I also agree with Runner. I am one who has denigrated Abbott at times, and am not always proud of myself... but sometimes my fingers just type faster than my brain computes :)

What we should be doing is discussing the issues of each party, and not necessarily just their leaders.
Many times I am sure it is all the guys behind the boss who are calling the shots.

I also feel that if a politician makes a personal observation publicly about an issue or another person, then they must expect some sort of response from members of the public, whether they are Prime Minister or not.

It seems that with so much media scrunity that many if not all our Politicians violate their own convictions to appeal to the swinging voters. Often it is because they get a sniff of what the electorate want. Ms Gillard knows most Australians want the boats stopped. She is willing to go against principle she has ever espoused to in order to try and be re elected. Tony Abbott is no true believer in man made gw and yet is willing to commit to the same reduction in Greenhouse gases as Labour just so the media will get off his back. In many ways as abhorent as Bob Brown's policies are to the majority of Australians he is at least consistent (albeit consistently wrong in my eyes). It is interesting though that the Greens are happy to be in coalition with a Government that is now putting forward policies further to the right than Liberal. This shows they to are willing to sell their souls to hang on to power. They will froth at the mouth like the independants but not have the courage of convictions to risk their power trip albiet a short one.

The fact that we can as individuals lampoon and denigrate our ELECTED SERVANTS is a god given right, given by the god of democracy. The first thing that a despotic leaning regime does is silence its detractors, and Gillard’s Media enquiry is aimed at doing exactly that. I note that there is no reason to look at the free to air channels TV as they were “purchased” by Rudd within weeks of coming to power by the dropping of licensing fees.

My gen always had political satire, back in the days of JJ “How green was my cactus” lampooned them all, although being from the ABC the Libs got the knife while Labor just got the stick, but the vitriolic attacks on Gillard are an Aussie first, it is either a concerted political character assassination or it is the judgment of the electorate; I go with judgment of the electorate, individual voices in chorus.

Personally I loathe what Gillard has morphed into, absolutely no credibility and a patronizing manner, a puppet of the Labor Right and Brown all at the same time, but for me I cannot get past Kerr, he is my prime charlatan, he robbed Australia of a majority elected government, we voted for them twice in one term and Kerr stole our democratic choice from us.

Back to the denigrating of the office of PM as occupied by Gillard now. Gillard is a lying self serving puppet with many fists up her clacka, the Labor Right, Independents, and Bob Brown, I hope Bob washed his hands. She is a sham, incompetent and a totally self serving ideologue, well as much as she can be under the present ludicrous circumstances of a PM being blackmailed by independents and the minority Greens and all the while we pay the ransom.

The Internet is great!

It's a place where:

People can go on and make comments about others they
don't actually know, or what drives them, and make assertations
about things without personally knowing the details,
the circumstances, the motivations involved, or the contexts
in which events took place. And they can do this and have
complete confidence that they actually know what they're
talking about.

Gotta love it!

Such is life runner.
No doubt you have seen me using such descriptions.
I certainly have seen you do so.
Gillard is not my idea of a leader but note most[hasbeen] comments about her are based not on the simple truth she is not suited to the job, mucks things up.
But on unfounded and miss understood charges.

I think you are all wrong and exaggerate.

The lack of respect and name calling of Gillard and Abbott is tame compared to what happened to Pauline Hanson.

The name calling reached fever pitch against her, with the major parties egging on the public and the media. When the media could not find something to take out of context or twist they simply made up the lies. Even to publicly spitting on her, Gillard has not endured that.

Finally they had to resort to trumpted up charges and jail her. The major parties conspired to both putting her last on the 'how to votes', even had the communists ahead of her.

No wonder I am cynical about political parties, they lack the basics of integrity. Politicians do no deserve respect. Respect has to be earned.