Psst....heard the one about a republic?

Anyone else notice just how fast talk of an Australian republic died down after Federal Labor's Australia 2020 summiteers disappeared into the sunset?
Roy Morgan Research gives a clue as to why in the results of a telephone poll taken last weekend.

In early May 45% (down 6% since Feb. 2005) believe Australia should become a Republic with an elected President, while 42% (up 2%) support Australia remaining a Monarchy and 13% (up 4%) are undecided — according to a special Morgan Poll of Australians taken last weekend (May 3/4, 2008).---
Gary Morgan says:
“Despite the discussion generated at the recent 2020 Summit on Australia’s future, Australians’ support for becoming a Republic with an elected President has fallen to its lowest level in nearly 15 years.
“Roy Morgan ‘Issues Research’ due to be released next week at the Future Summit shows Australians are more concerned with economic and environmental issues than they are with symbolic issues involving changes to the Australian Constitution that has worked well for over a century.
"What would please the Monarchists is 64% of those aged 14-17 say Australia should remain a Monarchy, with 23% supporting a Republic and 13% undecided."
“Kevin Rudd and his “Republican” colleagues should forget about changing the Constitution over the next few years and concentrate on making sure working Australians can “survive” with higher interest rates and higher prices.”

Even those of us, who are less in love with a monarchy than they are deeply afraid of what politicians and elites (who believe in the divine right of each to govern the majority) would do to the Constitution, will be pleased to see Kevin Rudd get a black eye on this issue.
It was arrogant of him to try and force a debate in the first place.