8 June 2008

Queen’s had her day: BarrFront page today’s Canberra Times…

| Hippo
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There I was thinking this was a misprint, and they had meant the ‘Queen’s had his day: Barr’, and that this would be yet another story in the ongoing debarkle that is Andrew Barr’s political career.Yet this story (from anyone else’s lips) might have seemed rational. (think – a) education policies towards closing schools, b) planning policies that reduce open spaces for children to play in, c) does Mr Barr have any children – or ever likely to?)However, with statements such as “stop commemorating the past… looked to the future…” so soon after the massive campaigns for all Australians to ‘remember our past and our Aboriginal history’, it kind of smacks.

The concept of marking the King or Queen’s birthday with a public holiday in Australia dates from 1788, when Governor Phillip declared a public holiday for convicts and settlers on the birthday of King George III on 4 June. Until 1936 the actual birthday of the reigning monarch was observed, but after the death of King George V it was decided to retain the day of his birthday, 3 June, or the nearest suitable day for the public holiday.

The focus of the Queen’s Birthday long weekend was raised in Parliament in June 2000, where the relevance and significance were questioned by the Hon John Hatzistergos. An almost identical article to Ms Sherlock’s was run in today’s The Age.

I’m not a die hard Monarchist, a Children’s Day (sorry I don’t raise goats) sounds plausible. I know this might sound kind of out there, but maybe we could incorporate ‘Children’s Day’ in the ‘Family Day’ we now celebrate in November?? Just a thought you know, children, family, they kind of go together…

Seriously, as an apathetic ACT voter, the only thing I got from this flashy front page grab, is a Minister desperate for any media attention that might take the focus off his complete incompetence. Well Mr Barr, sorry, you didn’t achieved your aim, I’ve taken notice of you, but will now vote for anyone but.

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Child Free Weekend, a Kid Curfew: no kids infesting restaurants, cinemas, shopping centres, awesome! I’d be in that. It sure would be nice if the parents of noisy, obnoxious kids got the hint and taught them that there’s “at home” behaviour and then there’s “not at home” behaviour, and then you wouldn’t have people hating to share public space with them.

Smackbang said :

Wide Boy Jake, you are so funny. And Hippo too!

How clever of you both to associate Barr as a homosexual with the word “queen” – simply genius!!

What can we expect next? Some incredibly witty pun based on the surname “Barr” perhaps? I am many others on RiotACT await your next oh-so-funny “Pssst: Andrew Barr is a *homosexual*” jibe with baited breath.

I didn’t think there was any secret here or anything AB would be ashamed of.

Absent Diane6:01 pm 10 Jun 08

of course there always exceptions to the rule.. but I also wonder if you would actually say anything else regardless, given that to say anything else would be a betrayal of your partner and kids (in general terms).

lol – inner chi!! haha nice one!! I actually don’t know what life is all about – i have suspicions that we can make it about more than just our instincts, innate desires etc. There is probably also a chance that I am insanely wrong but I am not prepared to take the simple option. Nice assumption about the breeding position too but yeah completely off the radar. maybe i am also an exception to the rule – maybe I have to say that? or else it would be a betrayal of my own beliefs.

all this and more next week.

I am infinitely happier than I have been at any time in my life pre-child. Life has never been better. You, on the other hand, have fear and loathing personified by the above.

I’d love to hear what you think life is all about. I work to support my family life. Your tone indicates you’re unlikely to be in a bredding postion in any case so enjoy your individuality and ensure your inner chi isn’t frightened off by those scawy, wittle kiddies

oooh! A *scientific* study! The best kind of study!

Absent Diane3:56 pm 10 Jun 08

actually I heard a scientific study that indicates that people that have children do not maintain their pre-child happiness until after their children have left home.. and every childless person i know seems a lot happier than those with child. So technically you with children are the miserable ones!!

I gather you managed to morph from birth to adulthood in a matter of seconds rather than years thereby not inflicting one iota of annoyance nor trouble on others during your childhood. Congratulations

and what does that have to do with me not liking children? am i supposed to feel empathy because I was once a child? maybe i have more than half a brain and know there is more to life than just working, breeding and retiring..

Ingeegoodbee3:31 pm 10 Jun 08

What’s really wierd is when I find myself agreeomg with vg!

Or a day when miserable, petty people are forced to stay indoors without inflicting their tales of child terror on others.

I gather you managed to morph from birth to adulthood in a matter of seconds rather than years thereby not inflicting one iota of annoyance nor trouble on others during your childhood. Congratulations.

Fcuk me, if little kids annoy you in public places its time to change the tin hat to aluminium foil

Absent Diane3:13 pm 10 Jun 08

what about a child free day/public holiday… whereby children are not allowed in public and adults are free to walk around without having some annoying child and their parents floating around thinking they are kingshit.

Ingeegoodbee3:08 pm 10 Jun 08

I think it is kind of wierd that someone who’s lifesyle is based upon sexual encounters that result in the genetic material of one party ending up in the other parties chutney chute – whould feel entitled to talk about children and families … I guess that’s just the Standope Government for you.

as I keep saying, please don’t have kids. more oxygen for mine. and as for bratty kids, they aren’t in my house, nor many of my friend’s houses. They do, however, seem to appear in the hyperdome, woden plaza, belco mall etc. and are attached to ferals. not just loud and obnoxious, but fully formed ferals who ask you for a dollar for the bus (yeah that’ll work, costs more than a dollar) or a spare smoke (they are NOT spare, they just mean I have to buy more sooner) or the common catchcry: “whadda youse looking at?”

God, if I only knew…

Kids Day: Would make us the pedofile capital of the world on that day.

Someone_else9:18 pm 09 Jun 08

I thought as much, I’ll try not to encourage him.

nah, “someone-else”, vg’s just desperate to get someone to fight him. He’s a hideous little gimp however, so most people just get back to their beer or darts or whatever.

Someone_else9:10 pm 09 Jun 08

Are you stalking me, vg? No need to drag in quotes from other threads, it just proves that you are clutching at straws.

And I don’t think you are “captain crazy pants”, you’re just…special.

Nyssa

Here’s a snappy lesson in comprehension for you. I’ll go slowly so you can keep up.

On a previous thread re: crackers you said this

“Aww, but I thought the kiddies LUVVED the crackers?!?! Isn’t it all for them after all? I mean, who cares if animals get freaked out, get run over and our open spaces are littered with garbage? We have to keep the pweshus children happy!!”

You then describe Cooney’s statements as a ‘gem’ (selective quoting I may add) and add:

“OMFG, heaven forbid there might be some places where there aren’t hundreds of bratty kids running around, making a mess and screaming!! And so farking what if some of us choose to live “child-free” lives? Seeing kids everywhere is not going to change anyone’s mind, in fact it’s more likely to have the effect of convincing others not to have kids!”

Call me captain crazy pants but those remarks portray an anti-kid bent from you which has also been interpreted thus in another thread before you declared sarcasm. The beauty of sarcasm is that its interpreted by the reader. If you wish us to interpret that you wished to portray Cooney’s statement as stupid and intolerant then please supply us with your crystal ball, script or prayer to the baby Jeebus that will enable us to do so. If its stupid and intolerant please entertain us dullards by making it less than secretive that you think so.

Comprehension only works when posts are written intelligently enough to understand.

I would suspect Ant’s ‘quieter option’ would be more likely the result of not being able to find a mate rather than any altruistic motive

It’s verboten to question the rights of the child-encumbered to inflict their lifestyle on those of us who’ve chosen the quieter option.

vg said :

What a miserable life you must live, with all those terrible bratty kids terrifying you nearly out of your very existence. I respect the right of people to have child-free lives. I would expect the same respect in return because I choose and am enriched incredibly by the opposite

You seem to have real comprehension problems. If you can’t see what was stupid and intolerant about Cooney’s statement, then there really is no hope for you.

nyssa said :

A gem of a quote from Michael Cooney’s stupid article in the Age about making the holiday a “kids” day:

“Stand on the corner of Bourke and Spring streets in Melbourne on any day and you’ll see what a child-free zone looks like. It is an almost completely adult space. Our fashionable inner suburbs have about half as many children living in them as the average across the country. And a growing number of Australians live child-free lives. For the first time in our history, the majority of men aged from 30 to 34 have no children.”

OMFG, heaven forbid there might be some places where there aren’t hundreds of bratty kids running around, making a mess and screaming!! And so farking what if some of us choose to live “child-free” lives? Seeing kids everywhere is not going to change anyone’s mind, in fact it’s more likely to have the effect of convincing others not to have kids!

What a miserable life you must live, with all those terrible bratty kids terrifying you nearly out of your very existence. I respect the right of people to have child-free lives. I would expect the same respect in return because I choose and am enriched incredibly by the opposite

nyssa said :

vg said :

I assume all the republicans will be heading off to work today then?

For your information, yes I am off to work!

Onward Christian soldiers, so am I. And yes I do go to church on Easter and Xmas as well as being a zone association (union) rep.

No, it isn’t me posting above.

What I find most interesting is that there is this person w/ my nick!

I assume all the republicans will be heading off to work today then?

Maybe we all should as the Queens Birthday was actually about 6 weeks ago.

and anyway, I hope you’re first in church at Easter and Christmas, and pay your union fees after taking Labour Day off in October…

A gem of a quote from Michael Cooney’s stupid article in the Age about making the holiday a “kids” day:

“Stand on the corner of Bourke and Spring streets in Melbourne on any day and you’ll see what a child-free zone looks like. It is an almost completely adult space. Our fashionable inner suburbs have about half as many children living in them as the average across the country. And a growing number of Australians live child-free lives. For the first time in our history, the majority of men aged from 30 to 34 have no children.”

OMFG, heaven forbid there might be some places where there aren’t hundreds of bratty kids running around, making a mess and screaming!! And so farking what if some of us choose to live “child-free” lives? Seeing kids everywhere is not going to change anyone’s mind, in fact it’s more likely to have the effect of convincing others not to have kids!

vg said :

I assume all the republicans will be heading off to work today then?

For your information, yes I am off to work!

VYBerlinaV8_the_one_they_all_copy9:40 am 09 Jun 08

Why don’t we just call it ‘homosexuals day’?

The ‘name’ of the holidays means shit all to most people, to be honest. I doubt anyone goes out on the Monday thinking of the Queen. If anything, most will be thinking about how wasted they were night before.

Perhaps we could have a public holiday called Barr Day. To celebrate all those politicians who are only put up by their parties in order to enact unfair and unfavourable policies…

Or better still, maybe Barr Day could simply be called Pub Day. And we could all go and celebrate our favourite watering hole and forget that the bar with the second r ever existed.

I assume all the republicans will be heading off to work today then?

I hope that post doesn’t offend you Smackbang, I did say ‘heading’ in the same thread as ‘Barr’ and ‘Queen’.

Holden Caulfield12:03 am 09 Jun 08

A public holiday for QEII’s birthday is about the only useful thing she does for our country.

VOTE YES FOR A REPUBLIC!!!

Wide Boy Jake, you are so funny. And Hippo too!

How clever of you both to associate Barr as a homosexual with the word “queen” – simply genius!!

What can we expect next? Some incredibly witty pun based on the surname “Barr” perhaps? I am many others on RiotACT await your next oh-so-funny “Pssst: Andrew Barr is a *homosexual*” jibe with baited breath.

Wide Boy Jake6:09 pm 08 Jun 08

Funny Barr should make these comments. I thought he’d be all in favour of queens . . .

Let’s all worship children! Let’s have a special day where they can do anything they like, behave as they like, they can demand anything they want and they’ll get it, what a special day that would be! One day in a year… (/sarcasm).

Pfft, “children’s day”??? What a wank. While we’re at it, why don’t we have a “working families” day?

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