I’m a Civil Partnership Notary

a lot is two words said :

PB why would they need contraception or an abortion? They won’t be getting each other pregnant – unless they’re cheating!

“Can we get you on Masternmind dear? Next contestant “a lot is two words”, specialist subject the bleeding obvious..”

To quote the immortal Basil Fawlty.

sloppery said :

In this example, I’m thinking of students, the sick, nurses and the homeless (none of which are me). And while your point is well made, I firmly believe the needs of the groups I have identified are (in the ACT at least) more important than gay people who want to get married.

And I’m sure there were people who thought the needs of students, the sick, nurses and the homeless were more important than Aboriginals who wanted to vote. Fortunately most people realise that these things are not mutually exclusive.

Granny said :

How about you try thinking of someone other than yourself? It’s their government too.

I am. In this example, I’m thinking of students, the sick, nurses and the homeless (none of which are me). And while your point is well made, I firmly believe the needs of the groups I have identified are (in the ACT at least) more important than gay people who want to get married.

Sloppery, governments will always have core services to deliver.

Just because an issue doesn’t happen to affect you personally doesn’t mean it’s not an important issue for a government to address.

When we finally got around to giving women and Aboriginals the vote there were still core services for the government to deliver. These were important social issues for the government to address so they rightly addressed them. Essential services didn’t grind to a halt. No great disaster befell the nation. The sky didn’t fall in.

Governments are responsible for governing justly as well as capably. There is no conflict between those purposes. Both are essential.

How about you try thinking of someone other than yourself? It’s their government too.

PB why would they need contraception or an abortion? They won’t be getting each other pregnant – unless they’re cheating!

Jim Jones said :

sloppery said :

I reckon they’d get a lot further with solutions if they put all this time and energy into it.

Really?

So you’re stating that it would effectively take a couple of days (a week at most) to get “a lot further with solutions” to the hitherto insoluble resourcing problems of education, health, housing and the environment?

There are quite a number of ACT public servants who have put other things on hold and are rushing around trying to implement processes and systems that allow for gay marriage. It’s not nearly as trivial as you think.

And the other problems I mentioned as exmaples are not ‘insoluble’, they just don’t have the focus or emtion attached to them as gay marriage seems to. I don’t realistically think they will be solved in a short space of time, but I really think govt needs to focus on core services first. Jim Jones, I know gay marriage is a big issue for you, but it just doesn’t compare to these bigger ticket items in my view.

sloppery said :

I reckon they’d get a lot further with solutions if they put all this time and energy into it.

Really?

So you’re stating that it would effectively take a couple of days (a week at most) to get “a lot further with solutions” to the hitherto insoluble resourcing problems of education, health, housing and the environment?

sloppery said :

I reckon they’d get a lot further with solutions if they put all this time and energy into it. And issues with Aboriginals that involve health and safety are far more important than gay marriage.

On the other hand, it costs almost nothing to enact gay marriage legislation. Just change the bit about “Man to Woman”, and leave the rest the same. They could do it tomorrow. From a cost effective point of view it would make a lot of people happy for almost no money, leaving plenty of time to ensure that no Australian Child lives in poverty…..

But we are talking about the Government. Making people happy isn’t really their business.

Jim Jones said :

georgesgenitals said :

Jim Jones said :

sloppery said :

Jim Jones said :

Because we all know how difficult it is to do two things at once. You know, like walking and breathing at the same time: it just doesn’t work. You really have to focus on one thing and just ignore absolutely everything else.

Great point! Doing two basic activities that don’t require any real conscious effort is exactly the same as managing the complex processes involved in running an effective government!

Awesome work dude, you’ve revolutionized the Westminster system with a withering critique.

From now on, governments will just pick one or two things that are ‘really important’ and ignore every other issue that arises.

Someone posts that they would like the government to get its priorities straight, and you disagree just because you’re emotionally attached to what is, really, an issue that effects a small minority. Why not respond to the issues raised? You’re the one doing awesome work, clearly.

By this logic, the Federal Government should ignore anything to do with Aboriginal Issues – after all, it’s just a small minority, and clearly not a ‘priority’.

And what about this ‘get your priorities straight’ nonsense. Do you really believe that the gummint would be able to solve all the problems in education, health, housing and the environment by ignoring the same-sex marriage debate?

I reckon they’d get a lot further with solutions if they put all this time and energy into it. And issues with Aboriginals that involve health and safety are far more important than gay marriage.

georgesgenitals said :

Jim Jones said :

sloppery said :

Jim Jones said :

Because we all know how difficult it is to do two things at once. You know, like walking and breathing at the same time: it just doesn’t work. You really have to focus on one thing and just ignore absolutely everything else.

Great point! Doing two basic activities that don’t require any real conscious effort is exactly the same as managing the complex processes involved in running an effective government!

Awesome work dude, you’ve revolutionized the Westminster system with a withering critique.

From now on, governments will just pick one or two things that are ‘really important’ and ignore every other issue that arises.

Someone posts that they would like the government to get its priorities straight, and you disagree just because you’re emotionally attached to what is, really, an issue that effects a small minority. Why not respond to the issues raised? You’re the one doing awesome work, clearly.

By this logic, the Federal Government should ignore anything to do with Aboriginal Issues – after all, it’s just a small minority, and clearly not a ‘priority’.

And what about this ‘get your priorities straight’ nonsense. Do you really believe that the gummint would be able to solve all the problems in education, health, housing and the environment by ignoring the same-sex marriage debate?

Granny said :

georgesgenitals said :

Someone posts that they would like the government to get its priorities straight, and you disagree just because you’re emotionally attached to what is, really, an issue that effects a small minority.

It’s not about how many people are affected, it’s about whether everyone is being treated justly.

Not to be rude or snide, but does that include patients in hospitals who aren’t being cared for adequately (I have a relative in at the moment), kids in schools who can’t do practical classes when supplies run short and people living on the street because there’s no housing for them? I really think these issues are more important than gay marriage.

I agree with your point about the number of people affected, but I still think some prioritisation is in order here.