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How embarrassing

The rest of the world knows how stupid and venal our politicians are and, unlike most of us, they aren’t afraid to tell them.

In obvious reference to the gormless Peter Dutton’s gaffe when he was overheard giggling about time meaning nothing when you have “water lapping at your door,” the Fijian Prime Minister told Scott Morrison exactly what he thought about his government’s inaction on climate change and dogged support for coal.

“Here in Fiji, climate change is no laughing matter. From where we are sitting, we cannot imagine how the interests of any single industry can be placed above the welfare of Pacific peoples – vulnerable people in the world over. Prime Minister, I urged your predecessor repeatedly to honour his commitment to clean energy future, the only future that guarantees the survival of your neighbours in the Pacific,” he said.

Mr Bainimarama said the issue “cannot be written off as a difference of opinion”.

“Consensus from the scientific community is clear, and existential threat posed to Pacific Island countries, a certainty.”

Slap down number one.

Then we had Tony Abbott contributing his views on Brexit to the twittersphere.

“What’s wrong with no deal? Australia does $100 billion a year in trade with the EU without a deal.”

This was immediately met with derision.

Jonathan Portes, a professor of economics at King’s College in London, replied:

“Australia’s trade with the EU is worth about 7.5% of Australian GDP. UK’s trade with the rest of EU is worth more than 30% of UK GDP. Anyone with a basic grasp of economics (not @TonyAbbottMHR it seems) should spot the problem.”

International trade expert Dmitry Grozoubinski wrote “Australia’s exports to the EU are dominated by raw commodities and agricultural products for which it enjoys country specific quotas the UK won’t get. You are embarrassing. Stop.”

Andy Bruce, an economics writer for the wire service Reuters, tweeted:

“Gaffe-prone former Aussie PM, deposed by own party, once described by Council on Foreign Relations as most incompetent leader of any industrialised democracy: listen to this guy!”

For some unfathomable reason, Abbott is a member of a pro-Brexit advisory panel called The Institute for Free Trade.  His membership alone is sufficient to destroy the credibility of that organisation.

Unsurprisingly, Peta Credlin is spouting the same lines as Tony with speculation that these two are supporting Boris Johnson’s leadership aspirations.

“You should plan for a no-deal Brexit,” she said. “You should square your shoulders, Britain. Put something on the table and walk away. Bugger Europe, they need you far more than you need them … a bit of bulldog spirit there. I want to see Britain look and sound the way it used to look and sound.”

Considering how well they did when they got the reins, the only skill this pair have is in wrecking things for what they admit are entirely political reasons. Talking tough guy rather than making a plan is how they operate.

When asked to reflect on his time in leadership and any regrets or mistakes, Abbott told the Daily Telegraph “I probably shouldn’t have winked at Neil Mitchell. I probably shouldn’t have eaten an onion. I probably should have had walk coaching.”

Because for these guys, it’s all about the image. They bounce around doing what their spin doctors and the IPA tell them to do. They have no plan.

Slogans about “stepping up and turning up and showing up” or “listening and hearing and doing” and “if you have a go, you’ll get a go” are meaningless when you are completely unwilling or unable to assess risk and address the priorities of governing.

Not only has the government been an embarrassment, they are a source of misinformation with an increasing lack of transparency. They are an impediment to progress in this country and they must be booted out.

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14 comments

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  1. Baby Jewels

    Both Dutton and Abbott have been a blot on Australia for many years, their idiocy knows no bounds. They are the main but not sole contributors in this government to our becoming the laughing stock of the world.

  2. Vikingduk

    And the only notice that snotty motormouth and the noxious pusbags will take of climate change devastation of sth pacific islands will be to build a wall, a f#cking big wall, a steel wall or concrete, no matter, just a big wall, keep that pesky ocean back. Past time these f#cking traitors were jailed, were held to account for their vile, evil ways. Can’t bear to look at that smirking f#ckwit’s face, listen to that motormouth. The delusional insanity shown by these arsewipes is truly astounding. Definitely the lunatics have taken over the asylum putting us, our children, our grandchildren, all life forms on this most beautiful planet well and truly up shit creek. At this stage I’m thinking a mass culling of us humans may be the only way for long term survival. We certainly aren’t listening, aren’t looking, wilfully ignoring nature as she growls and bights us.

  3. helvityni

    Three oafs thinking they are good enough to be the country’s PM; two have succeeded so far, I’ll not be surprised if the third one too will get there…

    Le’s raise our standards !

  4. RomeoCharlie29

    Ah, between you Kaye Lee and Vikingduk I think you have said it all.

  5. Andrew Smith

    Doubt being economical with truth is accidental when white Nativist antipathy towards the EU/Europe and sentiment for Brexit has been fomented for decades by British media and MPs, including NewsCorp.

    Further, while Australian media take ‘western civilisation’ as purely an academic pursuit, the Republicans don’t when it comes to their own resident bigot King:

    ‘After years of making racist statements and promoting racist policies, Rep. Steve King (R-Iowa) may finally have gone too far. In a recent interview, he told the New York Times, “White nationalist, white supremacist, Western civilization — how did that language become offensive? Why did I sit in classes teaching me about the merits of our history and our civilization?” King’s GOP colleagues have stripped him of his committee assignments, and he faces possible censure. In response, the congressman claims that he was misrepresented — that his fellow Republicans and other observers did not understand his syntax. In a statement, he said he was not defending white supremacy or white nationalism but only “Western Civilization” from those who say the term has become “offensive.”

    https://www.washingtonpost.com/outlook/2019/01/15/steve-king-says-he-was-just-defending-western-civilization-thats-racist-too/?utm_term=.90ef7b2f8c45

    Society, including MPs, Nativist, WASP Evangelical Christians and media can nuance their language or dog whistling as much as they want but their constituency is declining due to changes in demography which they are (encouraged) to be nervous about AKA Trump, Brexit and our own opportunists.

    I’m not racist/anti-immigration but… or I’m colour blind but…..

  6. Paul Davis

    Our Dear Leader Rubbergums McShoutyface received one of the biggest public slapdowns ever delivered by the leader of one country to the leader of another. And the smirk never left McShouty’s dumb gormless face because this serious shaming rebuke went completely over his head. The Ozstrayan press corp were either squirming with embarrassment or choking back their laughter depending on which outlet they worked for.

    It would have been a very uncomfortable private meeting for bonehead when the Fijian PM told him not too politely, in reference to the Prakash citizenship debacle that he and his cabinet were lying dickheads and no it wont be mentioned publicly, now let’s talk about trade, hmmm?

    Kaye, once upon a time, stuff ups like this would bring down governments. Now not only weasel words but unabashed baldfaced lying is acceptable? Good article, cheers.

  7. Andrew Smith

    Here’s a more formal definition or description from the SPLC that describes the Australian situation, especially too many LNP and Conservative MPs, WASP Evangelical Christians, media and influencers:

    ‘Adherents of white nationalist groups believe that white identity should be the organizing principle of the countries that make up Western civilization. White nationalists advocate for policies to reverse changing demographics and the loss of an absolute, white majority. Ending non-white immigration, both legal and illegal, is an urgent priority — frequently elevated over other racist projects, such as ending multiculturalism and miscegenation — for white nationalists seeking to preserve white, racial hegemony.’

    https://www.splcenter.org/fighting-hate/extremist-files/ideology/white-nationalist

    John Howard got the ball rolling in the PM’s office with use of the the word ‘multiculturalism’ being banned or verboten.

  8. Bronte ALLAN

    The sad & sorry lot of liars that is the so-called “liberal” (?) party just keeps on getting worse! It stated with that lying weasel Hogward & then followed up with the “world’s most incompetent so-called PM” in the Rabbot, then we had Mr so-called “smooth” (?) Talkbull, now we have the incomparable bloody Slo Mo dickhead! There is not ONE of any of the stupid bloody liberal/country party lot who is capable of leading Australia forward. Heaven help us if they get re-elected whenever the net election is called. They are all just a rabble of lying, flat earth, climate change denying, obscenely over-paid & under qualified idiots, who could not properly organise a bloody chook raffle!

  9. David Evans

    What a team, of dills, morons and rorters…. abbott? abetz? dutton? kelly? taylor? andrews(is he still alive?) hunt? roberts? joyce? another andrews?(who knew?) broad? and the list goes on. Headed by the fair dinkum one himself morrison. Fair Dinkum Unbelievable!

  10. Aortic

    As Andrew Denton once said as the Liberals are now the Libs, the Nationals are now the Nats it’s a shame the Country Party is still not called so. Just to confirm the idiocy just saw our ” Acting” PM commenting on the dead fish debacle that people in days gone by didn’t have mobile phones to record these events. WTF? Made me wish (almost) that the Joyce boy was still not around to dispense his undoubted wisdom on these matters of water distribution. Bring on an election, republic new flag and new anthem incorporating the wishes of our indigenous brothers.

  11. michael tetley

    If you want an insight into how the “other side” thinks, have a read of some of the articles and the follow up comments in this publication;

    Home


    These are obviously the narrow minded rusted on conservative, bigoted, head in the sand coalition voter.
    And I don’t know about you, but the scare the shit outta me.

  12. New England Cocky

    Benito Duddo is well placed to make yet another bid to be Prim Monster in February or March 2019, or just as soon as suggested by his US controller in the IPA. By standing as a “true patriot” of British white supremacy he will attract all the ill educated voters in his middle class seat of Dickson despite the GetUp! poll of 30,000 showing that he is the most reviled poiltician in the Federal Liarbral Notional$ misgovernment.

    The May 2019 election will then be a doddle for Duddo because all the White Nationalist$ will rush to the polls early and often to sweep him imto his rightful position as political leader of this fair land. Hail Duddo!!

  13. paul walter

    michael tetley, many thanks for that. I checked it out, ignored most of it as tendentious and then read the piece by Paul Collits,

    “Poor Sydney, What They’ve Done To You”,

    which was reasonable and displayed an attempt at restraint of tribal tendencies targetting the left and their criticisms of sources of investment for ugly property developments there.

  14. wam

    The rabbott is the prime idiot:
    He has a Bachelor of Economics and a Bachelor of Laws from the University of Sydney. He is a Rhodes Scholar with a Bachelor of Arts in Philosophy, Politics and Economics from The Queen’s College, Oxford, and is, master of Arts.
    Have a read of ‘the whirling dervish’ by luis nowra:
    when he failed to play rugby for the school firsts, he could not conceive that it was because he wasn’t good enough – it must have been a conspiracy against him. This arrogance and sense of self-entitlement annoyed many of his peers.
    He hasn’t changed, he is simply amoral and like trump a victim of the dunning-kruger effect.
    He is most confidence in things he shows he has little knowledge.
    So unless idiot means highly successful he and dutton are not idiots and are supported by millions of Australians,.
    They have to go and climate change is not the way.

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