Let me explain.
I am not sure that my childhood prepared me to deal with this government.
I never broke my toys. I would tell on people rather than hit back. The only thing I threw was a ball. I would play the piano and sing loud, though I did learn to shout during adolescence. Swearing is something I try to avoid, without success lately.
I have this primeval feeling welling up inside me. I need to release it somehow.
I could scream but that would only vent temporarily.
What I really want to do is have a chat with Tony Abbott, in person.
My first step would be to physically usher Peta Credlin out of the room. I cannot tell you how much it makes my blood boil to see her seated at the table in all our negotiations with world leaders.
GET OUT OF THE ROAD AND LET THE EXPERTS HAVE THE SEAT.
My next step would be to shove Tony into a chair while I stood over him and explained.
STOP COUNTING ON YOUR EFFING FINGERS.
STOP SPEAKING IN SLOGANS.
STOP BEING FILMED SITTING AT TABLES WITH GENERALS WITH BIG SIZED MAPS OR TREASURERS WITH BIG SIZED GRAPHS.
STOP TAKING PHOTOGRAPHERS AND JAMES PACKER WITH YOU OVERSEAS INSTEAD OF DELEGATES.
STOP MEETING WITH MURDOCH INSTEAD OF 120 WORLD LEADERS INCLUDING OBAMA.
STOP USING PHOTO OPPORTUNITIES WEARING LAB COATS TO PAY FOR YOUR SOCIAL FUNCTIONS.
STOP CLAIMING PAYMENT FOR YOUR CHARITY WORK AND SPORTING EVENTS.
STOP LYING ABOUT THE DEBT AND DEFICIT.
STOP TORTURING CHILDREN FOR THE SAKE OF YOUR EGO.
STOP THE DESPARATE GRAB FOR THE LAST CENT THAT CAN BE WRUNG FROM COAL.
STOP IGNORING THE SCIENTISTS.
STOP SACKING CLEVER PEOPLE TO HIRE FOOLS LIKE MAURICE NEWMAN.
STOP STRIPPING MONEY FROM EDUCATION AND RESEARCH.
STOP ATTACKING PREVENTATIVE HEALTH MEASURES.
STOP CUTTING FOREIGN AID – IT’S CHEAPER THAN WARS.
STOP PRETENDING WE ARE A MILITARY POWER AND START USING OUR STRENGTHS OF HUMANITARIAN AID, DISASTER RELIEF, SEARCH AND RESCUE, AND REBUILDING.
STOP THREATENING THE ABC.
STOP GAGGING JOURNALISTS AND PUBLIC SERVANTS AND PEOPLE WHO WORK WITH ASYLUM SEEKERS.
STOP HIDING THINGS – BLUE BOOKS, OSB, FOI CHANGES, ACCESS TO DETENTION CAMPS.
STOP TRASHING OUR INTERNATIONAL REPUTATION – COLOSSAL FOSSIL, CARBON CARTELS, BOOTS ON THE GROUND IN UAE BUT NOT WEST AFRICA, CUTS TO FOREIGN AID AND GREEN FUND, REFUGEES
STOP DESTROYING OUR NATURAL WONDERS.
STOP ATTACKING OUR MOST VULNERABLE.
STOP INCITING FEAR AND DIVISION IN OUR COMMUNITY WITH OVER THE TOP RAIDS BY HUNDREDS OF MEN IN BALACLAVAS. (beware of teenagers bearing plastic swords).
And most of all Tony…
STOP TREATING ME LIKE A NAIVE CHILD.
You need to expand your circle of advice and stop neutering those who try to tell you the truth like the Climate Change Authority and the Human Rights Commission and the Bureau of Meteorology and the CSIRO and ACOSS to name a few.
Divine inspiration belonged to the job you decided not to pursue. Recall how Judas has been remembered? He betrayed someone he loved for money.
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Return to home pageFeel the same way Kaye.
Ditto.
Hear, hear!
Yup.
Kaye, I think I would just add the bottom line to Abbott,, quit now or resign in disgrace, you tried, failed now just go!
Here’s my message to Tones and Co…The times are a changing men 🙂
Well done Kaye 🙂
I’d like to hear all these framed as direct questions in QT – with the word ‘STOP‘ changed to ‘WHY ARE YOU‘.
Brilliant.
I don’t think you’ve overlooked anything, Kaye … except to mention the utter irony of this dickhead’s thinking he can treat anyone like a naive child …
Exactly my thoughts! Well said – also agree with above comment that Tony and this whole awful government must go!
M-R,
There are countless things I have left out. Funding cuts to successful Indigenous services and legal aid were just cruel. His new elite group led by Warren Mundine have found themselves lovely new digs a long way from the actual workers. So many wonderful charities and NGO programs cut. Handouts to donors, winding back of environmental laws and rights of appeal for many groups….it just goes on and on. It took me about 5 minutes to write the above article (as you can tell by the lack of any semblance of order). It comes from anger. My head is bursting with all this crap. University debt, no money for unemployed youth, no industry assistance except for fossil fuel producers, big banks, pharmaceutical companies, private health insurers, and pollie pedal sponsors…..
STOP ME NOW!
No problem, G.G. Cosgrove should sack Abbott soon. Budget paralysis is killing the economy.
Repealing pay increases to childcare and aged care workers, making people on disability pensions jump through even more hoops, stopping the real NBN, increasing the pension age, decreasing indexation, delaying the superannuation guarantee increase, selling all our assets….
oh and Tony…
STOP SPENDING BILLIONS ON WAR TOYS
Agree with all except for one point. Judas may have loved Jesus, but Abbott does not love us. Far from it. He sees Australia as a cash-cow & a vehicle. Only those unquestioning & devoted Team Australia members are tolerated – while they remain unquestioning & devoted. & even then they are tolerated only. Abbott may use the word ‘love’, but he lacks any deeper understanding of it – I believe he must have left the priesthood when this deficit was pointed out to him.
Kaye, how did you get into my head? I have been yelling these same things at Abbott for months. What a mess we are in.
Well said – I agree with everything you have posted. It scares me that so many people seem to feel this way, and yet he’s still there, still doing whatever he wants, still being guided by those that have personal gain as an agenda. Saddens me that Australia’s international reputation is being destroyed so quickly.
Funny you should say that Tfh,
“l felt “had” by a seminary that so stressed ”empathy” with sinners and “dialogue” with the Church’s enemies that the priesthood seemed to have lost its point.” – Tony Abbott
Tony was asked to see a psychologist who concluded that “he had developed an inability to be really intimate and that without the warmth and trust of real intimacy he would find life in the celibate priesthood too frustrating and lacking in peace”.
But Tony didn’t want an analysis of his difficulties and especially not an analysis couched in the terms of psychology, saying “it was really the seminary staff who needed psychological investigation”.
I feel your pain Kaye.
Defence families across Australia are not happy about a military wage deal of less than half the rate of inflation and the stripping back of soldiers’ workplace entitlements, their advocacy group says.
Just days after the nation’s armed forces were committed to war in Iraq, 57,000 men and women in uniform were told they will have to give up some of their Christmas and recreational leave in order to get the pay rise of just 1.5 per cent a year over the next three years.
Read more: http://www.smh.com.au/national/defence-force-personnel-must-give-up-leave-in-return-for-below-inflation-wage-offer-20141010-1143ia.html#ixzz3FjQepvmC
No wonder they need the combat pay
Brilliant piece. Sums up for so many of us the feelings we have about this government
Remove the command-and-control features from Canberra.
Oh really Christopher?
“Schools in NSW will be given funding for chaplains but not qualified secular youth workers after the federal government refused to budge from its decision to pay only for religious chaplains.
The national school chaplaincy program will be rolled out across the country next year after all the states and territories agreed on Friday to implement it, despite a push from NSW Education Minister Adrian Piccoli for youth workers to be included in the funding package. ”
http://www.smh.com.au/national/education/school-chaplaincy-program-government-stands-firm-on-excluding-welfare-workers-20141010-114bt2.html#ixzz3FisfjvlC
@Faye
Calling Ms Abbott a prostitute is way below the belt unless you have supporting evidence.
Kaye
When you deleted my post and modified Faye’s. Why didn’t you do a “moderated ” and remove her entire post. Are you only after fully supportive posts?
ps I agree with every thing you said.
I want to see how Tony would cope in any of these situations:
A refugee fleeing persecution, seeking a safe life but locked-up indefinitely in detention in some tropical shithole
A destitute man trying to live rough on the streets
A disabled person trying to survive on a disability pension
A retiree unable to pay the electricity bills without his excessively generous lifetime pension
A single-parent – balancing part-time casual work with no rights or entitlements
A mother facing the choice between reducing work hours against the cost of child care
A child permanently traumatised after being held behind razor-wire for years
A homeowner whose property is now worthless because a nearby mine was approved without any community consultation
A muslim woman abused in the street because of what she chooses to wear
A Pacific Islander helplessly watching their homes being inundated, knowing rich nations could have stopped it, but decided not to
A child from a disadvantaged socio-economic region not afforded the luxury of a private school education
A university student desperately trying to cope with full-time study, a part-time job and no scholarship
A public servant whose lifelong service is demeaned and lives under the constant threat of being sacked
A student lumbered with lifetime debt, unable to secure a loan or credit – knowing they will never afford a house
A scientist constantly under attack for simply doing your job
An unemployed youth unable to get a job but denied any form of welfare support for six months
A parent balancing the choice of paying the overdue bills or putting food on the table for the kids
A woman facing a sexist, misogynistic boss who sexually harasses you and disparages your ability
A worker trying to compete for a job without an old school mates network behind them
A man who no longer has any privacy and whose entire communication history can be accessed without their knowledge
An aboriginal displaced from their land and told by rich white people how they must spend their money
A soldier being sent to foreign lands to fight an unwinnable war based on lies and propaganda
An average person who doesn’t have all their meals, accommodation, transport and expenses paid for
A family living in unnecessary fear due to repeated lies told by their own government and a manipulated media
A small business owner struggling to survive, watching multi-national corporations get away with paying no tax at all
A man who actually feels remorse when they are caught lying, rather than being excused
A child who has only ever seen pictures of the Great Barrier Reef before it was destroyed by acidification and sea temperatures
A casual employee now told they aren’t entitled to and penalty rates and if they don’t like it, they can easily leave
A person whose voice is never heard and whose opinions aren’t considered because they aren’t in a position of power
A taxpayer not able to claim a bike ride as professional expenses
A journalist in thrown in gaol for publishing a story that the public urgently needs to know about
A normal person who catches a train or bus to work rather than being chauffeured in a bullet-proof European limo
A qualified school counsellor now out of work because they don’t believe in god
A middle-eastern youth constantly harassed and searched because he looks a little swarthy
An ordinary person who doesn’t have billionaires inviting them to sporting events or wedding and showering them with gifts
I suspect our mate Mr Abbott wouldn’t do too well in any of these scenarios – since his privileged upbringing afforded him the chance to avoid any form of hardship, struggle or difficulty in his life, which is why he has no empathy or understanding of how normal people live.
But the situation I’d like to see most of all is – Tony finally meeting his god – because I’m absolutely certain that heartless, brainless, soulless bastard is going straight to hell.
Stop wearing Lycra!
Doug, that was my fault.
I agree that the comment suggesting Ms Abbott was a prostitute was inappropriate, but the rest of the comment was fine.
There was of course nothing wrong with your comment but it lost its ‘meaning’ after I’d edited Faye’s comment. I can restore yours if you wish.
And yes, we do allow allow comments that don’t support our posts. But if I notice comments that defame people then I have no hesitation in removing them.
Best regards,
Michael.
Doug, I have restored your comment regardless. 🙂
Perhaps I shouldn’t have removed it in the first place. My apologies.
Kaye it is so painful to see the dreadful state of our nation. I go from anger to sorrow to indignation yet I still have to get away and find a place of peace in my-self. I hope all that feel sorrow can at least find joy in the really decent and good people that I meet day to day living their lives as best they can. The many in the helping professions trying to repair broken lives.
So much needless pain, so much sorrow yet we know what is good and decent and, in the knowing, refuse to be beaten down and cowed by cruelty, despotism and self-hate. To do what is being done by this government to our fellow citizens represents a lack of self-love and an inability to truly love their fellow beings. These are sad and misguided people living through meanness and cruelty in the name of democracy, their misbegotten God, and Country. They are so blind and mean they cannot see through their dystopian lies.
I live in hope that we can remove the fog from their eyes and the gripping barriers of greed and selfishness that strangles their hearts.
Nevertheless the many people here and elsewhere who show compassion and kindness will eventually lead us out of these dark days.
Of that I have no doubt.
Thanks fellow travelers you give me hope.
He is amoral so has done none of those things on purpose. Whatever he has done, is merely god’s work so he is not acting alone! If you could get to him with your list he would be horrified that you could tell such lies and put it down to your god given physiological handicap.
<
Is anyone watching the Free Trade negotiations the drinks waiter Robb promised would be signed by xmas ….. presumably this coming xmas.
China has just imposed Tariffs on coal.
Indonesia …. China's second biggest exporter of coal to China …… has a Free Trade Agreement.
And that means Indonesia is exempt from Chinese coal Tariffs.
http://www.smh.com.au/federal-politics/political-news/chinese-free-trade-agreement-set-to-be-signed-within-12-months-andrew-robb-says-20131121-2xyr0.html
This is another stuff up by the Abbott gang ….. one that was easily predicted when Abbott hopped on the world stage and began to seriously embarrass China.
The silver lining though is that more and more Australian coal mines are becoming unprofitable and new start up coal mines will have serious trouble getting finance.
“Voters in electorates held by Prime Minister Tony Abbott, Treasurer Joe Hockey and senior government ministers Julie Bishop and Malcolm Turnbull will be the least affected by the federal budget by 2017-18, a new analysis shows.
Fifteen of the 16 hardest hit electorates, meanwhile, are held by the Labor Party, with low and middle income households in western Sydney and the outer suburbs of Melbourne overwhelmingly the worst off.
The study, commissioned by the University of Adelaide’s Australian Workplace Innovation and Social Research Centre, finds the long-term impact of the budget is most strongly felt by low income couples with children, who are on average $2780 a year worse off by 2017-18, and single parents who are $3747 a year worse off by 2017-18.
The electorate that fares best from the changes in fiscal 2017, when the changes take full effect but the temporary levy on higher income earners expires, is Wentworth, held by Mr Turnbull, where the average family is down by $69.50 over the year, a decline in disposable income of 0.1 per cent.
In Mr Hockey’s electorate of North Sydney, the annual loss is $138.80 for the average family in 2017-18, while in Ms Bishop’s Perth-based seat of Curtin, the loss is $141.70.
Mr Abbott’s seat ranks fifth in electorates that do best, with the average family losing $144.60 per year, or 0.2 per cent of income.”
Read more: http://www.smh.com.au/federal-politics/political-news/seats-held-by-tony-abbott-and-joe-hockey-are-among-least-affected-by-budget-report-20141010-1146ct.html#ixzz3Fm9nNwFF
Here we go round the mulberry bush
“Australian businesses want the Abbott government to set tougher emissions reduction targets and fear the country’s economy will suffer if it does not move away from fossil-fuel intensive industries, a new analysis shows.
The survey of 245 companies also found that 87 per cent believe the government should not act alone in setting Australia’s post-2020 targets and should follow advice from an independent body such as the Climate Change Authority.
The figures follow international criticism of Australia’s performance at a recent summit of world leaders in New York.
After the summit, a lead adviser to German Chancellor Angela Merkel attacked the Abbott government’s championing of the coal industry as an economic “suicide strategy”.
More than 70 per cent of businesses thought Australia’s economy would be disadvantaged if the government did not set targets in line with other countries and did not price carbon in line with major countries.”
http://www.smh.com.au/federal-politics/political-news/businesses-want-tougher-climate-action-low-carbon-economy-survey-20141010-114eq1.html#ixzz3Fm9V8l8r
It would have made sense Kaye, if you had a rational mind to converse with.
It’s said, the best place to hide something is in plain sight.
Tony Abbott is a perfect example.
Until the day he dies, people will wonder how such a fool was given so much to get so far & contribute accordingly.
A half a million dollar annual salary to a man who struggles to string a credible sentence together, says it all about us.
You are spot on.
Beauty John surely many of us have been posting ‘WTF’ is robb up to? What is in the FTAs he has been ‘negotiating’ why has labor been so short on putting the rabbott/robb under scrutiny? How sad is it when you post any criticism you may get 1 or 2 readers and no discussion but trite ‘keep working you’ll get there in the end’ is the words they want to hear. Still keep criticising and little Billy’s boys will block you. If anyone wants a déjà vu laugh read fawkner’s homily on how to solidify the rabbott’s reign. Little billy, the gibbon and tanya approximate philby, burgess and Maclean with fawkner filling in for blunt. ps whilst the rabbott was brutal over Thompson, slipper et al labor were most considerate over Mary-jo fisher, robb has had a break down so he is another no go area.
Fantastic piece of fiction…pity none of the above is showing a balanced view.
Oh I’ll go there about Robb who admitted himself that he lied and used his mental illness in a calculated plot to bring Malcolm Turnbull down. We have Andrew Robb to thank for Tony Abbott as leader and the scuttling of the bipartisan support for an ETS. If you do not know the story of Robb’s treachery you should read this and realise he is not a man to be trusted.
http://www.afr.com/p/opinion/the_ploy_that_torpedoed_turnbull_AV9XKA7RBqGJ58Kzul6cmI
Eleanor,
Would you care to elaborate about something specific?
Eleanor,
Or will you give us your view as a balance? Facts would be nice to back that view up.
Will I lose credibility if I tell you this isn’t my real job?
I admit I was angry when I wrote this piece so I just reread it to see if I had gone over the top. All it did was make me think of more things I would add to the list. I would be really interested to hear which points you consider fictional and why? I am happy to explain my views on any point.
<
"Eleanor" is more interested in WW2 and Nazis.
Good ol’ Kaye Lee at it again.
The part I find most ironic, is that you basically stomp your feet and whine and complain like a child as you type all your complaints in UPPER CASE, yet then laughably, finish off by telling Tony Abbott not to treat you like a child, as that’s exactly how your whinging came across: Child like.
Yeah. Tony Abbott sucks. But guess what? Labor sucks too, but you’re part of the problem because instead of standing up and saying that you don’t accept the two main parties anymore, you are still happy to choose a lesser evil over another, when in reality, they’re both useless and outdated ideas of what Australians used to stand for.
The problem I have always had with anyone that claims that their government sucks, is that they have a seriously misguided belief that their ‘Preferred’ party will make a difference. They’ll claim: ‘Liberal will be better than Labor!’ Or ‘Labor will be better than Liberal!’ What a crock.
I can’t believe that after all my years of living on this planet and seeing what the two main parties have done to this country, that there are still you hardcore heretics running around willing to vote for either of them. How very well trained they have you into thinking they still represent you, when all they have ever wanted, is to keep you polarised instead of unified, because as a people, if we were all united, modern day governments would have no option but to listen to us.
But instead, it’s sites like this, with the deplorable and misguided writing attempts of people like Kaye Lee, which keep Australians further apart instead of bringing them closer together.
Guess what? People voted for Rudd, and he was crap. But will calling the people that voted for him idiots, bring us together to a solution? No it won’t.
And guess what else? People voted for Abbott, and he’s also crap. But will calling the people that voted for him idiots, bring us together to a solution? No it won’t.
How incredibly sad, and deeply troubling it is, that you can still stand here with a straight face and tell us there is a healthier option and alternative to Tony Abbott. The fact of that matter is, is that there isn’t.
<
Lots of balls for the Abbott gang to juggle.
Hockey has dropped his so many times he is permanently on his knees picking them up.
The drinks waiter Robb is hiding in the shadows hoping no one in parliament sees that he has no balls to drop.
Turnbull is juggling but everyone thinks he is a clown and they keep laughing at everything he says.
Shorten is mesmerised by the circus.
<
"Ron" can't see the trees for the information that Kaye Lee posts here.
Ron still thinks trees are for Murdoch.
"Ron" is another WW2 Nazi scholar.
First they came for the environmentalists, and I did not speak out—
Because I was not an environmentalist.
Then they came for the Trade Unionists, and I did not speak out—
Because I was not a Trade Unionist.
Then they came for the Muslims, and I did not speak out—
Because I was not a Muslim.
Then they came for me—and there was no one left to speak for me.
Get rid of advocacy groups then crucify the vulnerable in an horrific budget. Welcome to the fourth stanza.
Thanks for your article, Kaye, and for allowing so many of us to find another outlet for the frustrations we feel. I know your desire to meet with Abbott in an attempt to change his mind is born out of a desire to confront the head bully, rather then any realistic expectation that anyone could change his mind by the application of reason. Generally speaking, sociopaths are not that biddable, and require therapeutic intervention before they can respond to logic, let alone empathize with the needs and emotions of others.
<
The "Leaders" of the WW2 Nazi scholars can be found over at the Sydney Institute.
Where the hunched over figure Gerard "Uriah Heep" Henderson runs the show with his sycophantic wife.
Ron, is that a comment you prepared earlier because, other than the caps criticism, it has nothing to do with what I wrote.
Rather than childish foot-stomping I was feeling chest-poking tendencies, a tad more aggressive. I am not a member of, nor apologist for, any political party. I prefer facts and accountability to spin and rhetoric. I am steadfastly anti-Abbott and his style of governing. After that, I have no commitment other than to the truth. I have often written about the integrity and value of men like Ted Mack and Tony Windsor.
In blaming Kaye and this site for the country’s woes Ron is displaying a massive amount of ignorance. If he cared to look, he’ll see numerous articles condemning Labor or promoting alternative political parties.
Manfred,
Does this mean we are friends 🙂
I think you have a sharp mind.Can I ask if you do anything more than this forum?
Brilliant our Government can’t support our citizens who are putting themselves at risk fighting Ebola. Makes ya proud doesn’t it.
http://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/federal-politics/political-news/australians-risk-their-health-to-fight-ebola-in-africa-20141010-114cd9.html
Kaye
Why so aloof .I am just making my observations just like you.I am not a game player.Do you think you will ever get an audience with a politician ? And would you like to?
More ugliness from this uncaring and mob of elitists. Who needs NGO’s? After all this government relies upon them for much of front line welfare service provision. We will brook no intervention or submissions by anyone other than business and the banks. The rest are just a peripheral nuisance.
http://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/federal-politics/political-news/international-charities-aid-agencies-locked-out-of-g20-summit-20141010-1140lq.html
Michael and Kaye ,
Looks like Ron fell out of the wrong side of bed this morning and forgot to take his grumpy pills..
Wow what a rant about fekking nothing, what a tantrum he has thrown, he needs to take them grumpy pills before he gets on AIMN and vomits that crap on everyone, he seems like a sad little person who has lost his way in life….
I am not meaning to be aloof.
I have never sought an audience with a politician to interview them. Over the course of my life I have had meetings with various politicians in different capacities.
In 1975 the Liberal Party actually sponsored me to go to Canberra and meet with various politicians and to watch Parliament in action. I got to eat in the dining room and chat with a few of them like Malcolm Fraser, Philip Ruddock and Senator John Carrick. It was an interesting year.
I have sometimes had to work with them in both my paid employment and my volunteer roles.
I would love to have a chat if someone was willing but I think it presumptuous to think they would be. I am just a middle-aged woman in jammies typing to her friends 😉
Kaye I know the amount of effort and work you put into your political activism besides the difficulties of managing a business and family. If these armchair cowboys could manage even a fraction of what you achieve then they may have some grounds for criticism.
Big voices, little brains so empty of intelligent content.
Minnows trying to play with the sharks.
Loud voices are no substitute for intelligent and rational debate.
Ron and Co you are playing school yard bullies trying to confront a well educated and erudite teacher.
A good dose of detention would not go stray.
I watched Naomi Klein on lateline last night, it was about climate change and how 2017 is the crucial year, and we need to stop the fossil fuels in their tracks, it made a whole lot of sense why Tones lied before election and continues to, we have been sold out by Tones literally to fossil fuel companies for decades to come,
Manfred said:
So perhaps he failed to notice the number of Facebook/Twitter shares this article has recorded. That’s why Kaye Lee writes on this blog – she has a large audience. And this may come as a surprise, but that audience includes politicians and or their staff.
Thanks Stephen, you make me sound more important than I am.
Does it count that I went to uni with Tony and went to his place back in the 70s for a party and that we chatted a few times at various pubs and football games and the guy that introduced me to my husband dated his sister?
It’s hard to know what people want to hear to give your opinion any credence. All I want to do is pass on facts and learn from others. All discussion is good, even from those who criticise us. If they can’t discuss reasonably or back up what they say then the comparison speaks for itself.
John Fraser calling people names if they question your views is really childish. You are offensive and obviously like most of the posters here like to categorize anyone who may have a different view. Calling both Ron and I “WW2 Nazis” is a perfect example of this. Ron is correct…stop whining and do something constructive to “fix” these “evils” that Tony Abbot is doing single handed. Good to have some passion but use it positively not negatively. All the questions you would like to ask Tony Abbot should also be asked of the two former prime ministers.
AIMN…….”That’s why Kaye Lee writes on this bog”……….. I am trying not to laugh, but I think there is a typo in this sentence that needs adjusting 🙂
Kaye I think I speak for many here. You are a very important part of our lives and offer clear thought and critical analysis that is missing in MSM. Yes you are that important to us.
Eleanor,
Why would I ask former Prime Ministers to fix the present crises we are facing or to plan our path for the future? Isn’t Tony in charge now?
I don’t just whinge. Here are some suggestions I prepared post budget.
Thanks DanDark. Fixed. 😳
Why? They aren’t the current prime minister. This article isn’t about them.
<
@"Eleanor"
"Fantastic piece of fiction…pity none of the above is showing a balanced view."
Fantastic comment that added so much to the debate ….. and by inference called the Author names.
Keep up your exceptionally high standard …… that you ascribe to others.
For the Record : I did not call "Eleanor" or "her" mate "Ron" "WW2 Nazis' ….. I said that they are "scholars" of such.
So "Eleanor" when you have finished verballing me ….. where can I find your Articles on the joys of Shorten and the ALP ?
AIMN
I am glad you found that lost L reads much better now 🙂
Who let the trolls out today, or has the chemist ran out of grumpy pills for these angry people 🙂
In what way are those statements contradictory? I would love to sit Tony down and have a chat but I am certain that it would not be considered though I have never asked. And I prefer engagement to protection.
John Fraser and what exactly did you mean by that comment?
For the Record : I did not call “Eleanor” or “her” mate “Ron” “WW2 Nazis’ ….. I said that they are “scholars” of such.
Manfred:
Thank goodness for that! I think we all agree that it needs a nice rest… and maybe a couple of aspirin…
I have rung Tony Abbott’s office many times along with other politicians. They don’t actually put me through though I did have an enlightening chat with one of Joe Hockey’s advisers. I have sent many emails. I have never received a response. I have been banned from commenting on my local member’s facebook page. I think doing what I am doing has been my most successful attempt at contact along with attending marches.
If you can suggest what I should be doing more I am open to listening.
<
@"Eleanor"
I meant that you can't even get my "comment" right so its no surprise that you would say …".Fantastic piece of fiction…pity none of the above is showing a balanced view."
Or ….. in the short intervening time between "comments" …… did you forget you said that.
Check you local TAFE to see if they have any comprehension classes going ….. that's if you local TAFE hasn't been shut due to the "Budget Emergency" …. or is it the threat of terrorism in your local area.
I think you have defended yourself enough Kaye and……….
I reckon Manfred needs those couple of aspirins too so he can “calm his farm”
Kaye, as usual beautifully written, but could I please add: stop adding to our debt and deficit and also, start taxing the multi billion dollar home and away corporations their “fair share” of taxation, then we may be able to stop selling our public infrastructure to them for nicks.
Rofl geeez give me strength, ” Yes Dan we don’t the whole to get deeper” really what “whole” is that ? Pick a hole any whole…. Lol
my 9 year old is more literate than you Man o Man, this will be my last comment to you, I don’t argue with fools 🙂
My mother always said if you are in right you don’t need to get angry and if you’re in the wrong you can’t afford to. Honestly insults are just a show of having nothing of value to say.
” my mother always said………………”
Yea yea good for you Eleanor
My Mama said “Forest, life is like a box of chocolates you just never know what you’re gonna’ get”
Life isn’t a doctrine, it’s something we live Miss Eleanor……
Has Eleanor addressed the questions Kaye and I asked yet on what points and facts were wrong with Kaye’s article and what is Eleanor’s balance to them?
Of course not, just side stepping and obfuscation.
Well if you are right Eleanor then it will be no problem for you to explain to us how you are right.
“Has Eleanor addressed the questions . . . ?”
Mo, that had me choking in my coffee.
I don’t think Eleanor has time to address the “questions” she is tooooo busy being right….
I hope this all clears the air for you Kaye. LOL
I must confess I left you to it. Hubby got home from work and I have been enjoying a glass of wine with him on the verandah overlooking the ocean. I’m not sure I ever understood what we were discussing and I am no wiser about which parts of my article are fiction.
It’s unfortunate we have to look overseas to get honest reporting about our own country. So much for Tony being viewed well on the international stage……
Though he has been in office only a year and has had meager experience in foreign affairs, Mr. Abbott moved quickly to send a squadron of fighter jets and 600 military personnel to the Middle East to be ready to join the fight against the militants in Iraq and Syria, even before President Obama formally rallied American allies.
Mr. Abbott followed up with sweeping counterterrorism raids in two cities, aimed at followers of the Islamic State. The raids resulted in just two arrests, but they helped the government look tough in confronting homegrown Muslim radicals.
“Abbott thinks of brave little Australia standing up with the United States for what is right,” said Hugh White, a former senior Australian defense official who is now a professor at the Australian National University. “The only things that keep the world swinging on its axis, in his mind, are the men and women — mostly men — who speak English as a first language and who are willing to go out there and do the hard yards.”
Now, with the encouragement of the country’s brash news media, dominated by Rupert Murdoch, and talk radio hosts who rail against the 500,000 Muslims living in Australia, Mr. Abbott is now widely seen as a scrappy prizefighter ready to take on the world. And the Labor opposition, afraid of appearing soft, has backed his policy moves, including the tough new laws.
Critics say that Mr. Abbott is playing to the crowd with what they call flawed political and foreign policy strategies.
“The policies are designed to create and exploit an atmosphere of hysteria,” said Allan Behm, a former senior defense official who is now a risk analyst. “Australians don’t have to be scratched too hard to find xenophobic — not to mention racist — attitudes. That’s why the government should exercise extreme caution when they may have to move against individuals on national security grounds.”
“The prime minister thinks he’s Margaret Thatcher, and that he can win the next election,” Mr. Behm said, “not by invading the Falklands but by dropping bombs on Iraq.”
Back when monthly reports from the Finance Minister were presented every month and on time, the final report prepared for the Rudd Government period, for 31 August 2013, showed the forecast end of year net debt for 2013-14 at $178.10 billion.
the next monthly report, September 2013 ‒ prepared after Hockey had become treasurer and Mathias Cormann finance minister ‒ also showed projected year-end debt steady at $178.10 billion. As did October’s and November’s.
In December, however, after Hockey and Cormann had abandoned Labor’s budget measures by cutting taxes and spending recklessly on ministerial travel, royal commissions, a Reserve Bank advance and other needless fripperies, the debt projection rose suddenly to $191.52 billion.
The monthly reports in January, February, March and April 2014 maintained this year-end projection. Then, in May, it jumped again to $197.85 billion.
That report, released four months ago, was the last until last night.
Two weeks ago the Final Budget Outcome revealed the actual debt level reached by 30 June 2014. This was $202.46 billion, more than $24 billion – or 13.7% – higher than forecast had the previous Government continued in power.
The data released yesterday shows that in July, debt increased from $202.46 billion to $208.15 billion. It jumped again in August to $217.55 billion. So the total increase above the level Labor left last year is now $39.45 billion ($217.55 less $178.10) — up an extraordinary 22.1%.
The monthly figures released last night also reveal the targeted level of debt Abbott, Hockey and Mathias have set themselves for the end of the current financial year.
The target is set at $226.388 billion — a boost in borrowings for the year of $23.9 billion, or 11.8%.
And of that projected $23.9 billion increase, they have already borrowed more than $15 billion — in just the first two months.
Last night’s release also shows the projected total interest bill for the full year 2013-14 at $14.7 billion
http://www.independentaustralia.net/politics/politics-display/thats-not-a-debt-disaster–this-is-a-debt-disaster-joe–tonys-big-con,6984
Once aging a great post Kaye. Thanks.
The liars are exposed for the deceptive, devious, manipulating fools they are.
DON”T TELL LIES , Don’t wave your hands .and stop opening your mouth as if you are catching flies . thanks Kaye
“Libs avoid budget pain”
how convenient for them all lib electorates now the con men are in gov
http://www.watoday.com.au/victoria/libs-avoid-budget-pain-
20141010-3hr4h.html
And another not so glowing analysis of the stinking budget
http://www.watoday.com.au/federal-politics/political-opinion/analysis-finds-it-is-no-accident-that-federal-budget-makes-the-poor-pay-the-most-20141010-114cyt.html
Pingback: Let me explain. | olddogthoughts
“Meeting a target of keeping global temperature from rising above 2C is still possible, according to 30 leading climate and energy experts.
The authors, who include former UK government scientific adviser Sir Bob Watson, conclude that staying under 2C needs “immediate, urgent action” at the highest levels of governments. The Tackling the Challenge of Climate Change report was presented at Ban Ki-moon’s UN climate summit in New York last month.
The report is a “short, punchy document focused on near-term solutions,” said Watson while acknowledging there is little new in it. The steps outlined to achieve 2C are “hardly rocket science”.
These steps include increased energy efficiency in all sectors — building retrofits can achieve 70-90% reductions — and an effective price on carbon that reflects the enormous health and environmental costs of fossil fuels. Tackling air pollution is estimated to cost China 10% of its GDP. Retiring inefficient coal plants while only building new coal with Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) and massive increases in wind and solar PV are also crucial.
Governments need to follow countries like Germany and Denmark that have made climate a priority and are well along this path to creating low-carbon economies and benefiting from less pollution and creation of a new economic sector the report notes. ”
http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2014/oct/10/we-can-meet-c2-climate-target-and-heres-how-say-energy-experts?CMP=ema_632
On this one area where Labor have the high ground what does Bill Shorten say today….
Earlier today, Mr Shorten said the Australian people had spoken on the carbon tax at the last election, which saw Labor lose office.
“We will not have a carbon tax, the Australian people have spoken and Labor is not going to go back to that,” Mr Shorten said, but added that it was “important we use the market … to help set a priority in terms of tackling climate change.
“So we will have a sensible policy on climate change. We do want to tackle carbon pollution, but we won’t be going back to what you saw in the past.”
And in a not unsurprising oversight, our Minister for Women seems to have forgotten it is International Day of the Girl. Google and you will find what other countries are doing.
http://www.abc.net.au/news/2014-10-11/international-day-of-the-girl-a-time-to-recognise-challenges/5805974
Apparently we are ignoring it in favour of telling us how good the budget really is.
“There has been a lot of talk about fairness. Well I say the ultimate unfairness is intergenerational theft; saddling our children and grandchildren with debt so an irresponsible government in Canberra can buy votes with dollars it cannot afford,” he said.
He described the budget as the “bravest and boldest … in several decades”
http://www.news.com.au/national/prime-minister-tony-abbott-challenges-federal-budget-critics-in-tasmanian-liberal-party-conference-speech/story-fncynjr2-1227087269930
Oh geeezuzzz… He really has a problem, Tones the great messiah of the Liberal party. Next he will be telling us he us God………oh wait he has already been telling us that for how many years now,
he seriously needs help, no wonder people are scared of this baboon, he is all Braun and no brains,
same with Smokin joe and conman Corman,,,,, where is Arfur still missing in action over ICAC and his $ 20,000 an hour job, no wonder the country is going down the tube with fools like Toxic Tones running the circus…
You sure let fly Kaye – with your article. Agree with everything you would like to ask Abbott. I might only ask him after I would consider attempting to knock his silly block off. ……….. You are of a far more temperate attitude ! Good onya.
What more could you do ? ? ?
Write to the bastard. And write again and again, – not emails – they are trashed or junked more often than not … print out letters, mail them to his address on the Government website. …. cc to anyone and everyone who might be involved ( Hockey, J Bishop )… cc to the Labor Party ( ON the original ) , let them know what you are asking – what you have said – write to them individually too – to lift their game. …….. Snail mail is still relevant today – perhaps even more so than we might imagine.
Ask the HARD questions – . The too hard basket will always be nearby in their offices, but it’s my bet you will ultimately receive an answer.
,,,,,,,,,,,,
I am not into writing letters to politicians too much, but have done so on a couple of occasions – one to this current PM, and one to our current Premier of Victoria – ( that’s this year ). Kind of average about 1 a year if that.
One in 2007, was to Christopher Pyne when he was Minister for Ageing, and I had a legitimate and serious gripe about an Anglicare Home for the Aged and High Care in which my aged mother was living …. he wrote back almost immediately ( it was a nasty situation at the time ) …. and explained what he was going to do about it — and he actually DID it. Mind you, ( being cynical here ) had it been a Catholic High Care for Aged, his reply might have been different.
Anyway I received replies. … And I only tell this story, to prove that it can be done.
One from some spokesperson for the PM who blahed on about addressing the subject – I received that reply about 6 weeks AFTER the matter had already been resolved ( yet they were going to ‘look into it’ ).
And the Christopher Pyne letters.
And ……… I literally blasted the hell out of the Premier of Victoria, Denis Napthine on the subject of jumps horse racing …. and being a Veterinarian himself and Minister for Racing in Victoria, and me being a rider over arena jumps for 40 years, he knew bloody well that I knew what I was talking about. I also mentioned his committee membership and involvement in the Warrnambool Racing Club …. which holds the longest, and toughest jumps race in the world.
____________
Before anybody starts calling me a smart arse, I am not. … I simply put it as it was. … I did NOT expect a reply – under Napthine’s own signature, considering I had been more than belligerent and had asked him at one stage in my letter. …….
——————-” Do you have the intestinal fortitude, to not ONLY READ THIS, but to
——————- actually DO SOMETHING ABOUT IT ? ”
His reply was an interesting 1.25 pages .pdf, some reasonable and satisfactory explanations as to ‘improvements’ …. and safety measures. but of course, he did not agree to ban jumps racing. – – – Well, I didn’t expect him to. ……… He did opportunistically, dob the Labor Party Vic, in as being a willing participant in jumps racing. …….. BUT …… KAYE ….. he READ the bloody thing. And replied.
_______________
Kaye ….. you write exceptionally well.
Turn that into a pro-active situation. Write to them – to them all. Put ‘letters on the table’. LET THEM KNOW ………… PLEASE.
,,,,,,,
p.s. …. if anyone asks for ‘ proof ‘ – I will be happy to send what I can to Michael Taylor.
I tried posting a comment here, but it didn’t show. So am posting for a second time, with some editing. If it shows ultimately twice – my apologies.
_________________________________________________________________
You sure let fly Kaye – with your article. Agree with everything you would like to ask Abbott. I might only ask him after I would consider trying to attempt to knock his block off. You are of a much more temperate attitude ! Good onya.
What more could you do ? ? ?
Write to the bastard. And write again and again, – not emails – they are trashed or junked more often than not … print out letters, mail them to his address on the Government website. …. cc to anybody and everyone involved ( Hockey, J Bishop) … cc also on the original to the Labor Party – to let them know what you are writing about to the Libs. Send the Labor Party letters too – ask them to lift their game. ………. Snail mail is still relevant …. perhaps more than we might realise.
Ask the HARD questions – . The too hard basket will be always nearby in their offices, but ultimately it’s my bet you will receive an answer.
,,,,,,,,,,,,
I am not into writing letters to politicians, but have done so on a couple of occasions – one to this current PM, and one to our current Premier of Victoria – ( that’s this year ). Kind of average about 1 a year if that.
One in 2007 was to Christopher Pyne when he was Minister for Ageing, about a situation in an Anglicare Home for the Aged and High Care … where my aged mother was living. It was a nasty and quite serious situation. He replied almost immediately, said he’d do something about it – and he actually did ! …. ( had it been a Catholic Aged Care home ( me being cynical ), his reply might have been different.
But I received replies. Which simply meant, that someone in the Party, read my correspondence.
One from some spokesperson for the PM who blahed on about addressing the subject – I received that reply about 6 weeks AFTER the matter had already been resolved ( yet they were going to ‘look into it’ ).
And the Christopher Pyne letters.
And ……. one from the Premier of Victoria, Denis Napthine ( via a .pdf under his name and dated – 1.35 pages worth ) … after I had blasted the hell out of him about jumps racing. I questioned his position as a Veterinarian … and. having been in arena jumps for 40 years, I knew what I was talking about, and he KNEW it. Guess that might have been why he replied. I also queried his membership with the Warrnambool Racing Club ( he being Minister for Racing ) …. which holds the longest and toughest jumps race in the world.
I did NOT expect an answer – considering the way I addressed him. But I got one.
One of the comments I made in that letter was :
………..
………………”Do you have the intestinal fortitude, to not ONLY READ THIS, but to
……………….actually DO SOMETHING ABOUT IT ?” …………
He replied with explanations, satisfactory to a point, about improvements for the jumps racing industry and many safety features introduced …….. but of course he did not agree to ban jumps racing ….. I did not expect him to. He did take the opportunity to dob in the Labor Party (Vic ) as being in favour of jumps racing as well. But considering the nature of my original correspondence, it was heartening that he had the integrity to reply – in detail.
I am not being a smart arse here …. I am simply telling it as it is. That getting ‘letters on the table’ can happen. And can produce results. The point is, you get TO the people concerned – and that HAS to have some impact.
Replies might simply be more political rhetoric, but the more people who approach them directly …. the more impact it is bound to have.
As neffectual they are – I think they can still at least ‘count’ …… even if only on their fingers !!! ( anyone we know ? )
…………
Kaye …… you write exceptionally well. Make it into something pro-active.
Get those letters “on the table”, under their noses – under someone’s noses …. every little helps. DO IT – PLEASE !!
Every little helps.
……….
p.s. If anyone requests ‘proof’ of my claims … I am happy to send what I can, and can find in terms of hard copy to be scanned, to Michael Taylor.
Apologies for the double whammy here …….. I have no idea what happened. The gist of my post is however, in both comments. !!
Anne, I’ve emailed you.
Loved it Kaye!
Loved Anomander’s list!
Can I add that we need re funding of TAFE’s ( they are half and half with states) and support for all the ARTS. They have all been cut. He can find money for sporting clubs but cuts any help and support for the ARTS.