I agree wholeheartedly with your comments mickijo,and I add that it annoys the hell out of me that Maxine McKew has for years showed her strong Labor bias in interviews when she was working for the national broadcaster ABC. She could not keep her personal politics out of her job which shows she lacks the necessary disipline to do any good in politics. Perhaps Kerry O'Brien could now step up to the plate and take over from little mister good boy Kevin and then Kerry and Maxine can run the whole show. Labor will never do any good while they keep chucking out good men like Beasley and replacing him with the likes of Rudd. JMV

Well we have Labor supporters showing their indignation about myself alluding to the possible collusion of Maxine in a Labor media stunt.Let's assume she is innocent.Many people in the media and politics get death threats.Mostly they don't go to the media since that just encourages the lunies.Surely Maxine was advised against going public.

It is not in the interest of the Liberals and John Howard for this nonsense to occur.Maxine in time will undo herself.Howard is too clever for her.

Will some one answer a simple question? Why did four men with torches make a fanfare of examining Maxine's car so neighbours would report it to the media?Why did this event co-inside with death threats? Sounds like Labor dirty tricks to me.

When Mr. Howard was first elected he promised that his Ministers would need to abide by a code of conduct. That was fine until too many Ministers were being caught out and the bar was lowered.

Mr. Campbell has hardly done anything wrong in comparison to his peers whose eploits have been ignored in the past. Parliamentary standards as set by the Coalition Government are low.

Right at the time Mr.Rudd was elected leader we were told that the Liberals would be looking for dirt on him.

It would appear that we would compromise ourselves if we associate with politicians, judging by the list of misdemeanors committed by politicians:
"An email I received indicates that the Federal Members of Parliament have the following related to them:
· 36 have been accused of spousal abuse.
· 7 have been arrested for fraud.
· 19 have been accused of writing bad checks
· 117 have directly or indirectly bankrupted at least 2 businesses.
· 3 have done time for assault
· 71 cannot get a credit card due to bad credit.
· 14 have been arrested on drug-related charges.
· 8 have been arrested for shoplifting
· 21 currently are defendants in lawsuits.
· 84 have been arrested for being drunk"

These facts have been reported by Mr Gerrit H Schorel-Hlavka on another thread.

Its a bit rich that a political party that has been misleading the Australian electorate for years ( TAMPA, war in Iraq, interest rates )takes a holier than thou stance.

Truth disappears! As Dr Jocelynne A. Scutt has said in another discussion on "Illegality is the opposite of morality", and I reference here:

"When a country is invaded illegally, international law is breached, UN determinations flagrantly ignored, and truth disappears, the only solution"....

is ..... ?

"Nothing done in the name of the occupation of Iraq can be moral. When based in illegality, lies, untruths and hypocrisy, moral foundations crumble like sand. The Iraqi occupation is immoral. That is the bottom line."

Should the ALP win this election... it again is faced (election pattens) with the task of repair.... war vs humanity vs balance over economic's?

And I hate saying this sort of stuff but Howards reference to Ron Walker reminded me of the post Iraq invasion "Development Contracts" first given out by the Bush Government to American companys. Like the Walker case, there was no consultation just "passing dialogue" (?) over something (assumptions) just as serious... and a government properganda machine runs on it... When will this lack of intelligence or lack of development research, planning, and unsustainable development practice end. We ought to know better...!

The manipulation is like REAL ESTATE AGENTS stealing the life-style quotes from tree-huggers to over-price the tropics... if you get my drift.

Finally after watching Costello today.... I warn him to safe-guard what integrity he has left. He is risking himself by doing what he is doing.... and undoing anything he prides himself on.

Keith the thing I am trying to say is coming.... it is that the ALP is closer to the common man and anyone (which includes myself) who trys to remain objective - A political or neutral is drawn in over humanitarian socio-economic sustainable development issues. I mean it is hard to remain autonomous and especially for those with any depth working in all areas of the media. Moral wellbeing is always difficult to defend because to be moral... there is the same traps as being extreme right.... which is why the middle sail is so hard to voyage.

Truth vs everthing else ...... vs power vs LIFE?

We need politicians who look to Australian's welfare, our security, our place in the world. And we need politicians who do their duty with dignity and honour.
Not with one eye on the ratings system.

in the words of Queensland Liberal Senator George Brandis, the lying rodent is now giving out the bribes to re-elect him, trouble is the public have seen this act too many times before, and are not buying it this time.