Day to Day Politics: I was right about this. What about you?
Monday 3 July 2017
On Saturday July 2 2016 on the morning of a general election this is what I wrote. (I’m not suggesting I have the gift of prophesy but I got it fairly right):
At this time last year Newspoll showed Labor clearly ahead of the Coalition 53% to 47%, nearly a direct reversal of the 46.5% to 53.5% result at the September 2013 federal election.
Of course at the time Tony Abbott was Prime Minister and things were going downhill rapidly.
On the eve of this election the mainstream media has come out strongly in support of the conservatives, as have the bookies. The reason the newspapers back the conservatives is simply that they are more qualified to manage the economy. How they can say that when the government has doubled the debt is beyond me.
A few days ago Newspoll released its last poll showing the LNP 51/49. The next day Essential had the reverse followed by Fairfax Ipos 50/50 and Galaxy 51/49 to the Coalition.
With so many polls saying the same thing any fair-minded person would assume it’s going to be close. But then we know in recent times the polls have a miserable record. The English general election, Brexit, Queensland and Victoria all produced shock results.
In Australia our very democracy is under threat from a government that is extremist in its views. A self-serving government that has a hypocrite as a leader. A government that places capitalism before environmentalism.
In 2014 it proved beyond doubt that it wanted the poor to contribute more to the wealth of the rich and privileged. Its budget of that year was universally condemned as the most unfair ever.
Turnbull’s predecessor, of course, did more to damage the institutions of our democracy than any other. People are angry at anything and everything.
The people have experienced three years of wasted governance, and some have already expressed their attitude by walking away from the system altogether.
If Turnbull does win it will be with a reduced majority and, therefore, a reduced authority. Turnbull won’t last 6 months before Abbott starts to chip away. It’s also possible that even the joint sitting might not be enough to pass the ABCC legislation.
How embarrassing would that be? In case you had forgotten, the ABCC is the reason we are having this election. Others are fed up with all the sanitised political gratuitous rhetoric that does nothing more than insult our intelligence. It’s been going on for far too long and people are up for a protest.
We in Australia are often slow to see these things but when we do … look out.
What we are seeing worldwide is people ‘protesting’. Protesting at their treatment. More often than not they are ignorant of the facts and are just protesting against anything. They just want their voice to be heard.
For years now we have been living with Labor’s self-indulgent leadership wrangles and the Coalition’s far right ‘born to rule’ mentality.
Every time you read a newspaper you see how corrupt Australian society has become.
I believe that scandal after political scandal has at last woken us from our apathy. We are angry and we want to take it out on some one. How dare they treat us like this? Fuck the polls. We don’t give a shit about the rights and wrongs; we just want to be treated with some respect.
People are disgusted with Turnbull’s caving into the ratbags on the right of his party. He has turned out to be as bigger liar as was Abbott. As hard as that might be.
For me, Turnbull’s hypocritical leadership on gay marriage, the NBN and the environment must play on the minds of the voters, as must the appalling performance of the government.
Ongoing banking scandals, political donations and ministerial deceit, and growing inequality surely will not escape the public’s attention. So too his repetitive cave-ins on tax reform. The fact that they are split on so many issues must also come into play.
Bill Shorten out-campaigned Malcolm Turnbull, presented by far the better policies and a united team.
The voters are primed to take to someone with weapons of mass destruction. It might as well be the government. Don’t be surprised.
My thought for the day.
”We exercise our involvement in our democracy every three years by voting. After that the vast majority takes very little interest. Why is it so?”
PS: Of course I might be completely wrong. The public might be happy with the unconstructiveness and in-fighting of their governance.
10 comments
Login here Register here-
Freethinker -
Peter F -
Terry2 -
wam -
stephengb2014 -
Freethinker -
helvityni -
Kronomex -
Freethinker -
Keitha Granville
Return to home pageIt would not surprise me if the Coalition with a strong media support start putting the blame on the senate which is in their opinion what stop a elected government to implementing “their solutions”
Together with that they will create another good debt and come with an increase to lower income earners and age pensioners.
Few dollars here and there outside of the big cities electorates to have small towns and farmers in their side.
Strong campaign to gain the support of small business and self employed tradesman.
If, and I hope not any event happens that can put our peaceful life in danger then patriotism, protection of the borders and other policies will be an excuse to call an election because they are “the best to protect the country” Do the Trump trick.
All the above worked well in the past so can happen again.
‘Few dollars here and there’ ….. It has always worked for the Coalition. Remember the ‘fist full of dollars’ advts when Howard was Treasurer?
Freethinker
It may be a bit difficult to blame the Senate after Morrison was spruiking the coalition’s success in negotiating its legislation through the Senate :
Don’t be too hard on yourself, Lord, ‘wrong’ is enough because only thatcher was completely wrong.
Thatcher came to mind because your “People are disgusted with Turnbull’s caving into the ratbags on the right of his party. He has turned out to be as bigger liar as was Abbott.” reminded me of her and negus.
I share the cmfeu posts to no reaction but hopefully subliminal (it has to be because billy is sub-audial)
But I doubt if a majority of them would vote without the impetus of compulsory and I despair of the veracity in your ‘We in Australia are often slow to see these things but when we do … look out.’
Keating was great for australia and hewson’s loss was catastrophic for australia. Were we slow or precipative
Sadly peter and freethinker are aware that last minute tricks, lies or innuendo are the keys to the lodge.
Luck also can play an enormous part.
In 2010 when no ‘legitimate’ liberal candidates wanted to stand cannon fodder party members griggs and roy defeated labor certainties. On the thursday before the election. the clp party leader made a disingenuous use of an AVO and the labor twit had a rabbott bernie snap. Without them we would not have had oakeschott and windsor but maybe we would still have gillard and how good would that have been?
Just look at Right Wing nut jobs on Facebook, absolutely appaling anst against the Left, that divide conquer trick is working so well for the oligarchy that we have become.
Terry2, unfortunately the electorate have a bad memory or blocked by few dollars here and there.
I sincerely hope for a change, for people to weak up but so far everything is quite and the Union know that there is not enough anger there for people to be motivated to march in the cities streets.
Sorry to show negative, perhaps is because I come form a country that a small march will be 50000 people in a small city and a general strike means total paralysation of the country.
Tax cuts for the rich, and wage cuts for the poor; that’s your Oz equality today…
Could we please do a leader exchange at least for few months; Trudeau to Oz and Mal to Canada….
A couple of days ago it was, “Wah, wah. I’ll quit if I can’t stay PM.” Then –
https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2017/jul/03/malcolm-turnbull-commits-to-run-and-win-as-prime-minister-in-2019-election
I have no further comment to make about this travesty of a “man”.
This is the last idea for making people working for peanuts and at the same time bring wages down and increase unemployment.
From the news:
Young Australians who receive welfare payments could undertake internships for businesses such as Bakers Delight as part of a new deal announced by the prime minister, Malcolm Turnbull.
On Monday Turnbull and the employment minister, Michaelia Cash, announced that the government, in partnership with the Australian Retailers Association, is broadening its PaTh program, first introduced in the 2016 budget.
I think you are dead right with voting every 3 years and then forgetting about it and doing nothing.
There are masses of people I am sure who do his, then they spend the next 3 years grumbling about the sad state of the government – and then turn round and vote them in again cos a few pennies are thrown in their direction.
I miss the days of my youth when we were vocal about what was happening, we protested, we voted with our thinking hats on. Nobody cares enough any more about others, just what the vote means to THEM personally.
Think global, act local.