I think the most interesting point raised in this article - the sleeper issue - is the departure of Arthur Sinodinos from Howard's office.

the departure of a close adviser could indeed lead to a loss of finesse in Howard's handling of particular issues. Then again, Howard's long experience with the media means he has by now internalised the basics to such a degree that he might no longer need Sinodinos the way he used to.

It's the equivalent of the Australian cricket team losing some of its star performers over Xmas - it still leaves a formidable team in play, but with a nagging doubt that some of the magic may have left with them.

Of course, this remains to be seen, and nobody is indispensible in the large corporatised operation of modern political offices. Nevertheless...

Interesting that late last year, many articles wrote that John Howard was "unbeatable" and the ALP was would never govern again, and how the election was a forgone conclusion.

I notice the tone is changing. Mind you most postings in OLO have been pro-Howard.

Even Liberal voters are noting that they were just a tad arrogant last year to assume that they were so obviously right and everyone else was an imbecile.

Are people happier than they were 10 years ago? I don't know many.

The spin will be in full throttle soon but I think many have wizened to the Howard-esk style of propaganda. No body likes a liar.

Howard and just laughs this deception from the lies of the AWB not being known by the Government, that our troops had to go to Iraq as the Weapons of Mass Destruction could even make it to Australia. Ridiculous? Not at the time. It was on the front page of the SMH, and Australians were stupid enough to believe it.

He didn't even ensure that special force David Cobko was allocated the right coffin. The duty of care for soldiers has been frightening. Good thing the Australian soldiers are so resourceful themselves.

A PM that locks children in cages in the outback. Yeah, family values.

A PM who had the Brokeback Mountain or Camp David FTA talks selling out our businesses to US interests to his cowboy "bum buddy", George W Bush. This indulgence still puts our PBS system at jeopardy. Pharmaceutical costs rising are no coincidence, its part of the deal.

As in Brokeback Mountain, Bush and Howard, the couple neglected thier own flocks of sheep.

But they did have a great time in the tent...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vRZ3CBs7o6I

This is a pathetic reflection of this country. It is really embarrassing. The would laughs at Australia's pathetic "lapdog" label.

The Government really is on the nose. A clear stench of defeat? Still many months to come for that.

One thing I have noticed under Howard is that Australians have whole heartedly embraced materialism more than any other nation in the world. We were hard at it back in the 70's only with a little more innocent. Then along came the 80's which put the kybosh on our journey of self indulgence. Over the past ten years we have accelerated down that path at such a rate as to make up for the lost time. I hold Howard and main stream media partly responsible for the dumbing down of this country. I hold the people partly responsible for accepting this "Leadership". Howard is the captain of a leaking ship. I wonder how the Labor party is going turn this around?

Oh Tapp, “It is obvious that Col Rouge doesn’t even see the dictatorship of Australian politics as real.”

Get a life, we live in a democracy, obviously you have no experience of what a real dictatorship is. Moscow was closer to London than Melbourne is to Sydney. Proximity tends to educate.

StFletch “A PM that locks children in cages in the outback. Yeah, family values.”

Maybe you should consider first the actions of the parents put those children into boats and sailed to Australia with the expressed intention of illegally circumventing immigration officials, not forgetting that they most likely destroyed their identity papers to cause confusion and fraudulently claim to be of a nationality which they weren’t.

FTA also means Australian firms have greater access to US Markets, darn it how unfair can that be?

“It is really embarrassing. The would laughs at Australia's pathetic "lapdog" label.”

The embarrassment is people like you, malcontents who cannot accept that the democratic majority of people think differently to you and think that this government will do a better job again than Krudd & Co or the Greenies or anyone else.

As for “A clear stench of defeat” no, I suggest bathing more often, you are obviously offending your own nose.

Porphyrin “journey of self indulgence.”

Is not the purpose of government was to respond to the will of the electorate?

The purpose of government is not to choose or direct anyone’s “journey”, oh I know the socialists like to think they have the moral high ground and the right to corral us ordinary voters into the path of socialist enlightenment but since the collapse of the Berlin wall, the ideals of socialism, recalling that Lenin said “The goal of socialism is communism.” All sounds a very hollow.

If it is someone’s choice to be “self indulgent” then let them be so. Their life, let them lead it as they choose and live with the consequences. No government ever knows better than the individuals themselves, the trouble is too many “politicians of the left” pretend they do.