I’ve always maintained that all writing is fiction; it’s just that some writers are more honest about their fictions.

And yes, I can accept that I’ve upset a number of people who’ve defined themselves as “left-brain”, who are – at this very moment – thinking that they’ve read lots of non-fiction that was all about “facts”. Except – at this very moment – I’m writing it and there’s no way that my moment can be the same as theirs, but those rooted in fact were swept up with my little fiction for a second…

Esoteric points aside, I remember trying to discuss the book, “Moneyball” with someone who’d seen the film. Yes, it was a good adaptation, but it was more concerned with the Hollywood narrative: Man has idea, he’s met with resistance, he perseveres and, ultimately, triumphs. The book, on the other hand, didn’t smooth out the rough edges and wasn’t quite as neat.

So, I’m going to confess that the piece I wrote a couple of weeks ago is complete and utter fiction. Nobody gave me a tip on what the Abbott government may or may not be doing with the Medicare levy. I didn’t meet anyone. There is no source.

All fiction. Particularly the bit about abolishing state jurisdictions of some very important  organisations. Not true at all. Although, I did say that they were looking at ways of getting rid of the states altogether in the hope that it’d sound so ridiculous that it’d be taken as fiction… (Although when I think about it, “ridiculous” doesn’t lead to an automatic assumption that it’s not true, when it comes to this government.)

Yes, my source was complete fiction. He also wants me to assure you all that, not only did he not say anything about the states, Abbott is completely safe as leader and there’s no truth in the rumour that he’d have been replaced by Bishop (that’s Julie, not Bronwyn btw) already if it weren’t for the concerns of deja vu from the Liberal MPs about a sitting PM being replaced by a woman. Still, Murdoch is pretty insistent that it won’t be Turnbull, but Malcolm’s always been a dreamer. Done over by Howard on the Republic, done over by Abbott on the ETS, rolled on refugees and uninformed before announcements on Communications are made, he lives in the belief that he’s not Peter Costello and that he’ll be made leader again because Howard promised it to him if he was patient. No, I wasn’t told any of this by anyone.

I’m making it all up.

The Medicare Copayment is being dropped. Or negotiated. Or introduced to Parliament next week. Something like that. And we know that this is true because it was said by actual politicians and reported in the mainstream media.

And anyway, it’s a Budget measure to make Medicare more sustainable. But it isn’t meant to discourage people from visiting the doctor. And it isn’t meant to go into general revenue. It’s just a “price signal”…

What it’s meant to signal, I’m not quite sure, but anyway, because I write fiction, and facts are so much more important, why don’t you check out this news story which doesn’t seem to have much traction yet …

Secret cuts to Medibank.