The dying days of the Fourth Reich: it's the 2007 AUSTRALIAN FEDERAL ELECTION

(addressing those who still think Howard wasn't racist)

Wow! MOST people in the great hall either turned their back on Brendan Nelson or just left.

I only just found this out.

I think Tony Abbott's about to get up and talk. I'll be surprised if the dirty little cock isn't pelted with random objects.

wait, no he's not

I didn't think they did political speeches like that (Rudd's) any more. Great stuff!

Nelson's--well, not so much. Some good bits, but he did some very weird things. He just can't get it right, can he?

He was on the back foot to begin with, having supported Johnny Cocknose for however-many-years, but when he doubted the word 'stolen' etc. he had no hope. It shows how out of touch the Coalition really is.

Fed Square in Melbourne

http://www.theage.com.au/ffximage/2008/02/13/nelson_narrowweb__300x450,0.jpg

ha! awesome.

FB status I just saw on my page:

R**** E**** will not apologise for something he doesnt mean.

What a tiresome reactionary turd that friend of mine is, sigh.

(You'd think, being Jewish, that he'd... oh no, no, thats a pointless strawman I suppose... anyhoo).

Speaking as a jew, I can affirm that jews are just as reasonable or unreasonable as every other social group.

I was struck by the symbolic qualities attached to formal apology in a ceremonial setting. Back turning and formal public apology have a long tradition in western and indigenous culture and law, so it's an interesting locus of communion.

I did like the back turning thing. Was that something the crowd @ fed square etc had planned on? It was pretty awesome.

What a tiresome reactionary turd that friend of mine is, sigh.

-- Trayce, Wednesday, 13 February 2008 12:45 (55 minutes ago) Bookmark Link

Fortunately none of mine have done anything like this. YET. A couple have failed to acknowledge it, preferring to say something about Sweeney Todd or whatever.

I'm staying the hell away from my father-in-law for a while.

In fact Facebook should have a 'friends' list and an 'arseholes I know' list.

Ex-PMs in attendance:

Gough Whitlam
Malcolm Fraser
Bob Hawke
Paul Keating
John Howard

So, after Rudd's declaration of intent to close the gap on indigenous health/education/housing, Howard's last-minute vote-grabbing attempt to say stuff about indigenous people in the constitution (the preamble for fuck's sake, not even in the part that matters) has been shown up for the trite gesture it was. And cynical, because he wasn't even fucking there today.

Well done, Kevin Rudd, anyway. I generally find him boring and uninspiring, like a less sincere Kim Beazley, and his "anti-politician" schtick is a bit of a fraud but.. just for today, he was a little bit magnificent. I'm a little bit proud, too. My housemate came home in a big black SORRY t-shirt and that was also fantastic. The bleeding heart lefties are having their glorious day in the sun at last.

Brendan Nelson did OK. He's not an evil man, he's just not bestowed with a lot of political acumen. In his early years he did a LOT in Aboriginal health. But that bit where he was covering his arse so as not to "offend" the hard right was not becoming of a real statesman.

The bleeding heart lefties are having their glorious day in the sun at last.

I would hope everyone is.

Brendan Nelson did OK. He's not an evil man, he's just not bestowed with a lot of political acumen.

True, but he's leading a party that captained HMS Racist Bastard for the past decade. AND, when Rudd got in he said his party would not support an apology. So not dumb, just unprincipled.

It's OK, he's just there for one term. Rudd will piss it in next time (they're disciplined, working well and the only massively sour point so far is the big-brother internet censorship plan), and the Libs will be quite electable under Turnbull if the crazies piss off and join Family First, and in any case, a strong opposition makes for a good government too.

Just watched the full speech online...I was reduced to tears, and for the first time in a long time, I was actually proud of a PM.

Nelson's speech had too many caveats, limp-wristedly reaching across the divide while taking great pains to point out that it really wasn't any one group's fault. Rudd's speech was a hard act to follow, but for god's sake, anyone could see the way that was paved for Nelson before he drove in with his backhoe and screwed it all up. I get what he was trying to say, but the bottom line is that speech was too pragmatic for it's own good. But I can't say I expected much more from that camp anyway...sadly, no surprises there.

Nelson will not last to nearly the next election. He'll be lucky to make it to Christmas.

I feel really proud to be Australian today...and fucked if I haven't felt that way for a very long time.

La Bolt is fuming because he apparently got ambushed on a Today Tonight story tonight about the stolen generation. What a great day.

"Yo yo yo check out me and my bros!"

http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/media/images/44422000/jpg/_44422934_416pm_afp.jpg

"La Bolt is fuming because he apparently got ambushed on a Today Tonight story tonight about the stolen generation. What a great day."

You'd pay good money to see that. When Bolt fumes, his sense of entitlement glows in the dark and can be seen from the top of Mt Hotham.

Nice belated gesture, SETS THE TONE etc, hope its a real turning point for the first mongs.

As for Rudd being boring and uninspiring, yeah he come across a bit blah doesnt he.I find the cleancut wholesome BIG LOVE mormon thing hes got going on a bit creepy but still refreshing- and he doesnt appear too smarmy! The most UNAUSTRALIAN AUSTRALIAN PM EVER.

Yes, that's true.

Wilson Tuckey though eh? Wow.

What did he do this time?

He did an interview just before Rudd started his speech. Pathetic, whinging 'it's-all-a-fuss-ocver-nothing-blame-the-PC-crowd rabble-rousing bulldust. You wouldn't get it into a meathead like Tuckey's skull if you pounded it in with a piledriver, but the only goddam reason they interviewed him at all this morning is as a study in irrelevance.

Doubtless you all know how he got the nickname 'Ironbar'.

http://www.smh.com.au/news/national/the-time-has-come--for-all-australians-to-together-build-a-truly-great-nation/2008/02/13/1202760342960.html?page=fullpage#contentSwap2

Mr Rudd's speech was not greeted with unanimous approval, however, with Mr Tuckey telling Sky News shortly before 9am he doubted the speech - which has bipartisan support - would change anything.

"So the Prime Minister reads a speech, apparently some people stand up and sit down and then a miracle happens over night, there'll be no petrol sniffing ... and girls can sleep safely in the family bed at night," he said.

When asked by Sky News if he supported the apology, a technical error occurred, with Mr Tuckey telling the camera he was unable to hear the question.

It's time for that guy to go.

Tuckey dropped a major clanger with that 'wouldn't change anything' line.

It flows right in the face of all those other numbskulls who insist that today will bring its wake a truclkload of compensation claims and the end of Civilisation As We Know It by next Tuesday week at the latest.

a technical error occurred

TUCKEY MUST DIE

rac'ist adj. & n. - Wilson Tuckey

He's a bastard. He's the oldest man in parliament, and, do you know, the Liberals were in such bad shape in the 80s, I think he might even have been their environment spokesperson at one point. He's the most right-wing old-school National (except he's a Liberal) imaginable, every stereotype you might have about the Nats actually applies to Tuckey. A vile man.

He and my father-in-law would get on quite well.

We saw the whole thing last night. Apart from tearing up several times -- and who wouldn't, honestly -- Nelson was clearly moved by the whole thing. If he had a better and more sensitive speech writer it would have been a perfect day.

(brother-in-law) is not sorry.

OH GOOD.

Cunt.

Tony "People Skills" Abbott:

"Kevin Rudd is unlikely to be held accountable if the targets aren't met because it's hardly likely that in a decade's time, he will still be the prime minister."

WHY DID YOU NOT MAKE THIS MAN OPPOSITION LEADER??

Wow.

He'd make an awesome wind vane.

What was cool was that our boss gave everyone the morning off yesterday to go to Elder Park in Adelaide and watch it on the big screens. And this morning she's aske dme to make a big poster with the text of the beginning of the speech to hang on our wall.

I like working here.

I don't like Wilson Tuckey.

Nelson's 'sorry' speech magnificent: Abbott
http://www.theage.com.au/articles/2008/02/14/1202760433686.html

Yes. Well.

hope its a real turning point for the first mongs.

we watched it at work because we're a bunch of pinkos.

I told 'er indoors her brother is an arsehole for his facebook status above and now she's dark on me.

Racist.

Meanwhile I have to listen to her tanked father scream 'YA BLOODY POOFTER' over and over in front of ~50 people and put up with it.

yo is it true that adam got sonned by a wife in a facebook relative beef??

TS tolerating family bigotry vs selling out

Hi Ned!

What was cool was that our boss gave everyone the morning off yesterday to go to Elder Park in Adelaide and watch it on the big screens. And this morning she's aske dme to make a big poster with the text of the beginning of the speech to hang on our wall.

I like working here.

James, could you get me a job at your work?

(I live at Ridleyton so I could walk to Elder Park if your boss needs me to do so.)