The West Australian thinks it knew something about Page

This was in The West Australian on Sunday.

 

"Nationals candidate Chris Gulaptis' vote collapsed as Labor's Janelle Saffin captured a swing of 9.31 per cent. The seat is still in doubt today and a recount is likely."

http://www.thewest.com.au/default.aspx?MenuID=28&ContentID=48263

 

Seems rather a strange view of the situation as voters in Page are under the impression that Gulaptis conceded defeat on election night. Could it be that Chris still has some enthusiastic relatives left in WA who were giving out with an overly optimistic view of his chances or did he briefly flirt with the idea of trying to recant his acceptance of defeat?

Spare a thought for voter fatigue in Queensland this week

Yesterday the Australian Electoral Commission announced that the promised plebiscites on council amalgamations will begin in 85 local government areas across Queensland this week.

Thankfully the approximately 700,000 eligible people on the electoral roll will all receive ballot papers by mail.

Closing time for return of these postal votes is 2pm Friday 7 December for Caboolture, Caloundra, Gold Coast, Noosa, Pine Rivers and Redcliffe Councils.  The closing time for the other 79 Councils is 2pm on Friday 14 December 2007. 

 

Voting in these plebiscites is not compulsory, so I'm wondering if voter fatigue will cause a large number of Queenslanders to ignore this ballot now that John Howard is no longer around to gee them on.

The Federal Coalition is in such disarray that I don't think it has even noticed that this vote is underway. The plebiscites have all but lost their wedge factor anyway. 

Did my ears deceive me?

Did I really heard Tony Abbott last night telling the world that he would make a great Liberal Party leader because he had relatively good people skills?

And did I also catch the sound of a business group spokesperson calmly opining that the Howard Government had actually been too right-wing?

I know I witnessed the cock crowing thrice as a number of Coalition members sought to deny policy which they had previously said was set in stone and vital for the future of Australia.

Ah, strange fruit is beginning to grow in the orchards of those who had thought the former Howard Government electorally invincible.

Drop the hanky

It's not so much a matter of simply asking who will be the new head honcho of lurks, perks and jerks in the dishevelled Liberal Party (of course, most of those needy, greedy buggers really require the public funding associated with their positions of public office because they're obviously down to their last bits of folding money), but rather how many of the sore losers now find that being in Opposition is simply too much of a burden.

Naturally enough, "family" now comes first, so rather than occupy the benches to the left of the Speaker, there'll be a rush to the exit doors because all of a sudden Family First is the flavour of the day.

How strange! Their altruism with respect to the public interest and the concept of the 'common good' was only applicable when they were in office.

Real democracy demands the government of the day is challenged by an opposition that is capable of being a genuinely viable alternative. The Lib AND Nat MPs who'll decamp as quick as a wink will say it all. Their commitment was self-centred.

Now, for something totally radical ... could all members of the Coalition who have no intentions of going the full distance to the next federal election on the Opposition benches please raise their hands right now.

Let's set one day aside in the New Year for all the by-elections. That'll assist the AEC - it can conduct all the fill-in-the-spots on one day. The savings in advertising and administrative costs will fund a new hospital.

Unfortunately, April Fools Day doesn't fall on a Saturday in 2008.