Bob Carr wasn't responsible for the rapid population growth in Sydney that created all the traffic chaos. Indeed, he had the courage to say Sydney was "full up". The Federal Government, for much of the time a Coalition one, held the levers on population growth and was responsible for the blow-out in immigration. And don't discount the value of those national parks. They will be appreciated for generations to come, not only by our own descendants but by countless other species, especially as climate zones move with climate change. We will need the contiguity of national parks to allow migration of species, either to higher altitudes or southwards.

But I hope the lesson we are all learning is that, if population growth is to occur, there must be adequate funds to supply infrastructure. That includes housing, schools, hospitals, parks and not just transport. The other lesson is that there are limits to growth. As we read today, few ordinary couples can afford to buy land on the outskirts of Melbourne now. Come the oil crisis, those couples that do will not be able to afford to drive to work. There had better be electric trains (fueled by renewable energy) to get them there, otherwise society might just grind to a halt.

Asleep at the wheel?

You mean, he actually knew there was a wheel?

Bob Carr was undoubtedly the laziest politician I have ever come across. While cultivating his "I'm an intellectual" image - which quite possibly was well earned - he failed to act on any core State issue.

He may even be the most cynical, given the nature of his departure. No succession planning, no thought of the condition of his Party. Just a quick "Goodbye, I'm out of here", giving the strong impression that he was bored by the whole thing, and a mere ten weeks later, a "Hello Macquarie Bank" half-a-million consultancy.

It could hardly have been a more blatant move by a Premier who had only recently gifted the Bank and its investors a massive return with the Eastern Distributor franchise. A two-finger salute to anyone who might at one time have thought him better than the run-of-the-mill money-grubbing hacks that populate our parliaments.

The bloke was an utter disgrace to his Party, and to politics at large.

Thankfully I live in Victoria --- except --- the issue of National Parks is quickly glossed over.
All land owned by the public deserves good management. Many of NSW National Parks have had their 4WD track access blocked and revegetated.
A 21st Century forest without access for management will deteriorate. Without regular cool fire, well contained, fuel builds up and becomes an excessively hot fire in summer. Soil burned in 1000C heat is blown and washed away and native animal habitat no longer exists. (We've made that mistake in Victoria. I can show you the bare rocks)
I just don't care what the Greens policy is at this moment, for too long it has been anti cool burning. For the sake of native animal habitat, get rid of the Greens and institute good forestry.

True for the most part.

Labor has been running down for decades. Car said he would be the Education Premier. What did he do for education? Not much- just whatever was easy.
Carr and co. have given us the creaky, bureaucratic Dept of Education and Training, which the enquiries have found made the biggest mess of the Building the Education Revolution disaster. At least, a disaster for the State schools.
Wasnt it Carr who said we need more good women as MPs- and gave us Karyn Paluzzano who was forced to resign amid a scandal of lies and corruption?
Carr gave in to the lefties in the teacher unions. Appeased radical feminists. Wouldn't do anything to improve things in boys' education.
And on his watch the State's rail network was allowed to steadily get worse. No new work was done. Just announcements. Clever announcements timed for the Sunday news bulletins.
That's in sum why O Farrell has said- No more spin, no more big announcements; we'll just do the job.
Let's hope he does it. In NSW we're sick of having the worst-managed State in the country.

Good article, Patrick, a refresher on why I felt sick when this pseudo intellectual dunce became premier of this State.

I did not realise that I have been feeling sick for the last 16 years, until I woke up on Sunday, feeling terrific, with this disease to our State political system cleaned out.

You are obviously not a farmer, or you would not approve this clown proclaiming national parks, in which to grow noxious weeds and feral animals, to infest farmlands State wide, where tha farmers will be served with notices to eradicate the national park bred feral fauna and noxious flora.

He invested in real estate in NZ, where they have no stamp duty. He would not subject himself to the inquitous duties inflicted on us by his rotten government in NSW. Nice to see his investment devalued in a country unfortunate enough to have a carbon tax inflicted on it, which is rapidly making things worse.

No doubt the perpetrators of this iniquitous tax will attempt to blame the Christchurch earthquake for the economic disaster now in train. I hope the citizens of NZ do not fall for that lie. Falling for the AGW fraud is bad enough.

Patrick you are 100% correct in all aspects of your assessment.

As many pundits, and some key Labor figures have stated, the self destruction of this pathetic Labor state government (oxymoron?!!) really accelerated when Robertson and the trogs in Sussex St rolled Iemma over the privatisation of the power industry. The scandals, incompetence and mendacity of the remaining members of this appalling government are too well known to bear repeating.

But in my mind, 16 years ago, the rot set in the day Bob Carr was elected. He did not drive, was obsessed with smooching the media, and made endless promises regarding roads and rail, which never materialised. I recall telling my wife, the day this bastard was elected, that NSW was making a terrible mistake, one for which we would pay dearly.

And so it came to be. Carr had a reputation for disdaining any form of “Strategic Plan”, similar to the “don’t give me any document more than one page” Paul Keating. And while the electorate smashed Keating after a relatively short time in office, the moronic element of the NSW electorate, aided by some pathetic Liberal ‘leadership’, continued to elect Labor governments.

The decay of government in NSW during these years of incompetence and inactivity, has progressively confirmed my forecasts that it would be, and in fact was, Bob Carr who set in place the style of government which has reduced NSW to its state of near terminal decay.