You know that things are getting messy when the Australian news is so disheartening that you turn on the Pakistani news for light relief. But yesterday, I did just that – tuning out of the last throes of the ALP’s leadership battle (or this round of it, anyway) to watch the Pakistani news channels, which [...]
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Monthly Archives: February 2012
The Labor leadership: all over bar the voting
February 26, 2012 – 9:12 pm
The pundits and the markets agree: the Labor leadership contest is all over bar the actual voting. None of the commentators seem to think that Kevin Rudd can win and the Crikey Leadership Indicator based on the markets puts the probabilities at Julia Gillard 97% and Kevin Rudd 3%. As to how well Kevin Rudd [...]
Gillard’s margin of victory is important for who will replace her
February 26, 2012 – 11:02 am
The most significant question in tomorrow’s leadership ballot is the margin of Julia Gillard’s expected victory. On that bears whether Kevin Rudd will be the next Prime Minister or a third contender, later in the year. A substantial showing for Kevin Rudd, in the high thirties for example, would leave him as the clear candidate [...]
Albanese – almost like a statesman
February 25, 2012 – 12:19 pm
He sounded like a proper Labor man and behind the well chosen words of Anthony Albanese was an exposure of the ridiculous decision to oust Kevin Rudd in the weird fashion that occurred before the last election. A politician of principle and commonsense has finally emerged.
Time to do a Chipp?
February 25, 2012 – 11:53 am
Maybe it’s time for Kevin Rudd to say something like this: “I have become disenchanted with party politics as they are practised in this country and with the pressure groups which have an undue influence on the major political parties. The parties seem to polarise on almost every issue, sometimes seemingly just for the sake [...]
The polls arrive as expected
February 25, 2012 – 11:45 am
Well there can be no doubt who the people prefer. The three opinion polls this morning all give Kevin Rudd the result he was hoping for. The mob clearly prefer him to Julia Gillard. Not that it is likely to do him much good. The Caucus lemmings appear too set on following their ministerial colleagues [...]
Kevin 07 returns, but questions about loyalty remain
February 24, 2012 – 6:17 pm
In contrasting media conferences, Kevin Rudd and Julia Gillard have made their public pitches for the leadership of the Labor party, to be decided in a leadership ballot at 10am on Monday. In many ways this is now the contest Labor should have had on 24 June 2010, which never occurred because the party moved [...]
Utopia in Collingwood
February 24, 2012 – 12:41 pm
Melbourne-based readers who would like to engage with the needs of Afghan refugees at a more productive level than “Stop the boats” sloganeering may like to attend the Utopia festival in Collingwood from 12pm – 9pm this Sunday. The arts festival at the Bendigo Hotel and Egg Gallery features contributions by a diverse range of [...]
Obama’s music to campaign by
February 11, 2012 – 10:27 am
It’s a major step in the campaign preparation: President Barack Obama has released the musical playlist from which the appropriate accompaniments for him striding to the microphone will be chosen. I hope to have an evaluation from our very own earworm music blog soon. The list: Different People (No Doubt) Got to Get You Into [...]
A tick for the speech writer and the deliverer
February 8, 2012 – 12:25 am
A fine speech today by Prime Minister Julia Gillard commemorating the death of Sir Zelman Cowen. Both written and delivered well.
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