from Crikey .....

So how come an ETS was OK under John Howard? Ask the oldies .....

Canberra correspondent Bernard Keane writes:

This image of Uluru was composed by Gus (using Gus's own pictures) and can be used by anyone. Read more...

bishops, abbots and cardinal sins

At the heart of Joseph Heller's novel Catch-22 is a brilliant paradox: if you plead insanity to avoid suicidal bombing missions then you must be sane and can't be excused.

Tony Abbott will challenge Malcolm Turnbull for the Liberal leadership on Monday.

Mr Abbott is one of several frontbenchers who resigned yesterday over dissatisfaction with Mr Turnbull's handling of the emissions trading scheme legislation.

He says if Mr Turnbull refuses to change his mind on the bill on Friday, there will be a leadership spill on Monday.

The open rebellion within the Liberal Party continues this morning, with many starting to consider who will replace Malcolm Turnbull as Opposition Leader.

Even some of Mr Turnbull's supporters now say his position is so damaged that he will not be able to keep his job. One source close to him predicts he could resign as early as today.

The Opposition Leader was defiant last night despite mass resignations from his front bench yesterday evening.

Senators Nick Minchin and Eric Abetz and high-profile MP Tony Abbott were the most senior among the 12 Liberals to quit.

Malcolm Turnbull has vowed to go down fighting on climate change after a flood of Liberal frontbenchers - including Nick Minchin and Tony Abbott - quit last night in a bid to pressure the Opposition Leader to reverse his support for Labor's emissions trading scheme.

As the climate change rebels dramatically escalated their campaign, the shadow treasurer and Turnbull ally, Joe Hockey, declared himself prepared to stand for the leadership should Mr Turnbull fall.

Today, almost everything has changed and has not changed.

from the SMH

GODWIN GRECH was attempting to collude on fees paid to an investment banker, while styling himself as an intimate adviser to the Liberal leader, Malcolm Turnbull.

A report into the so-called ''Utegate'' affair outlines extensive links between Mr Grech and Mr Turnbull, John Howard's former chief of staff Arthur Sinodinos, and also John O'Sullivan, the head of investment banking at Credit Suisse and the husband of The Australian's Janet Albrechtsen.

MALCOLM TURNBULL'S critics have vowed to keep pursuing him and warned that unless the Coalition's standing in the polls improves early next year, he should expect another leadership challenge.

After days of rancour and division caused by Mr Turnbull's support for an emissions trading scheme, the Opposition Leader survived a leadership challenge by seven votes yesterday, beating Kevin Andrews by 48 to 35.

Mr Turnbull, whose temperament throughout the debate further alienated his detractors and worried his supporters, pledged to improve his manner.

Not so long ago, Hamid Karzai, the US-installed president of Afghanistan, used to be hailed by Washington and the US media as a noble democrat and statesman.

But as things in Afghanistan went from bad to worse, and Taliban gained strength and popularity, Washington directed its ire at Karzai, who had almost no power of his own and was forced to rely on the US, the Tajik-Uzbek-Communist Northern Alliance, and assorted drug-dealing warlords.

The first public hearings of the Iraq Inquiry began yesterday amid protests outside demanding that Tony Blair & Gordon Brown be held to account for war crimes, which led to the deaths of hundreds of thousands of Iraqis & 179 British troops.

Joining the protest were representatives from Military Families Against the War, reminding the inquiry committee of the anger felt by many relatives of British soldiers killed in Iraq.

Opposition Leader Malcolm Turnbull has urged his colleagues to unite behind him after a turbulent 24 hours for the Liberals which climaxed in the party's rejection of a move to hold a leadership spill.

The motion to hold a leadership ballot was brought on by backbencher Wilson Tuckey, but was voted down in the party room by 48 to 35 votes.

Mr Turnbull's leadership has been in dire trouble since he declared the Opposition would vote for the Government's amended emissions trading scheme (ETS) after a marathon day of meetings yesterday.

Rudd Labor was elected on a promise to "tackle climate change" but after signing the Kyoto Protocol in December 2007 (10 years late) it helped the US (the stand-out non-ratifier of the Kyoto Protocol) to sabotage the Bali Climate Change Conference (December 2007) and then the Poznan Climate Change Conference (December 2008) by refusing to commit to targets.