Gillard and Rudd:
Glen Frost writes: Re. Yesterday’s editorial. Editorial comment from Crikey like “Time for the Gillard and Rudd camps to act like adults” is “absolute crap” (to use Tony Abbott’s phrase) — you exist to inform us plebs about the what goes on in politics; so stick to that.
Editorialise on who’s winning, who’s losing and why, and who might get stabbed in the back — that’s where you can add value, not by writing what my 13-year-old could deduce.
If you think Canberra’s immature, take a look at Italy, Greece, etc, or better still, try running for office yourself (federal politics that is, not the student union).
Niall Clugston writes: Your editorial calls for “the Gillard and Rudd camps to act like adults”, but they are. It’s childish to deny the fact that Gillard replaced Rudd, a first-term PM, because of his low approval ratings, and now she has worse ratings than him.
The whole practice of cutting down leaders who fail to succeed is counterproductive, and the prime example of this is the Liberals, not Labor. Let’s not forget that John Howard only became prime minister after his party chose Andrew Peacock (again), John Hewson, and even Alexander Downer as leader of the opposition before giving Lazarus a second shot.
The problem is, as Stalin observed, once you start knifing people you never stop.
Live cattle:
Patricia Morley-Brown writes: Re. “Live exports ban: drugs in cattle feed could threaten industry again” (Yesterday, item 1). The author of this article states that the use of the asthma drug in Indonesian cattle feed lots does not impact on Australians but in my opinion this is not so. Imported beef seldom if ever finds its way to the villages where locally grown beef is available.
Imported beef is absorbed by the tourist industry in the high-end hotels and restaurants particularly in Bali as well as the increasing number of very wealthy Indonesians. So I think that it is reasonable to say that Australian tourists, and there are so many of them, are at risk.
Oz Network:
Mike Oley writes: Re. “Waste-of-space Oz Network bewitches another political generation” (yesterday, item 2). How can Bernard Keane be such a curmudgeon! I can remember living in Indonesia in the 1990s and absolutely thriving on Australia television’s diet of local footy from Perth, sheep dog trials and lawn bowls. The locals were also enthralled and it gave them a sense of what Australia was really about!
I would like to see some considered comment from the knowledgeable Canberra types about how someone like RUDD (non aligned) secures his position as PM.
I’m not a total RUDD fan but he was a break from the factional power brokers who have now returned.
If the greatest criticism of RUDD is that he was an autocratic, then it is for the others to step up and tell him but I don’t think there is enough cement in Australian to stiffen the spines of this cabinet.
If they all agreed that there global warming is serious then why weren’t they out making the case for the policy. It was because the polls had changed and what do they do then. Knife the leader and say it was his fault. Go to the next election and say we will only bring it in when the polls agree.
Your then forced to agree due to bring one in because of the hung parliament and later take credit for it. ( Does anyone see the hypocrisy?)
It is because they are all lawyers who haven’t the verbal authority to sway people, so rely on polls to to tell what the people think and then agree with them.( they would die in the court room)
I also wonder whether the system support the journo’s with their daily leaks to support their column deadlines, it is too hard to break away from being hand fed.