement/story-fnho52jj-1226690656072 [quote][b]PM decides: Election set for Sept 7[/b] [/quote] August 3, 2013 by Mark Kenny and Peter Hartcher Sources have told Fairfax Media that Mr Rudd has now settled on the date and will fire the starter's gun on what promises to be one of the most intense political contests in memory. http://www.smh.com.au/federal-politics/federal-election-2013/pm-decides-election-set-for-sept-7-20130802-2r4x4.html#ixzz2asqjqvy5 [b]Rudd says no decision on election date, adds Nauru to asylum solution @ 4:43PM [/b]PRIME MINISTER Kevin Rudd said he had made "no determination whatsoever'' on the date of the election, citing unfinished negotiations with the states on his school and disability reforms. http://www.theaustralian.com.au/national-affairs/immigration/rudd-says-no-decision-on-election-date-adds-nauru-to-asylum-solution/story-fn9hm1gu-1226690652393

Curi-Oz

3/08/2013Was mildly amused this morning to be insistantly told that there was no point in voting for anyone in the elections as Australia is not a sovereign nation but a corporation listed on the US stock exchange. So I looked it up. The Common Wealth of Australia [b]is[/b] listed (http://tinyurl.com/lst43or), but when I dug through a handful of the documents available, I found more mentions of "securities" and "guarentees" by both federal and state Treasuries. I also found range of other countries listed with similar references to securities and guarentees, and was reminded of the sort of documents that would have been exchanged between Princes of the 15th and 16th centuries so that trade could take place. I think it has something to do with all the trade deals that were done a few years ago, and that such registrations are to make it easier for governments to obtain/pay/move "money"* around. I also spotted this list of 'secret offshore companies' (http://tinyurl.com/m75ubtw) as a result of the same statement. Though I think knowing about the ICIJ is a far more useful piece of information in helping to "keep the barstools honest" as someone once said. *money can either be a standardised medium of barter, or by their vastness mere intellectual constructs that serve as markers and score-keepers in a complicated calculation of scratched backs. Leastways, I think that's how it works ...

Catching up

3/08/2013Mr. Abbott is promising that no school would be worse off. The Better Schools is promising that those who need more will get more,. Yes, based on need. It is a shame that the government agreed that no school would be worse off. Some can afford to be worse off, but they are not the state SCHOOLS. NOT THE PRIVATE ONES.

42 long

3/08/2013I recall Morrison and the mad abbott saying all the stuff on Nauru and Manus was ready to go. Just pick up the phone. What a web of tangled lies they spin. Why would anyone deal with people like those unless there was no other option. These people have played with the lives of desperate people to try to gain power. but claim to be men of GOD. What hypocrites they are. Morescum tries to make the Rudd PNG fail by making CLAIMS that it will fail, which goes straight to the travel agents (shipping) in Indonesia.

Catching up

3/08/2013Sorry one "not" too many. I mane it is not the state schools that cannot afford to he worse off. Many private schools would not notice. Mr. Pyne, it is not about bad teachers. Yes Mt Pyne, you are wrong, environment does count.

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3/08/2013Hi Lyn Thank you for your comment and the extra links. Events are moving fast. I've now updated tomorrow's piece with the news about the Nauru agreement between Kevin Rudd and Baron Waqa. Abbott and Morrison can't take a trick

TalkTurkey

3/08/2013For lack of anything positive to suggest, I have stayed right out of the AS "debate". A thing that has never made sense to me is why it takes so extraordinarily long to 'process' asylum seekers. Those with papers should be quickly dealt with, surely, and those without, well a lot more investigative staff should be able vastly to expedite those who have no credentials ... Why not? And if the many extra staff cost a lot more money, the amount saved on incarceration the would obviously be huge too. If the average internment time was three months, and people were sent back quickly who failed to qualify, surely that would be the best way of stopping, not the boats of the truly desperate people, but the less-desperate would-be queue-jumping lifestyle improvers who present the real problem. That's the only thing I can think of that would be both practical and humane, but it seems a given that nobody challenges that it takes years to investigate so many people's cases. Well I just ask Why? In the meantime the unfunny antics of the Abborttians and especially Napthine re Gonski and Morescum re Nauru are wondrous to behold. Can Australians really be so monumentally stupid in the Information Age as to majoritorially support their boorish nasty mob of thugs? No. Tony Abborrrtt Will NEVER Be Prime Minister. And I hope Rudd keeps doing them slowly. Why would he call the election early anyway? What, because They want him to? Seems to me that's the perfect reason not to. Be of good cheer everybody. My bet on Labor is safe! I wish *J*U*L*I*A* were still PM but at least it will not be Abborrrtt. And the legacy of *J*U*L*I*A*s incumbency shines like a beacon, it matters not how Rudd lays claim to it, we know better and the fact of it staying in place is what does matter. VENCEREMOS!

nasking

4/08/2013 ARE YOU READY AUSTRALIA? Home http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=related&v=vy0nbN9o8ao NOT LONG NOW N'

nasking

4/08/2013 C'MON MY FAVE BLOG SINCE THE CAFE...GET SOME LIFE: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PuNYyNqCSSg I KNOW YA...CAN N'

nasking

4/08/2013 THIS ONE IS FOR AD...PATRICIA...TT I KNOW LYN WILL GET IT: So I see the twilight dream the nightmare too you offered me Was kinda weird walking thru mid-life where sun hidden ignored in TV and music tree(s) I...I mean you..or was it them Took each day To say everything...but nothing But that's cool Because nothing Was where we began I saw...we...saw IT...it...off in the distance.... Our so called FUTURE I wondered if we could rush up to it Talk it out of shit Befriend it But it waved Shimmers Kinda exciting Waiting As it walks past Passed And you...we...me Looks back And sees...

nasking

4/08/2013 I THINK TT WILL GET THIS...MAYBE NOT...CAPRICIOUS SOUL BUT TOM WOULD I MISS TOM Flying Saucer Attack - Wish http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5hB2C-cw_bc

nasking

4/08/2013 FSA: MY DREAMING HILL: Please give this song...time TOM...you should have given AD TIME but you were DRIVEN now we're here...my friend...kinda AN EMPTY SPACE just when it's all...HAPPENING [b]Flying Saucer Attack - My Dreaming Hill[/b] http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gLzjsJgIUhs I KNOW NOW HOW IT FELT FOR THE FOUNDING...THEM. OH SAY CAN YOU SEE N'

nasking

4/08/2013 I SAW YOU MANY YEARS AGO ON A CRUMBLING SKIN...OF A BURNT LOG WHERE FIRE REACHED TO THE TUMBLING SKY A DOG SNIFFED THIS NEW WORLD MY COMPANION NIGHT ON BULLDOZE RIGHTEOUS DAY OUR OUTSIDE WORLD CARAVAN PARK LEFT...TEMPORARY DRUNK CAME LUCID THOUGHTS IN BRAIN CELLS FEW THIS COUNTRY MINE THEN HE WALKED OUT OF THE SMOKE SPEAR IN HAND BEHIND ...HER N'

nasking

4/08/2013 AND YES TT...I HAVE FRIENDS WHO ARE JEWISH MY GOOD MATE MICHAEL OF LA WHO I MET MANY YEARS AGO NOW...JUST AS THE INTERNET WAS TAKING OFF...WE JOINED A MUSIC SITE CALLED 'DREAMPOP LOSING TODAY'...AND WE DISCUSSED EVERYTHING AND EVERYBODY IN MUSIC...WE MET SO MANY OTHERS...SO MANY GOOD, INTERESTING PEOPLE... WE WERE IN THE YEAR 2000 WE BATTLED MUSIC SOMETIMES DREAMPOP VS SHOEGAZE VS ... BUT A LOTTA FUN WAS HAD THEN THE TWO TOWERS...WENT DOWN NEW NORMAL AFGHANISTAN NIGHTMARE ARABS SHOULD'VE STOPPED IT. FULL STOP. YER PEOPLE YER RESPONSIBILITY JEWS TALKING TO ME MUSIC MOVIES BOOKS NET Then NOT HATE N'

lyn

4/08/2013Good Morning Ad Murdoch has started his attack on Labor. Reported by Fairfax Mr Denmore seems to think there is a vendetta judging by this tweet [quote]Mr Denmore ‏ It's personal with Sheehan. Suspect a previous run-in with Col Pot. [/quote] This is absolutely shocking:- [b]Murdoch sends trusted general 'Col Pot' to bring down Rudd over NBN[/b] by Paul Sheehan August 4, 2013 . His primary target is Kevin Rudd. Why Murdoch wants Rudd to lose the coming federal election is not merely political, it is commercial. News Corp hates the government's national broadband network. The company has formed a view that it poses a threat to the business model of by far its most important asset in Australia, the Foxtel cable TV monopoly it jointly owns with Telstra. The ramp-up of the war effort has been rapid and intense. Friday, July 26: the chief executive of News Corp, Robert Thomson, announced in New York that Allan would be returning to Australia to provide ''extra editorial leadership for our papers''. Monday, July 29: Allan is at work in Australia within 72 hours of the announcement. Tuesday, July 30: he begins several days of meeting with editors. The message is simple and brutal: you have been going hard on Labor but now, with Rudd's revival in the opinion polls, you have to go harder. Wednesday, July 31: he is spotted lunching with Lachlan Murdoch and other executives. Friday, August 2: The Daily Telegraph depicts Rudd in a hoodie escaping from a bank he has just robbed, with the headline: ''Rudd's $733m hoist on people's savings''. Saturday, August 3: The Australian ran four negative headlines about the Rudd government on its front page alone, including ''Revealed: How Rudd blew $250bn''. The Daily Telegraph splashes with a front-page banner headline: ''Price of Labor - another huge budget shambles … and now we're $30bn in the red''. In Melbourne, the Herald Sun took out page one with ''It's a Ruddy mess''. http://www.theage.com.au/comment/murdoch-sends-trusted-general-col-pot-to-bring-down-rudd-over-nbn-20130803-2r6fk.html#ixzz2awgKSdkZ

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4/08/2013Good Morning Lyn As anticipated, the Murdoch forces are out to kill off the Rudd momentum. Nothing is more important to Murdoch than money. The NBN has always been a threat to his Foxtel, so he will try to kill it off. That is why Slogan-Abbott, at the very outset, ordered Malcolm Turnbull [b]'to demolish the NBN'[/b]. What Uncle Rupert wants, Abbott will promise. On Seven Sunrise this morning we had Miranda Devine and Nick Chater doing their bit to knock Rudd in what was one of the most useless segment I've seen. It began with more election date speculation, and went nowhere at all. It amazes me that Channel Seven would waste money getting these inconsequential people on. All they can offer is opinion, which is partisan and thereby worthless. Let's see what's on [i]Insiders[/i]. At least the guest is competent - Penny Wong.

jaycee

4/08/2013Catherine Deverny at her Sunday best. http://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/australia-food-blog/2013/jul/31/chips-love-fries-frites-flavours

lyn

4/08/2013Hi Ad, I should have said I was shocked at Paul Sheehan writing the Murdoch article, usually he himself is anti Labor. We all know Murdoch has campaigned against Labor for years. Penny Wong was brilliant on The Insiders” as we expected. Mike Seccombe is a favourite, I liked when he said Sheehan is a bit slow seeing the campaign has been conducted by Murdoch for years. Penny Wong’s reply about Murdoch was very measured “not new Murdoch anti Labor”. Funny one when Barry Cassidy said “why the media & Gov. didn’t make a fuss over Toll Holdings eg. seat for News Ltd on Naru trip “ Channel 7 won't let up about the election date: 7News Brisbane ‏ .@KRudd hints he won't call the election today saying it's a family day but he's looking forward to being in Canberra tomorrow for Cabinet :):)

BSA Bob

4/08/2013There's comment about this morning re Col Allan, Murdoch, NBN etc. In a master & puppet arrangement, Murdoch pulls Abbott's strings. It's a symbiotic relationship & for a while now I've had the thought that politics in this country is fundamentally about two things; getting the NBN for Murdoch & getting us to pay off Abbott's mortgage.

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4/08/2013Hi Lyn Yes, Penny Wong was great, as usual, on [i]Insiders[/i]. The panel too was sensible. There will be continued speculation about the election date. It is easy, indeed lazy journalism. They can make a story out of nothing - just one person's speculation. It was surprising to see Paul Sheehan writing as he did. As Mike Seccombe said, 'Why did it take him so long to see the obvious?' I'm out now for a few hours.

nasking

4/08/2013 EFFECTIVE POSITIVE SPEECH. GUTSY AND USEFUL Q&A GOOD START WILL ABBOTT HAVE THE GUTS TO DEBATE RUDD? LOVED RUDD'S CONFIDENT, POSITIVE, SINCERE APPROACH. N'

nasking

4/08/2013 JUST DONATED A BIT MORE MONEY TO THE LABOR CAMPAIGN...DID SO A COUPLE OF MTHS AGO TOO... WANNA KEEP THE ABBOTT/MURDOCH TICKET OUT: https://australianlaborparty.nationbuilder.com/donate?utm_source=australianlaborparty&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=it_s_on&recruiter_id=73553 ARE YOU IN? N'

nasking

4/08/2013 WHAT WE NEED MR. NEGABORE ABBOTT IS THE NEXT THREE YEARS FREE OF YOUR NO NO NO HYPE HYPE HYPE TABLOID-LIKE ATTITUDE. CAN'T BEAR WATCHING THE GUY...LET ALONE LISTEN TO HIM. N'

nasking

4/08/2013 INTERESTING THE NATS DON'T EVEN GIVE A SPEECH...BEING THE LACKEYS OF THE ABBOTT LIBERAL PARTY THESE DAYS. N'

Ad astra

4/08/2013Folks I’ve just now posted [i]The quickening disintegration of Tony Abbott[/i]. http://www.thepoliticalsword.com/post/2013/08/04/The-quickening-disintegration-of-Tony-Abbott.aspx
How many Rabbits do I have if I have 3 Oranges?