Golden rule of polite public discourse - don't mention the war, or the bum, particularly when it is attached to the Prime Minister.

Opposition Leader Tony Abbott did not mention the bum, at least not explicitly when approached by a lady at a community forum who advised him with evident enthusiasm to ''get some of those jackets'' off the Prime Minister.

But Mr Abbott heartily endorsed recent comments from Germaine Greer, who criticised the cut of Ms Gillard's suit jackets, and her super-sized backside.

Read more: http://www.smh.com.au/opinion/political-news/abbott-turns-cheek-after-pm-gibe-20120329-1w16y.html#ixzz1qYIpRTu6

With budgies like these don't mention the bum... nor the jacket... And Greer's fashion sense isn't too great either...

Hi Gus,

I think it's actually quite reasonable for Tony Abbott to have agreed with a comment made to him in private, if that's what he thinks .... a different matter if he had made such remarks publicly, in person. 

As for Geramine's comments, I agree with you that she is no 'fashion plate', but that shouldn't prevent her having a view on Julia anymore than anyone-else.

By the way, I agree with Germaine, Tony & his 'anonymous' fashion informant.

Don't you think that this is all rather trivial when compared to Kyle Sandilands efforts? And no real punishment there ....

Cheers. 

But Employment Minister Bill Shorten was critical of both Ms Greer and Mr Abbott.

"I wouldn't have said what Tony Abbott said. It's just ridiculous," he told Channel 7.

Victorian Liberal Russell Broadbent went into bat for the Prime Minister in a television interview late yesterday afternoon. Asked about Mr Abbott's remarks, Mr Broadbent issued a gentle rebuke to his leader: ''I'd suggest the Prime Minister is wearing classic lines. I wouldn't be criticising the Prime Minister for what she wears,'' Mr Broadbent told ABC 24. He said Ms Gillard wanted to be fashionable. The deputy leader of the Liberal Party, Julie Bishop also liked to be fashionable. ''Most of us don't have the perfect body, but we like to be fashionable,'' Mr Broadbent said.

Read more: http://www.smh.com.au/opinion/political-news/abbott-turns-cheek-after-pm-gibe-20120329-1w16y.html#ixzz1qYhTZJ9c

OR BE NAKED... 

FEW issues can be less important than what the Prime Minister wears. As long as prime ministers are male that is.

Nobody knows how many suits a male prime minister might have, and nobody cares. An appearance before the public in a brown suit might cause a frisson, and blue isn't seen all that often, but as long as the general impression is subfusc, he will pass muster.

Read more: http://www.smh.com.au/lifestyle/fashion/its-high-time-for-gillard-to-roll-up-her-sleeves-20120505-1y569.html#ixzz1ty991oGg

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The more Germaine harps on about Julia's sense of dress, the more I believe Germaine suffers from amnesia and/or possibly Alzheimer...

As I have written in my summation of the night of night:

I have been informed, truthfully, I believe it, that had Julia Gillard entered the room last night she would  have shone like a super model. Not because of who she is — most journos hate her — but because most journos are no fashion idols either. Even with the way she dresses, she would have killed them. Most of them, the journos, are far too overweight, males and females — I supposed they're trying to emulate their idol (Laurie Oakes) and would have been disappointed to see him so thin — and they were frumpy as if they were "mutton trying to dress up as lamb"...

What you can be sure of, in our rapidly spinning world, is that once a woman has climbed to any political height, people will be standing below with binoculars, checking out her frock and her shoes. Women of all dots and stripes, in all professions, know they will be judged on their appearance; so much so that it is frequently considered a measure of their success. This is predictable.

But you don’t expect this from a brilliant woman who has spent decades as an intellectual heretic and counter cultural mutineer. You don’t expect Germaine Greer, global feminist icon, to be now championing a debate about the size of a female leader’s bottom, or the cut of her clothes.

First, she said, unprompted on Q and A that Gillard had a “big ass” and had to “get over it” and dress accordingly. Then last weekend, she devoted an entire article to Gillard’s need to tailor, or discard her jackets. 

http://www.dailylife.com.au/news-and-views/dl-opinion/germaine-you-broke-our-hearts-20120508-1yaci.html