A person’s appearance is the most challenging thing to write about because one doesn’t want to be insulting. Nevertheless, when such things have a direct bearing on the electability of an individual, the writer needs to make a judgement.
Many factors come into play when accessing one’s ability to lead, and I referred to them many times during the past decade when criticising Abbott, Turnbull and Morrison.
Now the Liberal Party have elected Peter Dutton as their leader and finds themselves confronting the same problem: a leader has no character.
His appearance is but one of the numerous flaws that make him unelectable. At times his appearance can be positively frightening. I watched an interview with him last week in which he appeared grotesque to the point wherein he looked menacing, even absurd. Perhaps it was the lighting, but his face seemed to lack definition. From it, two small black eyes appeared. The right one was blacker than the other.
No doubt he can be a frightening-looking man. Women, in particular, I’d assume find him so. I’m not being silly here, but perhaps he should consult a make-up artist.
But let’s take a few steps backwards and do a background check.
Wikipedia tells us that:
“Peter Dutton … is an Australian politician who has been Leader of the Liberal Party and Leader of the Opposition since May 2022. He has represented the Queensland seat of Dickson in the House of Representatives since 2001 and held ministerial office in the Howard, Abbott, Turnbull and Morrison Coalition Governments.
Early Life
Dutton was born on 18 November 1970 in the northern Brisbane suburb of Boondall. He is the eldest of five children, with one brother and three sisters. His mother, Ailsa Leitch, worked in childcare, and his father, Bruce Dutton, was a builder. Dutton finished high school at the Anglican St Paul’s School, Bald Hills.
Police career
Upon leaving high school, Dutton graduated from the Queensland Police Academy in 1990. He served as a Queensland Police officer for nearly a decade, working in the drug squad in Brisbane in the early 1990s. He also worked in the sex offenders squad and with the National Crime Authority. In 1999, Dutton left the Queensland Police, achieving the rank of senior detective constable.
Business activities
On leaving the police, Dutton completed a Bachelor of Business at the Queensland University of Technology. He and his father founded the business Dutton Holdings, registered in 2000; it operated under six different trading and business names. The company bought, renovated, and converted buildings into childcare centres, and in 2002 it sold three childcare centres to the now-defunct ABC Learning. ABC Learning continued to pay rent of $100,000 to Dutton Holdings. Dutton Holdings continues to trade under the name Dutton Building & Development.
Note: A comprehensive biography of Peter Dutton is available on Wikipedia, and I suggest you go there if you require more information.
What we know about his character
(My apologies for repeating what I wrote a little over a fortnight ago, but I feel that it was important to include in this article).
1 Let’s begin when:
“… News Corp Sunday political editor Samantha Maiden wrote a column critical of Jamie Briggs. Dutton drafted a text message to Briggs describing Maiden as a “mad fucking witch” but inadvertently sent it to Maiden. Maiden accepted an apology from Dutton.”
2 Before the 2016 election, Dutton said of refugees:
“… many won’t be numerate or literate in their own language let alone English”, and “These people would be taking Australian jobs”. Turnbull defended Dutton by stating he is an “outstanding Immigration Minister”.
3 And this:
“Dutton denied claims made by Greens Senator Sarah Hanson-Young that she was spied on during a visit to Nauru.”
4 But:
“The spying claims were later confirmed by the Immigration Department and Wilson Security who carried out the spying operation.”
The spying claims were later confirmed by the Immigration Department and Wilson Security, who carried out the spying operation.
5 When the then-prime minister Kevin Rudd apologised to the Stolen Generations in 2008, Dutton was the only member of the Coalition frontbench to ‘boycott’ the apology.
He excused his absence by saying the apology was:
“I regarded it as something which was not going to deliver tangible outcomes to kids who are being raped and tortured in communities in the 21st century,”
– Dutton explaining why he boycotted the apology to the Stolen Generations.
And he thinks he’s fit to be next PM #auspol
— Kon Karapanagiotidis (@Kon__K) May 25, 2022
Dutton continued and said:
“Now, if I thought for a moment that it was going to deliver positive outcomes to those kids, to their families, to those communities, then I would support it in a heartbeat. But I thought it distracted us from that.”https://t.co/KTBcmEJ4Ob
— Kon Karapanagiotidis (@Kon__K) May 25, 2022
Five years ago Dutton told the Sydney Morning Herald that he didn’t understand its symbolism and importance to Indigenous people at the time. This was when his name was being brought up as a potential future PM. This albatross around his neck over the apology has been there – and will continue to be there – for some considerable time. He can make all the excuses he likes, but he’s going to have fun trying to find someone who believes his excuses.
5 Sudanese gangs. In January,2018, Dutton claimed people in Melbourne were “scared to go out to restaurants” due to “African gang violence”.
6 Peter Dutton resigned from the Police Force 20 years ago, but a cloak of mystery has always hung over it.
In his maiden speech in Parliament in 2001, Dutton said he’d witnessed:
“… the best and the worst that society has to offer during his time in the force.
I have seen the wonderful, kind nature of people willing to offer any assistance to those in their worst hour, and I have seen the sickening behaviour displayed by people who, frankly, barely justify their existence…”
Interesting observation. I wonder which one has had the most influence in his political career.
7 Mr Dutton, during the 2019 election, was forced to apologise after he accused his rival of using her disability as an excuse to not move into the electorate.
8 He thought that performing an anti-marriage equality song at the NRL Grand Final was a good idea. Because it was “free speech”.
Dutton also criticised a list of 20 high-profile CEOs who signed a letter urging the prime minister to legislate for same-sex marriage and singled out Qantas CEO Alan Joyce.
“If Alan Joyce and any other CEO wants to campaign on this or any other issue in their own time and on their own time, good luck to them,” he told a Queensland LNP conference crowd.
9 Dutton did, however, raise a few eyebrows when he suggested “special treatment” of white South African farmers earlier this year, claiming they were being “persecuted” and faced “horrific circumstances”. Apparently, this didn’t go down well in South Africa – its government demanded Dutton retract his comments.
10 In 2015 Dutton joked about the plight of Pacific Island nations facing rising sea levels due to climate change. And who was he telling the joke to? Well, none other than Tony Abbott and Scott Morrison. Abbott was prime minister then and had just returned from talks with Pacific Island leaders about climate change in Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea.
They were late for a meeting about Syrian refugees, and Dutton remarked that they were running to “Cape York time“. Abbott replied that there was “a bit of that up in Port Moresby.”
“Time doesn’t mean anything when you’re about to have water lapping at your door,” Dutton quipped back.
11 Peter Dutton identifies as a Christian, but his public activities in that space are rare.
12 More recently, as the new Opposition Leader, Dutton suggested that specific portfolios required a different tone or a different language than others and that he hoped people wouldn’t judge him by it.
13 Dutton’s wealth – including extensive property holdings and his wife’s childcare business – continues to be a talking point. Estimates have been anywhere between $5million and $300million, depending on who you read and how it is calculated. I have no idea what his worth is, and I refuse to engage in speculation.
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The pedlars of verbal violence and dishonesty are the most vigorous defenders of free speech because it gives their vitriolic nonsense legitimacy. With the use of free speech, the bigots and hate-mongers seek to influence those in the community who are susceptible or like-minded.
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Summary
After all the racist overtones, the belittling comments, the callus detachment and straight-out xenophobia, is he really saying it was only an act because that’s what different portfolios demanded? How insulting to those who sought our refuge and demeaning to those who would offer it. And how evil of those who would believe him.
Dutton’s worldview seems to have been formed from a series of pessimistic experiences without comprehending the meaning of optimism.
And for old time’s sake:
#AnthonyAlbanese: "Sit down, Boofhead!" #Peter Dutton: "Glass jaw!"
A moment of real intensity between two men who both want to be Prime Minister during #QuestionTime. @10NewsFirst pic.twitter.com/S1EJu9zTo8— Hugh Riminton (@hughriminton) November 30, 2021
My last post: Why is Scott Morrison remaining in the Parliament?
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My thought for the day
It is far better to form your own independent opinions relative to your life experience and reason than to allow yourself to be blindly led by others.
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