18 May 2010

Humphries a miracle worker?

| pub-servant
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I was intrigued to see last week that Tony Abbott plans on making cuts to the public service in the form of a public service freeze for a couple years.

Although the usual players were out whacking Humphries over the affair, I took a different tack.

Though I didn’t vote for him last time around, I think that he has managed to work wonders to get this committment out of Abbott before the election. Considering that the Libs would usually just cut a couple of thousands of jobs and be done with it, a mere freeze is a pretty good outcome.

I wonder if we disposed with Gary Humphries and replaced him with a green if we would have the same sparing of job cuts or whether a couple thousand of us would be looking down the barrel of redundancies?

[ED – Are we really seriously contemplating a Liberal victory at the end of the year?]

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I think Rudd’s bizarre backflips recently have lost him a heap of votes. Mine included. I’m looking for a third alternative at this stage.

Re the original post = I really don’t’ think a public service freeze, rather than severe cuts, is something to actually vote for. And I don’t’ actually base my vote on the plans for the public service in any case.

And I think it suits the libs to have Gary as a sort of apologist – this way they get to do what they want, and Gary gets to be the token objector who is on our side. Apart from saving the film and sound archive from abolition a few years ago, I don’t think he’s ever had a win on our behalf against his own party though – and I wouldn’t really expect him to.

This is just the latest version of Howard’s core and non-core promises. Nothing different from that side of politics, and not too different from the other mob either.

Back to the original post, I think I’d rather be standing as a Green rather than a Lib for the ACT seats at the next election.

sepi said :

Abbot is on record opposing paid maternity leave, and the liberals blocked the current govt’s paid maternity leave proposal, leaving australia (and the US) keeping Afganistan and the 3rd world etc company, as the remaining countries in the world with no form of paid maternity leave.

Abbot was considering a 10 thousand dollar hand out to stay at home mothers – this is clearly where he sees women – at home with kids, doing the ironing.

Hmmmm the interesting thing about any political propaganda is that one ‘conveniently’ forgets the mistakes their prefered party makes. For the sake of balance:

Rudd is on record saying that climate change is “the greatest moral challenge of our time”.

Rudd was considering an ETS, which was apparently vital, but it had now been shelved for at least 2 years.

Now, whether it’s paid maternity leave or climate change policy, all politicians would have said something which contradicts their actions one way or another. Pretending like your mistakes don’t happen but your opponent’s mistakes are the end of the world is a sadly entrenched tactic in political debates. Personally, it’s like chosing the lesser of two evils.

I quite like having the mad monk around actually – it keeps things interesting. I’ll be petrified if he actually gets in though.

One of his other recent wierdo remarks was stating that climate change is not scientific, as the planet was warmer in the days of Jesus of Nazareth. He didn’t base that theory on any proof tho – probably just remembering how hot it looked in all those picture books about jesus in the desert….

I guess that was one of his off the cuff remarks that we shouldn’t believe, and not being read out of a policy document..

georgesgenitals2:28 pm 18 May 10

Jim Jones said :

Thoroughly Smashed said :

sepi said :

Abbot is on record opposing paid maternity leave

He’s also on record as saying that you shouldn’t believe anything he says. Which is a horrible paradox and I’m having trouble keeping my brain from leaking out my ears.

Abbott is authentic and honest because he admits you can’t believe him.

How talkback radio has turned this into a virtue baffles me – admitting that you’re a liar is a good thing?

I’m thinking that maybe the libs have been caught short, and expected to get beaten again this election and thus wanted to replace TA sometime before the election following. The results of the last election suggest that they would need to regain a fair bit of ground.

I’ll admit to voting liberal in the past, but the current crop sure don’t inspire confidence. But then neither do Rudd and his mates either. And I fear the Greens won’t be seen as a realistic choice.

I’m starting to wonder who else there is.

Thoroughly Smashed said :

sepi said :

Abbot is on record opposing paid maternity leave

He’s also on record as saying that you shouldn’t believe anything he says. Which is a horrible paradox and I’m having trouble keeping my brain from leaking out my ears.

Abbott is authentic and honest because he admits you can’t believe him.

How talkback radio has turned this into a virtue baffles me – admitting that you’re a liar is a good thing?

Going by Tony’s savings figures, every public servant earns $330,000 and they’ll all be leaving the service on the first day of the financial year. Pillock.

Thoroughly Smashed11:44 am 18 May 10

sepi said :

Abbot is on record opposing paid maternity leave

He’s also on record as saying that you shouldn’t believe anything he says. Which is a horrible paradox and I’m having trouble keeping my brain from leaking out my ears.

neanderthalsis said :

flexible IR policies

BWA HA HA HA HA HA HAHAHAH AHA HA HAHA AH HA

Perhaps they could rename ‘Workchoices’ something like ‘Tony Abbot’s Happy Flexible Employment Plan’: If you believe this then you’re obviously flexible enough to get your head up your own arse.

Big Green swing coming – Labor are bleeding votes, but not to the ever more extreme right that have taken over the Liberal Party.

Abbot is on record opposing paid maternity leave, and the liberals blocked the current govt’s paid maternity leave proposal, leaving australia (and the US) keeping Afganistan and the 3rd world etc company, as the remaining countries in the world with no form of paid maternity leave.

Abbot was considering a 10 thousand dollar hand out to stay at home mothers – this is clearly where he sees women – at home with kids, doing the ironing.

Anyway – I’d be amazed by a liberal victory. I see a huge Green swing.

neanderthalsis10:44 am 18 May 10

MrMagoo said :

Johboy – Short answer to your question is NO!!

Long answer, voting for TA and his mates will return this great nation to the 1950s, hope none of the successful women who post here plan to keep working, you’ll be the first to be exepcted to return to the home and care for your family.

Yeah, it’s those horrid misogynistic policies like paid maternity leave at real pay rates, keeping child care rebates for all working families and flexible IR policies that allow the employer and employee to negotiate rosters that suit family commitments like picking the kiddies up from school that will drive all women back into the kitchen where they belong!

Waiting For Godot10:30 am 18 May 10

Voting for a Green to replace Gary? Disenfranchising ourselves from a party which has held government for 70 percent of the time since Federation? Now that would really be cutting off our noses to spite our face. Can you imagine what a Liberal government would do to Canberra if we had no Liberal representation at all? The place would be completely firebombed.

Johboy – Short answer to your question is NO!!

Long answer, voting for TA and his mates will return this great nation to the 1950s, hope none of the successful women who post here plan to keep working, you’ll be the first to be exepcted to return to the home and care for your family.

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