If you are reading this, thank a Teacher. If you are reading it in English, thank a Soldier
JEFF Kennett has unleashed a withering attack on the Greens, warning the minority party should be preferenced out of existence to protect the nation’s economic and social fabric.
The former Victorian premier said the Liberal Party nationally should preference the Greens and independents last, even if it risked elevating Labor candidates.
Can’t disagree with him.
Paul Howes remembers Beattie talking about Rudd;
(PETER Beattie) told me plainly that “that bloke stuffed up the Goss government, stuffed up his own government and during the election did his best to stuff up Julia’s government. No one should ever forget the damage that he has done.
But all is forgotten now;
WE have had our differences but it takes a bit of strength and a bit of guts from the Prime Minister to rise above that and say ‘what’s good for the campaign, what’s good for Queensland’.
I, and all Queenslanders with an attention span longer than a lightening strike, also remember Beattie stuffing up Queensland then fleeing the scene and handing over to Anna Bligh who didn’t help at all. Newman is doing his best to bring us back on line but he continually has to fight the rusted on Labor voters and unionists who seem to think the state can keep on borrowing money to pay its bloated public servants.
Beattie now thinks it would be good for Queensland and Rudd thinks Beattie is an answer. I can only say -WOW!
KEVIN Rudd has made a $200 million withdrawal from the budget’s secretive contingency reserve fund to prop up the car industry amid warnings his fringe benefits tax changes will smash domestic manufacturers
In a separate measure, Labor has mandated a 100 per cent Australian-made target for the commonwealth car fleet.
The Prime Minister said supporting the car industry was critically important for the economy, as it provided an estimated 250,000 direct and indirect jobs.
If the car industry is so important to the economy why the hell did you do your honest best to cripple it with changes to the fringe benefits tax?
I heard Senator Carr rattling on about how he was telling every government department, including the Army, that they had to buy local.
The standard ALP rule of unintended circumstances applies. Can’t you just see Rudd’s thought bubble appearing;
“I’ve got a geat idea to fix up our disasterous economic situation – let’s change the FBT….done. Hang on, the industry is now reeling, looking to close down…mmm – let’s throw them $200 million – noone will notice – we are already $30 billion in deficit.”
No wonder Holden has today stated they are going to wait until after the election before committing money to expansion.
Waiting for the adults to take over like most of the business investment decisions around the country….32 days to go.
Trust the ALP on the economy – my arse
Rudd has gone to the Governor General and is about to call an election for the 7th of September
Traitor Bradley Manning guilty of espionage for WikiLeaks cables
Good
Sentencing soon and the article suggests he could spend a lot of time in the clink
Again, good
The front page of this mornings The Australian has an article about the AFP being ready for transfer unrest. It has a pic of ammo boxes supposedly for police at Christmas Island.
There, in all its glory is a box clearly stencilled “.50 cal”and whereas, from personal experience, I can vouch for .50 cal machine guns being very good for riot control I don’t think the Australian public are quite ready for the outcome. Bits of bodies all over Christmas Island chewed up by a burst would certainly grab even Julian Burnside’s attention.
I would believe 5.56mm for their Steyrs and 9mm for pistols but I think the .50 cal would be resupply for the RAN patrol boats which raises the question – why would they need resupply?
Just heard Kevin Rudd on radio commenting on the NSW ALP corruption findings.
He says; “Zero. Tolerance. Of. Corruption”.
He means; “Zero. Tolerance. Of. Corruption”.(Except in the case of Craig Thompson whose vote we need)
THE Rudd government will today announce a $34 million improvement to two military retirement benefits that have been the subject of a long campaign by veterans to bring their annual indexation arrangements into line with the pension.
Minister for Defence Materiel Mike Kelly will today announce the Defence Forces retirement benefit and the Defence Forces retirement and death benefits will be indexed in the same way as age pensions.
The ALP plane is for recipients over 65 which fits my profile but the Coalition have included those over 55;
The Coalition has promised DFRB and DFRDB superannuants aged 55 and over will have their superannuation pensions indexed in the same way as aged and service pensions. About 57,000 military superannuants are members of these schemes.
Why are both parties undertaking to bring our annual indexation into line with pension. By way of explaination I posted this last year;
I received a letter from the Commonwealth Superannuation Corporation(DFRDB) informing me I have a CPI increase of .01% for the six months Sep 11 to Mar 12. This gives me an increase of $1.12 per fortnight. I thought of taking my Bride out to dinner to celebrate but the Power bill that is forecast to increase by up to 7.6% % is due and the rates notice is around the corner with a 4.9% increase although the Mayor had promised to keep the increase below the 3.6% inflation rise.
What’s that – 3.6% inflation? How is that related to .01% CPI rise?
I seriously doubt that the ALP undertaking will ever be called upon and even in the unlikely event that the voters are snowed by the Rudd Tsunami and actually elect him again I would expect them to reneg when they finally admit they have run the country broke and can’t afford any of their election promises; let alone a promise to the very organization that they have ignored and denigrated over my life time.
We’ll see.
BEN PACKHAM AND BRENDAN NICHOLSON think TONY Abbott is risking the ire of the nation’s defence establishment by forcing a three-star military commander to answer directly to his immigration minister under a dramatic command and control overhaul to stop asylum boats.
Forcing! Have you pair no idea how the system works. The government of the day is empowered to give orders to the ADF who simply obey. It isn’t up for discussion….. the General concerned doesn’t get to discuss it with the media – he just obeys his orders. He isn’t forced but if he does disagree with the order he talks to the Commander ADF, his immediate superior in the chain of command, who may or may not discuss it with the relevant minister who may or may not alter the order.
No one is forced to do anything.
Bloody Journos
UPDATE: The Libs Border policy is available here for download. If you are a rusted on ALP supporter or any other kind of Abbott hater don’t download it – you need to maintain the lie that Abbott doesn’t have any policies.
Listening to Home Affairs Minister Jason Claire on the ABC he said the issue of boat arrivals has become ‘poisoned by politics and;
‘’When people are dying the government should be given the power that it thinks it needs to stop this happening…”
As in, it’s the Coalition and the Green’s fault – not the ALPs.
The government has the power Jason. You had the power to stuff it up and now you have the power to fix it up
Gee, Rudd now thinks the UN refugee convention should be modernised to better cope with those most in need of asylum. How long will that take Kevin? Years
Plans announced to maybe build accommodation at Manis Island or maybe near Port Morseby. How long will that take Kevin? Years
People are drowning today, not in the future when the UN might or might not change things or buildings might or might not be built but until the government says things like – no papers – no visa and if you do have papers it is only temporary and if we say No then that’s it, then they will keep on coming and keep on drowning
You want to stop the boat people – then stop them.
NAVY insiders say there is “a growing and burning anger” among sailors on the frontline as they struggle to respond to the spiralling number of deaths and sinkings flowing from the government’s failed asylum-seeker policies.
There is also a “growing’ force of assetts tied up trying to manage Rudd’s stuff-up. The seven patrol boats allocated to the problem have been supplemented by a mine sweeper and a frigate, argueably more naval forces than we deployed during the Vietnam War.