Whatever issues there might be with Bob Carr’s consultancy to the Macquarie Bank or Gillard’s catapulting of him into the senate and foreign affairs ministership ahead of Stephen Smith or any other sitting member, he has surely got to be a very good person for her to have at close call.

This is why: He has a long-held deeply sincere belief that rapid population growth is disastrous, that high immigration is absurd in Australia, and that we need to get right away from continuous rapid expansionism and head decisively towards a sustainable society, which is precisely the stuff that I have been most expressive about on OLO over the last six years.

He is unique in this regard amongst our Federal or State politicians, except for back-bencher, Kelvin Thomson. Not even any members of the Greens are concerned about population growth or true sustainability, so it seems!

And he is EXACTLY what Labor needs, what our political system needs and what our country needs…. a bit of basic commonsense at the top level of decision-making and future planning.

Here’s what he had to say at the launch of Mark O’Connor’s book; Overloading Australia….

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jNh6ApXa_KM

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9FtoSqStdTU

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X9S9XzEYI_0

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ULvDLddVUCs

Ludwig I will be proud till death of a photo I have with Bob.
Proud of his total life achievements.
And highlight his holding a party together in NSW.
He may well be an inspiration,some one ,so far hidden, may well have looked at the wreckage of the Rudd/Gillard war, that is what it was.
And in a brilliant move saw a peace maker leader, Carr if given the top job, can mend the ALP.
He has no past history in the war, that put personality's before the party.
You will see the barbs and arrows but most who fire them are uninformed, this man is a statesman.

Sorry Ludwig, I'm afraid you are suffering a "the friend of my friend is my friends" syndrome moment.

The fact that Carr has one or even two sensible thoughts does not make him smart, or good for Oz. He was an unmitigated disaster for NSW, which is still suffering from, & will continue suffering for some time from, the mess he made of most things he touched.

I don't think there is a better example of a do as I say, not as I do exponent in the country. So be careful what you wish for. Stopping population growth by most any means should be a good idea. However starving everyone would not be too good. With his lack of sense, & rather doubtful ethics, he could just possibly come up with such a plan.

Any one who does not drive a car, but requires a car & driver for every journey is not someone who is careful of resources, just arrogant.

The truly remarkable, but informative thing about this Ludwig.
Is the condemnation such as hasbeen place on Carr.
From other than NSW most, wrongly think he led the lemming march to destruction the ALP became in my home state.
NO! todays polling, 15% for a clean leader, a massive vote for Liberals, was earned by others.
Bob Carr achieved much, he fought against the control of some, but it was after he left the party died.
It did just that, it breaths again, but in a state once more often Labor than any other, those others leave us to ten years at least of rebuilding.
Carr, even among Conservatives, will have earned respect by mid year.
And as you know, our refusal to see his population policy's as the only path to sustainability is going to hurt us all, grow if we must, but in time it is going to hurt.
To my fellow travelers, those condemning me for reminding all of our folly.
Remember party first.
And not only in respect to our War dead should we never fail, to remember and require better.
My party is no mans toy.

Crikey Hasbeen, you’ve got the knives out for poor old Bob real bad!

I can’t see that his record as premier was all that bad, when you compare it to all other premiers around the country over the last thirty years and when you consider that he was re-elected what three times and was the longest continuously serving NSW premier.

Anyway the important point is that he is right in there at the top echelons of our national decision-making hierarchy, in amongst a mob of total ratbag continuous growth addicts!

With his high level of respect, he WILL be listened to. But of course whether it makes a hoot of difference remains to be seen.

You agree that << stopping population growth … should be a good idea >>

I think you’d agree that it is an enormously important factor in our future wellbeing. So let’s give Bob a go and support him like crazy whenever the media reports any comments from him about growth.

Belly, it is great that you support Bob so strongly.

You wrote:

<< …our [Labor’s] refusal to see his population policy's as the only path to sustainability is going to hurt us all, grow if we must, but in time it is going to hurt. >>

I’m very pleased that you see it this way. It makes you an unusual man within Labor ranks.

What Labor needs is more grass-roots members like you to get right in there are strongly express this sort of sentiment.