Hey Lester1,

How's the family tree going; found the Arab members yet?

Here’s a couple of minor but enlightening points:

Firstly from Steele, who charges: <<The pugnacious lack of transparency has really gotten completely absurd>> !?

My dictionary shows that “ pugnacious” means: eager or quick to argue, quarrel, or fight.

So what could “The pugnacious lack of transparency” mean?
The best representation of “eager or quick to argue, quarrel, or fight” on this thread has been a few open border types.
By the way people like Steele only want to be briefed on every little detail so they can nit-pick.

And then we have this (Freudian slip) from Poirot:
<< 153 "humans" bobbing around on the high seas presided over by a jumped Immigration Minister with the ethics of a polecat.>>
Don’t the Australian ships crews count as “humans”—apparently NOT in Poirot’s calculation of things!

SPQROFLMAO!,

Are you suggesting that a rogue govt such as our charming representatives cannot embody both pugnaciousness and a lack of transparency?

They are certainly pugnacious. They are also secretive.

Warmed the cockles of my heart to see those pics today of Morrison living it up with the Sri Lankan leaders at their Tin Pot ceremony for the boats....he looked right at home with that lot who, as we know, are viewed around the world as having serious questions to answer on torture, etc.

Oh well...

I'm supposing the naval personnel aren't held against their will below decks on a ship on the high seas.

Of course, they're following orders, poor souls..... blindly obeying Australia's first official govt humanitarian abuser in modern times...

Poirot,

Nice try --and 2000 brownie points for the mother hen act -- BUT your little chickadee used "pugnacious" in reference to transparency,
and as much as I love unorthodox thinking and expression, it just doesn't mesh.But to be fair to Steele, he was a little worked up at the time...

As for:
<<I'm supposing the naval personnel aren't held against their will below decks on a ship on the high seas>>

Neither are your illegals, they can sail back to India at any time of their choosing--and it would be a safe bet that most Australians would encourage them to do just that!

yep and the usual culprits who were silent when 1200 or so drowned still taking the high moral ground. Not surprising.

runner,

You can take your fake compassion and dangle it in front of someone else.

You couldn't give two figs who died trying to flee to safety.

It's merely a convenient hook to hang your bigotry on.

You display as much compassion as Tin Pot Morrison...which adds up to precisely zilch.

....

SPQR,

Pedantic much.

You're such a hard-hitting commentator here, aren't you.

Boggles the mind.

(Why don't you toddle off and grow up a bit)