Belly

The Democrats were started by ex Liberals, and only ever wanted to be like Menzies in supporting small business.

Kernot and Stott Despoja were abberations in leaning leftish.

Murray was closer to the core, and that woman, whose name I forget, who took over after the meltdown, who brown-nosed her way with Howard, was far closer to Howard than even Murray was.

The Democrats fell over because of her, and the failure of other Democrats to take charge, as with Rudd when he went bonkers and took off acting as if the ALP belonged to him.

The Greens are every bit as mad as the Democrats, with hundreds of individual members not clear on what it is they support. So they may well fall apart under pressure.

But it is unlikely that they will be as hopeless as the Democrats were.

As for looking for a hint of 'left' in the ALP, there is absolutely none there. Look who was once 'left', Tanner -rightwing neo-lib; Gillard-rightwing supporter of the ACL agenda and USA education systems, anti gay views, pro Baptist believer, as with Rudd; Ferguson, Martin- supports uranium mines and nuclear reactors in Oz;the other Ferguson has never lifted a finger to do anything useful; Jenny George- didn't she evaporate this time?; Combet-weak as water do nothing; Dougie Cameron from the metal workers-totally silent lounging in the Senate..and so it goes.

Your mates in Australia's Worst Union determine what goes on, as has happened since 1880. Look to them for reasons why the ALP is a failed and discredited flop of a political crew.

I fear those goons in NSW who determine how the ALP is run, more so than the Greens.

Lee Rhianon looks like a good sort though... she might have a bright new 'leftwing' view in the Senate, but she will be on her lonesome.

Some interesting thoughts have been presented here. Suze and Cornflower, in my experience the further you move from town the more likely it is people don't even bother locking their cars or their homes. Katter seems distinctly paranoid to me.
I can see a clear parallel between Akubras and the problems of the National Party. For working class (small) farmers, the Kooby was only for goin' to town. Way too hot to work in, unless you were the sort of farmer who only left his air conditioned office to hop in his air conditioned ute, or at worst his air conditioned tractor (if his farm manager was off crook).
The old Country Party was for country people; small farmers and the towns that supported them -and vice versa. The national party seems more interested in going with the money; the Pitt St farmers and campaign fund contributors. This makes them virtually indistinguishable from the Liberals.
So who do working class farmers and country folk vote for? Most small farmers (rugged individualists, all) dislike and fear the unions (strikes can destroy them) but at the same time they recognise the dangers of the farm conglomerate down the road, through unfair competition advantages.
In the district I come from, they vote for Rob Oakshott.
As for Belly's original post, I see a free-for-all parliament leading to the greediest pigs giving up their (pitifully few) principles to cross the floor, for the chance of a ministerial post and pay rise.
Since Paul Hogan told Mike Willesee several decades ago “I think we should pay 'em more (the politicians), maybe then we might attract a better class of people” I think the opposite has held true.
The more we pay them, the more self serving they become.

Hi TBC,
The Greens are made up of a wide cross section of the community, academics, workers, students, retired people, youth etc etc. One thing I find common to all is they are people with a social conscience, they really care about their fellow man. The ALP has lost any humanity it once had the Liberals never had it to begin with. The Democrats tried to be a small l Liberal Party. Meg Lees is the woman you were trying to think off GST Meg. Her actions with the GST were a prime example of 'small l-ness'. "Yes lets tax the poor at 10%, but please don't tax their chardonnay or vogal bread and everything will be OK." As for Abbott and Gillard don't be fooled by their pompous posturings that they are thinking whats good for the country, they are thinking whats good for themselves. The cynical might think they each intend to form a short term minority government and hope that their popularity improves with the voters and then get the mugs to vote them back in.

Quite so Paul1405. I agree.

Yes, Meg Lees was the person I had erased from my mind, thanks.

I voted Green anyway, and am a member too, but am very aware of the rather too broad range of people in the Greens, from complete loopy crystal gazers, to Tarot card turners, to proper environmentalists, to dope fiend tossers, with tons of well meaning Xtians chucked in too, which is not recognised by the oaf Abbott, or the pretend atheist Gillard who must think all Greens are atheists, having listened to her real Baptist values for too long.

And yes, neither A nor G care two hoots about much beyond them and their place in history.

I can see Gillard has lost it now, and we will be lumbered with cronies again, and 'the fool from St George' as T Windsor so eloquently refers to him as.

This will be a rough ride ahead, with luck made rougher when Turnbull challenges after Abbott makes his first major mistake, about two weeks hence.

Hold on to your Arkaburra cobber... we're going back down that Menzies time tunnel, to a world with 'telephone operators' who will help connect us to The Internets, are back, along with party lines and, wait for it... that reassuring sound of The Dial Up.

Yes, Tony will do us proud with his 'vision' for the nation.

Wait for his long hoped for Bible lessons in every school, particularly for the 'reffos' in western Sydney who 'queue jumped' to get here.

Australia will become GREAT again, as the mother in law of the AWU chap gets pitched out and John Howard takes up his place as our next GG.

Look forward to that happening!

TBC

Interesting scenario you paint with John Howard as Governor General...do ya think he'd live at Yarrulumla - or maybe just commute there for functions?

suzeonline,

I am not worried at all about fellows like Bob Katter MP who are a little eccentric and theatrical.

The fact is that the incidence of gun related death in Australia remains on a par with 1902 and as was the case back then, the illegal use of firearms is all down to criminals.

Howard's gun buy-back, gun laws and the white elephant of a gun registry are costly fakes. Howard wrongly sooled police at honest, licensed firearms owners while pretending that the solution to violence was gun control.

You and most Australians were hoodwinked. Forget licensed gun owners like Katter (if he is one) and direct your attention to the major and all pervasive drug gangs that put drugs and the other social problems and violence connected with them within easy reach of any primary school kid. It is silly to waste judgemental frowns and words on the innocuous and largely ineffectual but entertaining country hick Bob Katter, when the corruption from organised crime and the drug trade has permeated through all levels of society.

With the greatest respect, governments have got it made where they can whip up gun or knife hysteria (or 'youth hysteria or....) and pretend to solve it through bans and redundant laws. That is a whole heap better than tackling drugs and organised crime. Sure protects some biggies in society too.