....2 2. Individuals who assist Asylum Seekers in an appropriate way are not people smugglers.

Dream on, they are not helping people, they are CHARGING THEM and that is why they are illegal people smugglers.

On the subject of asylum seekers, perhaps you could start a foundation, that opens their homes for these people, whereby YOU and your fellow do-gooders are financially responsible for their needs.

This way, you lot can feel all warm and fuzzy, and the rest of us can enjoy the benefits of our taxes, you know, as WAS INTENDED.

There is no crime in wanting to help, the crime is in wanting to spend OUR MONEY to do so.

Correct me if I am wrong please but I thought you declared yourself a person seeking asylum before you actually arrived to surprise the system.
Why not simply present yourself at the nearest Australian Embassy or Consulate and claim asylum there and then?
Apart from all that I was under the misguided belief that it was a crime under the Crimes Act to land in Australia without official permission and due process.
Julia is a "petunia in a pumpkin patch"
Somebody should ask Don Dunstan about the "Good old Days" if the bug hasn't killed him already.
Fancy our security services telling Gillard anything of import.
Once a socialist always a socialist and that's only one short step away from a communist. Or has that bridge been crossed?

Lexi,

Your airbrushing of history, and that of Anne Summers (who refers only to Labor PMs in glowing terms) pushes the boat out a bit too far. Gough Whitlam is revered it is true, but only by a handful of amnesia sufferers that forgot the huge fiscal mess he left behind.

Also that she "inherited a hung parliament". I recall she came to office with a huge majority and created the hung parliament by cobbling together a collection of turncoats and fringe politicians, and kicked off her PM ship with a stinking great lie.

Whatever her personal properties, her tenure has been a series of disasters.

When Juliar loses office it is unlikely that she will receive a cabinet post, or even be referred to on any issues. I guess that she will be asked to resign, and have to rely on her tarnished record as a lawyer.

Dear Shadow Minister,

How else can we take you - but seriously.
You who always quotes from a variety of such
well known sources (The Australian, The
Australian, The Australian, Tony Abbott,
Tony Abbott, Tony Abbott...).
You always present multiple points of view
(instead of a biased narrow one).
You see and admit the mistakes of your own
Party - and you do not keep singing from just
the same song book. Of course we believe everything
you say. You're so unbiased, well-informed,
and argue on such an intelligent level.

Keep on posting and impressing us.
Can't wait for your next thread.

Foyle says "I doubt is anyone in either party could have done a significantly better job than Julia Gillard in the hung parliament situation".

Buddy anyone could have done a better job than this lying fool. All they had to do was not tell a major lie to get into the lodge.

If they had got there legitimately, they would have some chance of taking the population with them.

I had no feeling for Gillard. Nothing, neither good or bad. She had a clean slate to start writing on. She could have been another Maggie for all I knew. In fact I was prepared to warm to anyone who got rid of that walking ego, Rudd.

It her just a few days to loose me, & hundreds of thousands of others with her constant lying & spin.

Just in case yours get damaged, I've got a case of rose colored glasses for sale

SM
I am hoping this thread does not turn into one of those anti-feminist rampages, but may I add, it may be true that affirmative action helped women win preselection or jobs in certain industries in the early days but it had nothing to do with JG's elevation to PM once she had proved her mettle.

How would women have improved their opportunities without affirmative action in those days? Do you think there would be the number of women in the LNP or ALP without those eary programs? It may have happened eventually without affirmative action, and with a more enlightened society. And with a growing experience of women in these roles (such as GPs). Affirmative action has also played a big part in helping Indigenous Australians get into the workforce and into roles that may have been otherwise closed to them.

How is affirmative action in those days any more advantageous than any gender preferential system such as the entrenched 'old boys networks' and men only professional clubs closed to women. And just the fact that women were seen as not suitable for many roles. The same goes for men who wanted to enter into generally female occupied roles such as nursing or child care etc.

Personally I think affirmative action is no longer needed as regards gender, and many of the arguments for it deny a lot of other factors relating to women and families etc.

Don't get me wrong I don't have a problem with men only or women only clubs in the main it is just in the old days these clubs were the only professional organisations and meant any women who made it into those professions were really on their own. In a free society people can belong to any clubs they want including Emily's List or the Men's sheds - both serve a purpose in encouraging men and women.

As far as being a PM in the 21st Century, it is not about gender but about how well you do your job.