Oz Federal Election 2013 - Discussion and Comments

[casanovawa]

If the amount of media venom pointed at Julie Gillard and Labor was reduced by even 2% I bet their polls would bounce up quite a bit but until we get some objective reporting Labor will be falling into that sinkhole. From the reporting we have seen little if any substance from Tony Aboott other than pandering to whomever his audiences is targeted at. He can yell and scream, bounce and shout around, drive trucks up and down the Pacific Hwy for show, wear facial moisturiser because he thinks it suggests he is pro-woman (I do hope he at least cleanses and tones before that) but how will the PM-in waiting tackle the real issues? I have seen/read little ideas and vision that he will take Australia forward. Stuck in conservatism-land will only get you stability - nothing more, nothing less. How will he tackle the 'ageing population' issue that needs to be tackled now? This is a big issue, as the population ages and has longer longevity not only will it affect health policy but also have implications of taxation, superannuation, labour, immigration policies and unless these are addressed now, we will see a lot of ageing population living a below than reasonable life - or future governments struggling to meet the financial burden of this sector of the population. Children born this year will have a median life expectancy of close to 85 years old, so this is a real issue that the LIBs need to consider come 14/9.

1. I think its a bit of a stretch to say that Labor's position is due to anything other than their own incompetence and infighting... If it was in any part due to the media, then could you think of a worse way to move forward than the media legislation fiasco???
2. Hmmm, after what we have experienced the last 4 years a bit stability and competence would be more than welcome...
3. Pandering to his audience? Don't all pollies do that, or should he shun the people he is seeking their support and instead try to win some rusted on greenie/labour types?? I'm sure that will be a winning formula?? Certainly nothing that Gillard would stoop to (see Western Sydney publicity farce)
4. Vision for the future, didn't the Libs reduce the debt and create the future fund, in turn putting us in a position to be able to whether the GFC in good shape, together with a mining industry boom which meant even Swanny couldn't screw up navigating us through it...
5. I imagine preparing for Australia's future and its ageing population will involve trying to get the budget back into a reasonable situation to take into account fewer tax payers in the future rather than spending like drunken sailors, get the debt down so we have our house in order and maybe reconstitute the future fund or something similar against future Govt liabilities, bring in overseas skilled labour (rather than pandering to unions about the boogeyman) to keep our industries going and provide future tax revenues to support all the retirees and take a realistic approach to how much welfare and tree hugging you can do with the harsh future reality of fewer tax payers and more elder Australians requiring lots of expensive medical care as they live longer lives...

None of this is assisted by antagonising Fed/States relations and getting them all off side for national policies like health and education, blowing the budget up, getting further into debt and creating stupid, self defeating policies that reduce business confidence and investment???

 

[casanovawa]

........because they pretty much just make it up.
For the last 5 years there has been NO credible challenge to the PM. None. Rudd wanting to be PM is not the same as having the numbers.
But to see the continual lies in the News Ltd papers and to see those lies taken as truths by simple folk (many examples seen on this forum) has been disappointing.
Just because a lie aligns with your political hope, does not mean it should not be condemned.

Thankfully, people are finding alternate ways to get their info, but it will still take a generation before that turns into a majority trend.

The media loved speculating about the Howard/Costello leadership issues for much of the life of the Govt, its part of the imperative of the media to sell papers and attract viewers so anyone who thinks they are only going to just get the cold, unvarnished facts without lots of speculation and pre-emption is probably going to be sadly disappointed... Costello may have wanted the leadership but like Rudd just never had the numbers, but the conduct of the two, and the other members of the respective parties as a whole, are light years apart and the reason the Libs weren't crippled as opposed to Labor...

 

[tgh]

I take it derowwski.. that you aren't a fan of Michael Smith News ??

 

[browski]

I take it derowwski.. that you aren't a fan of Michael Smith News ??

I'm for the free market, so Rupert and Gina and Michael Smith are welcome to do what they like.

But.......for the undereducated folks in WA and QLD, they only really have access to Rupert's world view and there is some sadness there because of that. I had one elderly QLD lady say to me the a few weeks ago that "We have a choice. I don't read the Courier mail; I buy The Australian.".

 

[tgh]

So your beef is that News Ltd doesn't report/support the current Labour spin ?

Leads to : has News Ltd ever actively supported tLs?

If they have NEVER supported tLs.. perhaps you have an argument

If they have, then your argument is cough.

 

[drron]

Some observations on comments here-
If the venom by the media directed at TA by the media(the ABC and Fairfax count don't they?) Then the ALP would quite possibly be reduced to the size of a Rugby team.
As to the problems of ageing wasn't it Costello who established the first Intergeneralisation report,who also started the future fund to finance the super requirements of the public service and made it much easier for people to finance their ability to finance there ageing.I dont buy the it was only the rich that benefitted because there were always limits on the tax deductibility of super contributions.and like it or not because there are many more poor and middle income taxpayers they get the bulk of the tax deductions.

If there was no leadership tensions in the ALP then why did Julia call a spill in 2011 and Simon Crean commit suicide this week?Do you really think KR didn't feel a little hard done by after being knifed in the back?

 

[11sjw]

Touché.

It was the one big self inflicted wound.

But even unpopular border protection measures, GST, the wharf disputes, and other workplace reforms had been handled masterfully by Howard and Co.

By comparison, the ALP has been a series of self inflicted gunshot wounds - often in "how could you screw that up?" circumstances.

Mining Tax, Pink Batts, school halls project, the East Timor solution, carbon tax, the backfire of closing Nauru, Malaysian Solution, Carbon Tax, the announcement of Labor's first aboriginal candidate, leadership speculation, leadership spills, replacing a leader with someone far less popular, leaks, Media reforms, Obeid, announcement of an election [9?] months out, the WA election, hung parliament, plain packaging (although this eventually turned out OK)...

Perhaps the exception to this has been the NBN (which is fairly widely popular), although that appears to be becoming a political liability of late...

Don't forget the self inflicted attempt at a budget surplus.

 

[11sjw]

I'm for the free market, so Rupert and Gina and Michael Smith are welcome to do what they like.

But.......for the undereducated folks in WA and QLD, they only really have access to Rupert's world view and there is some sadness there because of that. I had one elderly QLD lady say to me the a few weeks ago that "We have a choice. I don't read the Courier mail; I buy The Australian.".

Wow, so all in Qld and WA are uneducated. Got a few stats to back that up or is just the view of yourself and a few latte-lefty mates?

 

[browski]

So your beef is that News Ltd doesn't report/support the current Labour spin ?

Leads to : has News Ltd ever actively supported tLs?

If they have NEVER supported tLs.. perhaps you have an argument

If they have, then your argument is cough.

No. I don't have any beef. I understand how and why the current situation is why it is.
If you read and think rather than just type before you think, then you will understand that: I observed it was a bit sad that the elderly and undereducated in QLD and WA (and SA and TAS) don't get to read anything other than the Murdoch world view. I don't mind if Murdoch has that view or even if he switches whom he backs; I was saying it would be a preferred situation if the masses in those states had access to more than that one view. But they don't.

 

[browski]

Wow, so all in Qld and WA are uneducated. Got a few stats to back that up or is just the view of yourself and a few latte-lefty mates?

Just the uneducated folk are uneducated; the others are not.
I'm long black and right of centre. You are extreme right.

 

[11sjw]

Just the uneducated folk are uneducated; the others are not.
I'm long black and right of centre. You are extreme right.

Whilst you're on a roll care to name the local Murdoch rag here? The West Australian is Kerry Stokes owned and I don't consider The Australian local. The once a week Sunday Times isn't much but we don't have a daily Mudrock tabloid.

 

[Skyring]

...it would be a preferred situation if the masses in those states had access to more than that one view. But they don't.

By "the masses" I guess you mean our fellow Australians, each and every one as lively, as individual, as clever and as delightful as yourself.

There's more to news than papers nowadays. SBS and especially the ABC are favorite news sources, and of course there are the online outlets, enjoying a huge increase in popularity.

And, of course, people have minds of their own. It's kind of demeaning to say that people think the same way as the paper they read. I certainly don't. Do you?

 

[Skyring]

If the amount of media venom pointed at Julie Gillard and Labor was reduced by even 2%...

Awww, come on! It's hard to put a good spin on some of the disasters. Purely objective reporting ain't going to turn the promised budget surplus into anything other than a humiliating deficit. And how else could you describe the leadership shenanigans? Just having a leadership spill is an admission that things aren't going well.

We have freedom of political speech here, and that means that governments get criticised. Praised and panned both. However, and this applies to any government, bad news stories sell more papers than good news. All Julia needs to do is to stop feeding the bloody fire!

 

[Alanslegal]

right now Tony Abbott smells like mouldy seafood you can all dislike me right now but its Ok.

 

[Skyring]

right now Tony Abbott smells like mouldy seafood

See? I've said it before and I'll say it again. People select thir political choices on whatever they like. Some like logic and reason. Others like skin colour, body shape or other factors. That's democracy.

 

[Sprucegoose]

This is the most incompetent, corrupt and shameful government we have ever had and the sooner the independents show some backbone they should be out on their cough.

 

[amaroo]

.......for the undereducated folks in WA and QLD

I observed it was a bit sad that the elderly and undereducated in QLD and WA (and SA and TAS)

Just the uneducated folk are uneducated;

Pure rubbish....however, very entertaining

 

[Alanslegal]

See? I've said it before and I'll say it again. People select thir political choices on whatever they like. Some like logic and reason. Others like skin colour, body shape or other factors. That's democracy.

Ive never disputed this, I in fact so agree with your point.

i just passionately dislike Tony .... Anyone else in the LIB party would get my vote but he'll never get mine. I wish I could slap him with a smelly trout .... probably worse than a flying shoe

 

[Sprucegoose]

Ive never disputed this, I in fact so agree with your point.

i just passionately dislike Tony .... Anyone else in the LIB party would get my vote but he'll never get mine. I wish I could slap him with a smelly trout .... probably worse than a flying shoe

i am sure he will deal with it!!!

 

[amaroo]

Ive never disputed this, I in fact so agree with your point.

i just passionately dislike Tony .... Anyone else in the LIB party would get my vote but he'll never get mine. I wish I could slap him with a smelly trout .... probably worse than a flying shoe

IIRC there are many posts upstream.....from the more ALP inclined members, suggesting that the dumping of Rudd was not an issue as we don't vote for PM's in this country.

If you reside in Warringah - fair enough.