Calls for watchdog to probe ‘Iguanagate’
With Della Bosca stood down and his weird wife undergoing counselling the ALP would like to think that is the end of it.
No way.
The NSW opposition are after some blood and I wish them well. From everything I’ve read about Belinda Neal she needs to be dis empowered not counselled.
Federal Finance Minister Lindsay Tanner today said the counselling referral should be the end of the matter.
“Belinda’s having some counselling, that should be the end of it,” Mr Tanner told the Nine Network. “Nobody’s died here, nobody’s lost their life savings.“What a strange thing to say – it’s either stupid or arrogant and neither make him look good. We aren’t talking about death or dollars we are talking about abuse of power. Counselling doesn’t excuse her behaviour; it just might, and it’s a big might, slow down future incidences of her weird behaviour but in the meantime she needs to be called to order and I trust this happens in the house this week. The ‘She said…he said’ situation with stat decs made and then withdrawn needs to be resolved and the truth needs to come out.
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Whilst nobody lost their life savings, it is alleged that she did threaten to take away a number of peoples jobs. That is pretty serious given that most people no longer have life savings and live from pay to pay.
“and his weird wife undergoing counselling”
And whilst we’re talking about counselling, how about old mate Wilson (Tuckey) as well. Or is it too late for him?
I think of Iron Bar Wilson as eccentric with colourful language which isn’t in the same league as threatening jobs and removal of liquor licence.
Kev,
I guess if you were a master of understatement you could call laying into someone’s head and shoulders with a piece of heavy duty steel cable “eccentric”. The court called it assault for which he was convicted and fined.
Graham Edwards’ opinion is worth noting –
“Graham Edwards, a disabled Vietnam veteran well respected on both sides of the chamber, says that Tuckey is the only MP in Parliament to whom he will not speak.
“Mate, I think he’s a disgrace,” Edwards says. “As far as I’m concerned, he’s just a bloody big coward. Anyone who makes a name for himself on the basis of having someone else hold a person down while you hit them is, in my books, a dingo.”
There are bastards on both sides of politics, but this is more about selling papers than real indignation.
“There are bastards on both sides of politics, but this is more about selling papers than real indignation.”
Speak for yourself, I’m indignant about poweful people misusing their power to get their way.
Threatening to have the police around weekly til the place is closed? how would you feel if you had a federal MP and a state MP threatening your job?
Tuckey is a coward, but are you going to try to tell me that threatening to misuse the powers of the state to get even with the staff of a bar, who have simply asked you to move tables, is braver and more dignified?
I’m not into comparisons and as far as I’m concerned Della Bosca and Neal are beneath contempt – I’m just pointing out that it has nothing to do with real political debate. Using their activity to discredit Rudd makes as much sense as using Tuckey’s history to discredit Nelson.
“threatening to misuse the powers of the state”
I’ve had personal experience of this during the Bjelke-Petersen era (issue was teacher transfers) and know how it feels to be heavied by a politician.
Unfortunately “cosi fan tutte”.
30 odd years ago I was in the same position. In an RSL on the South Coast, I was asked to move some club members from a particular table, it was a free concert at this place but the table offered the best view for a local Labor party member and his family. I walked out, as far as I was concerned a person with an honorary membership had no sway over a fully paid up member..
“I’m not into comparisons”
Are there two people using 1735099 signature?
Gary
You’ve missed my point – so at the risk of boring everyone, I’ll make it again in words of one syllable. Almost all people in positions of power abuse that power. It doesn’t matter whether the person is a two-bit publican (Tuckey in the sixties) or a Federal member of parliament (Tuckey a few years ago when he tried to get his son off a transport infringement, or Belinda Neal when she had a barney with the staff at the Iguana), they all do it – “cosi fan tutte”.
It has nowt to do with political affiliation.
For this crap to become a substitute for genuine political debate is a reflection on the quality of our national media.
That’s the raison d’étre for sites like this one.
Bob, you are missing the point..
Tuckey wasn’t a MP when he earned his nickname, he was a publican in Carnarvon. I visited there in the same period and was lucky not to be hospitalized by the local indigenous chaps without my giving offence – just for being white. They had recently got their licence to drink that started the whole decline of the race, the police were too frightened and politically hampered from policing drunks thus it was every white man and publican to himself.
The weird woman we are talking about threatened to use her power as an MP to impact on the restaurants licence and the livelihood of the staff.
cosi fan tutte my arse but I’m sure you could find an conservative polly who did something similar in the past 150 years – I just can’t imagine who.
Kev
What point am I missing?
Pubs in isolated communities can be dangerous places at certain times of the day or week depending on when the session started – witness Windorah in 1993 when I visited the local with an Aboriginal colleague and was threatened because a few of the (white) locals had an issue with Abstudy.
This issue has buggerall to do with federal politics – it may have something to do with state (NSW) Labor culture, but that’s about it.
“I’ll make it again in words of one syllable. Almost all people in positions of power abuse that power.”
Al-most. Peo-ple. Po-sit-shuns. Pow-er. A-buse. All words of greater than one syll-a-ble. And your apparently a teacher? You raise Tuckey’s alleged cowardice as a corollary for conservative political influence. If you think that a federal and state member’s browbeating of ‘working families’ isn’t worthy of political debate, then you appear more one-eyed than usual. And that’s saying something.
“You’ve missed my point”. You didn’t have one to start with.
“And your apparently a teacher?”
“your” should be “you’re” – I’m a teacher after all.
Cheap shots usually ricochet.
It’s hardly political debate. I’d call it a media feeding frenzy.
I think you lost any claim to civil debate by your first few comments on this site,1735099 .
I love that bit
” nobody’s died here, nobody has lost their life savings ”
brings to mind Scaife and Bond for some reason….
OK, one of them is dead, but the other one is still playing
up large on somebody else’s money……and weren’t they (the Labor Party) in charge at the time…???