The first six months of Kevin Rudd as prime minister heading a Labor government has not been the complete waste of time that the Opposition tries to portray.
Nor do I believe that Mr. Rudd has given up this early in the piece.
However, in an effort to be seen as the 'reasonable' face of Labor he is beginning to lose his way.
The aims and aspirations of today's working families may be valid, focussing on reviewing the taxation structure may or may not be necessary, an education revolution may be long overdue, but gearing policy to populist end of these notions and virtually ignoring the destructive elephant in the room is not the best idea.
So here is a word portrait of that elephant to remind Rudd and his minsiters exactly what the bottom line is.
climate change, water security, global warming, prolonged drought, climate change, food shortages, global warming, coastal erosion, climate change, death of the Murray Darling, global warming, species extinction, climate change, environmental refugees, global warming, renewable energy, climate change, greenhouse gas abatement, global warming, destructive storms, climate change, property loss, global warming, carbon trading, climate change.
Saturday 24 May 2008
Friday 23 May 2008
It's QANDA season on the ABC
I have to confess that last night I switched off the ABC's new show Q and A after the first few minutes of Prime Minister Kevin Rudd's flat delivery when answering the first audience question.
I've promised myself that I will try to make it through next week's program when, hopefully, my tolerance for political whaffle is higher.
However, the QANDA webpage did deliver evidence of a few interesting questions for Mr. Rudd.
| Author | ConcernedScientist |
| Date/Time | 22 May 2008 2:04:19pm |
| Subject | >Re: What would you ask Kevin Rudd? |
Mr Rudd...
When it comes to Global Warming, it would appear to me that your government's first budget is 'rearranging the deck chairs whilst the Titanic is sinking'.
Ok - some passengers might deny the ship is sinking (the water used to be 4 metres below their cabin's port-hole, and now its gone up to 6 metres - so from their perspective the ship is rising!), but the scientific consensus is the HMAS Earth is sinking and we have to do something about it NOW!
So why are you making it MORE difficult for Australians to 'use our existing life-boats' like installing solar cells on their roofs ?
Why are you investing large sums of money in trying to develop a new super 'lifeboat' (so-called clean coal - which might not even float), when there are existing technologies available TODAY (like solar thermal, wind, geothermal, photovoltaic, etc )?
Why are you not putting in the same effort to fight Global Warming as you are to fighting inflation?
You said recently "Hi, my name is Kevin, and I'm here to help" - Didn't you really mean "... and I'm here to help the Coal Industry" ?
When it comes to Global Warming, it would appear to me that your government's first budget is 'rearranging the deck chairs whilst the Titanic is sinking'.
Ok - some passengers might deny the ship is sinking (the water used to be 4 metres below their cabin's port-hole, and now its gone up to 6 metres - so from their perspective the ship is rising!), but the scientific consensus is the HMAS Earth is sinking and we have to do something about it NOW!
So why are you making it MORE difficult for Australians to 'use our existing life-boats' like installing solar cells on their roofs ?
Why are you investing large sums of money in trying to develop a new super 'lifeboat' (so-called clean coal - which might not even float), when there are existing technologies available TODAY (like solar thermal, wind, geothermal, photovoltaic, etc )?
Why are you not putting in the same effort to fight Global Warming as you are to fighting inflation?
You said recently "Hi, my name is Kevin, and I'm here to help" - Didn't you really mean "... and I'm here to help the Coal Industry" ?
There's a moggy in there
With all the back arching, hissing, scratching and spraying that's gone on around Canberra these last few weeks, I'm beginning to think that Bill Hall's catty look at politicians may be close to the truth of the matter.
In short, a cat can look half its size when attacking and twice its size when bluffing. Hence a cat looks four times as large on defense as on offense.
The same is true of politicians. The more trouble they are in, the louder they yowl and the larger and more terrifying they try to appear.
In short, a cat can look half its size when attacking and twice its size when bluffing. Hence a cat looks four times as large on defense as on offense.
The same is true of politicians. The more trouble they are in, the louder they yowl and the larger and more terrifying they try to appear.
FEVHA Visual Arts Festival, Bangalow & Byron Bay, May 28 - June 1 2008
This year's FEHVA festival will be held from Saturday until June 1 at the Bangalow A&I Hall, with special events also staged at local venues in Byron Bay and Bangalow.
The festival was developed five years ago as a two-day event with the aim of raising money for The Buttery, a drug and alcohol rehabilitation centre in Bangalow.---
Australia's top visual arts practitioners will be guest speakers at the festival weekend, including Pete O'Doherty and Reg Mombassa who will talk about their experiences as brothers, artists and musicians.
Well-known international musician and patron of The Buttery, David Helfgott, will perform at the opening of the FEHVA art exhibition next Monday.
The flag event, according to Ms Tipping, is the art auction and banquet which will be held on Thursday, May 29.
Tickets are $100 per person and include champagne on arrival, canapés, gourmet dinner platters, wine and dessert.
Ms Tipping said the reason for a visual arts festival was because the Northern Rivers was thriving with talented artists.
Go to FEVHA wesite here for information on art prizes, workshops, lectures etc.
Art work shown above "And the brightness begins" by Emma Walker
http://www.timolsengallery.com/
The festival was developed five years ago as a two-day event with the aim of raising money for The Buttery, a drug and alcohol rehabilitation centre in Bangalow.---
Australia's top visual arts practitioners will be guest speakers at the festival weekend, including Pete O'Doherty and Reg Mombassa who will talk about their experiences as brothers, artists and musicians.
Well-known international musician and patron of The Buttery, David Helfgott, will perform at the opening of the FEHVA art exhibition next Monday.
The flag event, according to Ms Tipping, is the art auction and banquet which will be held on Thursday, May 29.
Tickets are $100 per person and include champagne on arrival, canapés, gourmet dinner platters, wine and dessert.
Ms Tipping said the reason for a visual arts festival was because the Northern Rivers was thriving with talented artists.
Go to FEVHA wesite here for information on art prizes, workshops, lectures etc.
Art work shown above "And the brightness begins" by Emma Walker
http://www.timolsengallery.com/
Rudders - will you stop being a purient old wowser and leave that young woman in peace
"Prime Minister Kevin Rudd has confirmed the Defence Department is investigating whether Australian celebrity Tania Zaetta had sex with Australian special forces soldiers while on a recent tour of Afghanistan. "
Even after the experience of the Howard years, sometimes it's hard to believe that any man who leads a national government can be so mindboggling stupid.
With the young woman in question saying that the allegations are untrue and even the nasty, barrack's rumour not charging that anything occurred under duress, it is hard to see why the Prime Minister didn't pour cold water on the Dept. of Defence investigation into the entertainment tour of Afghanistan.
The whole thing has the feel of a fair dinkum furphy.
Rudders, I'm not going to remember this week as one where you made a statement about the "obscenity" of homelessness in Australia.
I'm going to remember this week as the one in which you allowed a bunch of old soldiers to invade the privacy of a young woman.
Getting your knees dusty next Sunday won't change anything - you've done a fool, fool, thing.
And then the story changed......
"The Defence Department has issued an unreserved apology to celebrity Tania Zaetta, after she was named in a leaked Defence note detailing inappropriate conduct.
The Federal Government has announced an inquiry into the leaked briefing note about allegations Ms Zaetta had sex with soldiers during her recent entertainment tour to Afghanistan.
Defence has tonight issued a statement saying the document containing Ms Zaetta's name was a draft and it was withdrawn minutes after it was written because of privacy concerns."
How many pork pies in a day does that make?
Even after the experience of the Howard years, sometimes it's hard to believe that any man who leads a national government can be so mindboggling stupid.
With the young woman in question saying that the allegations are untrue and even the nasty, barrack's rumour not charging that anything occurred under duress, it is hard to see why the Prime Minister didn't pour cold water on the Dept. of Defence investigation into the entertainment tour of Afghanistan.
The whole thing has the feel of a fair dinkum furphy.
Rudders, I'm not going to remember this week as one where you made a statement about the "obscenity" of homelessness in Australia.
I'm going to remember this week as the one in which you allowed a bunch of old soldiers to invade the privacy of a young woman.
Getting your knees dusty next Sunday won't change anything - you've done a fool, fool, thing.
And then the story changed......
"The Defence Department has issued an unreserved apology to celebrity Tania Zaetta, after she was named in a leaked Defence note detailing inappropriate conduct.
The Federal Government has announced an inquiry into the leaked briefing note about allegations Ms Zaetta had sex with soldiers during her recent entertainment tour to Afghanistan.
Defence has tonight issued a statement saying the document containing Ms Zaetta's name was a draft and it was withdrawn minutes after it was written because of privacy concerns."
How many pork pies in a day does that make?
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