Dear Squeers,

I wish that I could see things your way...
But at present I'm not sure what
I as a voter can really influence.

Politicians use polspeak - and how can you
tell what on earth they really mean? It seems
to me that polspeak's method is to express
everything so vaguely and densely that
polspeakers can extricate themsleves from
difficulties by claiming not to have said
what they did in fact say. Tony Abbott is
excellent at doing this. He learned it from
John Howard. Who would leave the announcement
to a public servant (Ministers announce only
good news themselves).

Thus if a Minister is asked by a journalist
if something is true. The polspeak answer would
be:

"The decision-making process with regard to this
matter is currently in place. It would be improper
for me at this point in time to pre-empt the
eventual outcome as a result of community
consultations, one way of another, of that ongoing
decision and consultative process."

Gillard speaking the truth?
Well, as we've seen by recent events the rate of
change of momentum in the speed of government business
is proportionate to the nearness of the next election.
She will say and do whatever is necessary to win the
next election - and that I guess is politics.

I totally support Julia's honesty on the subject but with my usual level of " wonder what the motive is"?
I am sure that Toni will play it subtly during the election to try and develop the christian vote.
As i have no television i see little of the commercial media and am unaware of how they are handling the situation. The good old ABC seem to be treating it as a non event on the radio. It certainly places her in an interesting position when it comes to the handling of RE in schools.

Yes CJ, I know Margaret Court founded the Victory Life Church in Perth.
I have had to suffer through some very angry pro-religious letters to the Editor of our local paper from her many times!

She would be shattered that an apparently 'godless' woman was now our Prime Minister, and will no doubt have plenty more to say on the subject.

I find it all quite amusing!

Foxy... are we at cross purposes perhaps?

The heading on the thread refers only to the PMs open and honest declaration of not believing in a god, and certainly not God, is all.

I don't think that can be twisted, changed, or be misrepresented by her or anyone else.

CJM... "Next step: get rid of the Lord's Prayer from Parliament. After that, chaplains in schools, tax concessions for religious organisations, funding for religious schools etc etc.".

The prayers can go anytime the MHRs decide to dump them, since they are there only by virtue of Standing Orders, and could go at the next sitting if they so decided, no 'laws' involved there.

Chaplains, yes, they should never have been there, but will Crean do what Gillard refused to?

That is a real test of Gillard's resolve to be different to Rudd, and independent from lobby groups, be they trades unions or General Jimbo and his Christian Stormtroopers.

Tax concessions, get your response in to Xenophons Senate Committee NOW... religious schools... hard luck, the High Court gave that away with the DOGS case and you can thank that auld fraud Whitlam for that, meshing religion and politics has cost this nation dearly as the result of his lust for power and Catholic votes.

Nairbe... the motive? To distance herself from Rudd and Howard's complicity in dogwhistling to the likes of the Senator 'Albert' Fielding's of this world...and maybe to rub Rudd's nose into his evangelical inclinations, punishment for telling everyone he was a Creationist and then denying it later...and for wasting yet another $50m of ATO funds on fake chaplains.

CJM... there is a letter a mate just sent to me, to the PM, here:
http://australiansecularlobby.com/2010-06-28_PM.html

"then they would be rightly condemned by the Church"

David you know full well that the church is not one body when it comes to speaking on political issues (or the behavior of christain politicians). Parts of the church might be critical of some christian politicians, others will be openly supportive and much will remain silent.

You have not even managed to condemn runner for his posts in the name of god on these threads. Ducking for cover with weak excuses of him expressing things differently.

Give us a break.

R0bert

The worry about the religious vote is not the worry. Too long the human race has had the god noose dictating our development and its about time Australia becomes a secular society, and by LAW, and a vote must be placed.

TTm