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different front benchI would love some feed back as to what others think of Mr. Beazley saying he will keep his front bench intact to the next election. I would love to see more females. I would like everyone to be serious and give a list of who they think would be good in what spots. Remember this site is here for informative ideas, as well as everything else. |
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Situation not dire
He said his party's federal wing was looking to the future.
Beazley fends off Latham attack
"Now Simon Crean wrote the book on regional development. It is going to be a critical part of the Labor Party's campaign and there he is to spearhead it."
Peering into the futurescope, there are a couple more urgent needs in the regions to the far north, and the distant west. Piping water from the Kimberleys to Perth. If that's a fizzer, load it onto ships, or trucks. A power line from Mt Isa to Darwin. If that's a fizzer, load it onto trucks.
That 'spearhead' metaphor has a lot going for it. I hope Simon is up to the challenge. Uriah was a terrific spear-carrier for King David.
Doug calms ruffled egos
Labor leader plays down reshuffle disquiet
Former Labor leader Simon Crean was demoted in the reshuffle from the trade portfolio to regional development. Mr Beazley has told Channel Ten that it is the best spot for Mr Crean and everyone is now where they should be.
Doug agrees with that. It's time Labor solved a problem, any problem. Mandatory detention was all too easy, that's why they left it to the Libs. There is a flood of cane toads heading for the west coast. It's easy to blame John Howard for the relentless march of the toads. Send Mr Crean up to the Kimberley region. Having stopped the toads, Labor will be in a better position to convince ordinary Aussies that its policies will keep Australia pristine, pure, white and proud.
Doug shuffles the deck
Doug's promotional contract with VB is almost over, and anticipating some short-term cash deficit, went to old buddy Mark Vaile enquiring after prospects. The office ante-room was crowded with owners of trucks, trains, boats and planes, but Doug was waved through. Surprisingly, Mark didn't have much. He offered Doug a job as deckhand on the Bass Strait ferry or peddling pedal radios out back in Kidman country. Doug had noticed the albatross round Mark's neck. He'd heard rumours that horses bolt when some Nat MPs drive their Range Rovers into the countryside. Doug declined, gracefully.
On the way out, he spotted Lindsay Fox. Lin is always out for a chance, and it hadn't escaped Doug's notice that Luna Park had a new owner. Doug had many fond memories of the Rotor, the Giggle Palace, the Roller Coaster, Chamber of Horrors and the Big Dipper, so hinted to Lin that an offer to fill a vacancy on the front bench would be received kindly. "Meet me at Luna Park in half an hour." This surprised Doug, since he knew Labor preferred experience, starting with the candidate suckling at mother's breast in a ministerial advisary office. Predictability was also a prized Labor asset, an invaluable character trait derived from a family legacy of several generations of inbred, oldtime party thought. Despite being a rank outsider, a completely unknown talent, Doug would give it a shot.
Doug was reassured by learning the Walt Disney Company is also believed to have expressed interest in Luna Park, and that Mr Fox's friend and former ACTU chief Bill Kelty is on the board of the Australian Retirement Fund, partner in the previous management. Doug brightened to know Luna Park is not Mr Fox's first investment in the precinct.
He used to own the St Moritz ice skating rink, where he first met his wife, Paula, in 1955.
Some of the scarier rides were already supervised. Wayne was on the Ghost Train (You can be sure you’ll be left shaking in your boots when the Luna Park ghouls get to work with their special brand of creepiness. If you weren’t afraid of the dark before, you are bound to be terrified of it once you’ve ridden the ghost train!), Kim on the Pharoah's Curse (This vertical looping adventure is for serious riders who don't mind putting their eyeballs back in their sockets and picking their jaws off the ground when its over) and Craig was having the time of his life at the Shock Drop.
"Take your pick of the others, Doug. There are spare seats on the green leather, just give us time to reinvigorate the stuffing."
front bench
Re: Front Bench
Hi Nolly. I agree with you that more females are needed on the front bench.
After all females make up slightly more than half of the population so it would seem reasonable to expect a similar ratio on the front bench.
One female who I think would do a good job on the front bench is the Labor member for Capricornia Kirsten Livermore.
Ms Livermore is young, intelligent and enthusiastic. She is currently parliamentary secretary for education. A promotion onto the senior shadow ministry is possible.
Some other talent the ALP could look at using on the front bench:
Kay Denman, Senator from Tasmania.
Kate Ellis, member for Adelaide
Justine Elliot, member for Richmond.
Julie Owens, member for Parramatta.
Some fresh blood is needed and I would hope Kim would see the need to change a few of the tired old faces for some fresh ones.
Incidentally, I had hoped Julia Gillard would have become the leader of the opposition but, as someone else said to me, she is too young, too intelligent and too female.
YD Representative of the Month
Julia Irwin would be great. She says what she thinks and speaks very well.
Of course Shadow Minsters should be there on their merit, and knowledge of the subject they are assigned to. I allways wonder what qualifications they have and experience in the area they are allocated. I think they should have their resumes up on their individual web sites.
Has this site thought of awarding a democracy certificate to those MPs who go beyond the call of duty? (Hamish: 'This site' just did.)
Perhaps Mr Geogiou could be the first recipient.
(Hamish: Any other candidates for the month of July's Your Democracy Representative of the Month Award?)
on mediocrity .....
Can't say I agree with you on this John.
More than half the population are idiots; more than half couldn't care less about anyone other than themselves & more than half are obese. Does that mean we should have a parliamentary party made-up along the same demographic lines?
I've always supported the principle of people (rather than males, females or shemales) being appointed to any position being based on merit: whether in politics, business or anywhere-else.
As to the question of 'fresh blood', if Labour could break its habit of 'retiring / repositioning / rewarding' party apparartchiks with a comfortable life on the leather, at the expense of more deserving & capable candidates, then its interests & those of all of us might just be better served.
Quotas might make some look good & others feel good but, in reality, they just serve the interests of mediocrity.
Re: on mediocrity....
Hi John. I agree with what you say on quotas.
My point was that as females make up more than half of the population it stands to reason (my reason anyway!) that there should be at least an equal number of able competent women to choose from out there.
I don't suggest anyone should get more of an opportunity simply because of their gender.
I wonder what women think ....
Hi John.
Yup, so why aren't there more women in parliament & on the front benches of the major parties?
I don't know the answer, but based on the quality of current male parliamentarians, it is hard to believe that more than half the female population couldn't do a better job: provided they behaved as women & not 'pretend men'.
Is it that the preselection processes stacked against them: do parties think that they won't be able to garner sufficient electoral support unless they come across like some Boadicea-like caricature; is it simply that most women eschew the idea of a career in politics because they have too much self-respect or is it that a life in politics doesn't offer enough women what it is that they need & seek for fulfilment?
I wonder what the women think?
What this woman thinks?
John, I believe that maybe the reason that there isn't more women in Parliament and on the front benches of the major parties is because of the fact that the majority of Politicians in power are men and the men like the "boys club", as that way they can keep their little secrets, so they make the environment difficult for women.
I also feel that the way politicians' past activies and lives are dragged through the media might cause some women not to want to go there. Most people have done things in the past that they are not proud of and that they would hate to be on the front page of the news.
The way society is going I think we are really going to struggle to get anybody clean enough to be game enough to want to represent us.