"This is the internet, if you don't know how to spell something, an online dictionary is a few seconds away. It does your credibility no good to pretend to know something that takes 10 seconds to find out that you don't."

but love, that incident was essentially pre internet, or at best in dial up days with no google

and so Menzies was xenophobic for sure with his "yellow peril" [and never knew what it meant, as it TOO is a PC/Weasel word, going forward, at the end of the day] but did his congoline man Howard get his xenophobia from Pauline, Menzies or Bush?

and after Howard/Kirby incident I coined my own PC word Hefferphobic, so all this means zip IF the public is in grip of PC, as we are now, as seen by the replies

Ok, dear. Woooooshh.

That is the sound of a point going over ones head. I was of course not referring to Pauline in this case. It is forgivable for Pauline not being able to answer a question being put on the spot (but it dis still expose her ignorance), but for someone to post something ON THE INTERNET, without at least a basic spell check (considering what he was asking people to do) is a bit silly, don't you think, love?

For that matter, to also admire someone like Kerry Packer but say that he was 'poorly educated', when in fact he went to Geelong Grammar School (just like Prince Charles!) also does one's credibility no good. Most people have heard of google- it only takes 10 seconds. Of course comprehension skills take a lot longer....

Steel "http://www.google.com/search?q=cia+whitlam"

try looking http://www.google.com/search?q=cia+rectal+probe.

I found heaps of links to that too.

and http://www.homeclick.com/1/1/38812-cia-digital-thermometer-24705.html

might suggest they are over stocked and flogging em off for $14.95 a piece

However, one of them lead me to an appropriate response too

"Just because you're paranoid doesn't mean they're not out to get you."

Being able to find text on links to the websites of rat-bag leftie crutch-gropers is no basis for claiming something is true.

as wikipedia says "A minority of left wing commentators believe the United States was involved." - which presume the majority of leftwing commentators do not.

The ability to google is a wonderful thing, provided you end up somewhere credible, rather than the gullible.

Pericles,

I cannot believe you have the gall to slag off the Australian public and their dislike of slick politicians and then two posts later exhibit the same type of behaviour yourself.

You say “Actually thinking about politics and policies is, at heart, patently un-Australian.” Yet you can at the same time with a straight face suggest that “Our politicians are a set of money-grubbing chancers, who take every opportunity to eat out at our expense, travel first class at our expense, rort their expenses at every opportunity and cling to power way beyond any conceivable use-by date.”

Unfortunately yours is a widely ( if shallowly ) held truism of the Australian public that belongs with the rest of the “old wives tales”. Hardly surprising that someone with that mindset might see Pauline Hanson as a breath of fresh air.

Your so called cynicism is just a nice way of covering up your intellectual laziness. Vanilla is bang on when he suggests that our politicians are a mixed bag of all types. Grow up

You might have to think of a more effective put-down than "grow up", Paul.L, it doesn't have a high enough sneer-content.

>>I cannot believe you have the gall to slag off the Australian public and their dislike of slick politicians and then two posts later exhibit the same type of behaviour yourself<<

Please enlighten me - where exactly did I mention slick politicians?

And the slight on the Australian public that you infer is entirely from your imagination.

You appear to consider it insulting to point out that people might prefer straight-talking battlers to represent them in Parliament.

Isn't that just a tad snobbish?

And forgive me for being thick, but I cannot see any contradiction between "Actually thinking about politics and policies is, at heart, patently un-Australian" and "Our politicians are a set of money-grubbing chancers..."

In fact, if you look at it more carefully, you may actually discern a level of cause and effect operating here. If we did worry more about them, and what they got up to, the chances are that they wouldn't get away with a tenth of that which we let them today.

>>Unfortunately yours is a widely ( if shallowly ) held truism of the Australian public that belongs with the rest of the “old wives tales”<<

If only.

If only there weren't an almost daily reminder of the venality of today's politician, and the absolute disdain with which they treat their constituents.

>>Your so called cynicism is just a nice way of covering up your intellectual laziness. Vanilla is bang on when he suggests that our politicians are a mixed bag of all types.<<

If Vanilla and I weren't such great friends, I'd be tempted to reply that simply pointing out that "politicians are a mixed bag of all types" can itself be regarded as somewhat intellectually lazy, since it is a remark that doesn't actually say a great deal.

At least I provided a few examples.