"If you're worried about losing Labor voters to The Australia Part, have no fear. For the simple reason that the Australia Party is only attractive to thinkers not followers."

Playground style comment not worthy of any real response.

individual
What makes you think I am worried about losing Labor votes. Whether it is Labor and Liberal (Laberals) it doesn't really matter who is in power. It is only the hard nosed right wing that still thinks there is a significant difference. That sort of comment is just plainly not worthy in a democracy, the candidates that are voted in is what democracy is about, not the sport of winning and losing. People like you who hold that mindset are part of the problem in this country IMO.

Pelican,
Fair enough that's your opinion, after all this is online opinions. But I still think that after only a few years of Labor it is simply overwhelming how some people still defend Labor & or even vote for them after all the evidence of utter mismanagement. You see, it is a standard defence of supporters to say that there's no difference between the major parties because the supporters just can't get themselves to admit that their party is simply not good for our future. Why not just say so ? The coalition does not have a perfect track record by any means but at least they don't wreck prospects for our future. Labor does that, it's just that many can't see it. We're literally only an inch away from being swallowed up by system from which there'll be no chance of return. I just wish people would think a bit more about where we're heading unless we put a stop to it.. Maybe, just maybe if nothing else, the Australia Party can put the brakes on long enough for people to hear the screech & make them look up from their navel.

individual
I don't know why you think I support the mismanagement of the ALP on pink batts, BER and other disasters, although in some cases (BER) the damage is not as great as the Coalition propaganda would have you believe. Pink batts...yes no doubt thanks to PM Rudd pushing through the program without due care or oversight.

Like many others, I am disillusioned with the Labor Party and have put them as my preference for some years, however what makes you think the Coalition is any better. The policies are tweedledum and tweedledee except in one area. One party spends at will which is not always a negative if implementation is managed well, the other party takes the taxes and spends nothing on infrastructure. Which is worse?

The Australian Party is new, we do not know yet what they stand for but I am willing to listen. If there is in that Party policies around greater citizen participation, greater transparency and accountability it will gain votes. But if it is only lip service the AP will face the same level of cynicism. The unfortunate thing about policies around greater transparency is that when in power governments are less willing to be so closely scrutinised.

The ALP has made some small reforms to FOI for example, but in reality decisions to release are still held by bureaucrats for the most part who may not always be so forthcoming in their deliberations. And I have doubt the new party will foster individual rights over business interests or commercial-in-confidence interests in this area. The business of business is our business if decisions are being made that affect the citizenry. The AP has not released any info as yet on accountability.

I reckon the more parties split off from the current mob is not a bad thing. It is one way to scream from the rooftops that reform is needed.

My family, being working class, Irish (mainly) and Catholic (mainly) were supporters of the Labor Party.
My paternal grandfather was a founding member and was eventually expelled. My father was a member and was also expelled in his turn.
I was a member and resigned; didn't wait for my turn.
I didn't like the way that the party was run and they were expelled for sticking up for Labor principles years before I joined the Party.

I joined at the invitation of a sitting NSW Labor MP, who was engaged in a branch stacking exercise and who didn't understand, or had never read, the rules of the Party; I really took up the offer as a joke.

I haven't voted for Labor since before Whitlam and resigned during the reign of Keating.

"Nobody yet knows what it entails. I am the same member of the democracy that you are and have a right to say that I like a couple of Katter's points but don't have enough info yet to be able to fully make an assessment."

1. I never said which way I was voting (but thanks for the Strawman), I was merely pointing out that something you said is objectively wrong.
2. I stated that even in America they could only be used in a life threatening situation.
3. Explain why those argument don't knock it all down - criminals and mentally unstable people aren't affected at all by gun laws.
4. It's not black and white; just because I was pointing out flaws in your reasoning doesn't mean I'm some ultra-conservative flat earthing racist.

Dear individual,
You asked “Just imagine if Police, Security & Army couldn't defend themselves”. Both the British and New Zealand police forces are to a large extent are unarmed. I know the English have about 7% of their force trained in weapons. There was an attempt to increase this but with disastrous results. There were a number of high profile cases of innocent citizens being killed and the experiment was discontinued. A recent survey of Bobbies revealed that over 82% did not want increases in the number of those armed. I wish we could have retained this in Australia. There would have been many lives saved.

You might have other sources but to quote from Cukier and Sidel (2006) the figures for gun deaths per 100,000 in 2002 in England/Wales was 0.15 for homicide and 0.20 for suicide. For Australia with armed police but reasonably restrictive gun laws the figures for the same year were 0.24 for homicide and 1.34 for suicide.

The USA with both armed police and the most lax gun laws in the western world boasted figures of 3.98 for homicide and 5.92 for suicide. That is 20 times the homicide and suicide rates of England.