Mood:
caffeinatedTopic: election Oz 2007
Picture: Taken by the author last Sunday 8th July full house to our right, 2nd season return, we sat in the middle of the crowd 5 rows from front. Same numbers to the left. Every show? Polling suggests Sydney is "walking away from Howard"? The song by the Howard strutting character bellowing "I want power" is great art. But the script went soft on Keating who loved the stuff at least as much. And now? Is Paul seeking some redemption for past environmental sins? 
Author’s general introductory note (skip this if you know this regular weekly column): ]
This is not a well packaged story. It’s a contemporaneous traverse of the Sunday television free to air political talkies indicating the agenda of Establishment interests: Better to know ones rivals and allies in Big Politics and Big Media.
Indeed it’s the tv version monitoring task similar to what Nelson Mandela refers to here in his book Long Walk to Freedom (1994, Abacus) written in Robben Island prison (where he was meant to die like other African resister chiefs of history in the 19C), at page 208
“..newspapers are only a shadow of reality; their information is important to a freedom fighter not because it reveals the truth, but because it discloses the biases and perceptions of both those who produce the paper and those who read it.”
Just substitute ‘Sunday tv political talkie shows’ for "newspapers" in the quote above.
For actual transcripts go to web sites quoted below except with Riley Diary on 7. And note transcripts don’t really give you the image content value.
Media backgrounder:
Shari Markson conservative hyena is working out of Canberra press bureau now for News Ltd.
Last Thursday ABC Great Global Warming Swindle bogus doco ends up an own goal for the skeptics as quality of real science, especially diamond sharp David Karoly shines through.
ABC radio runs NSW raids on organized crime bikie gangs echoing Sunday 9 and press last week.
P2 Milne story re Sun Telegraph Greg Rudd gives himself out, walks, but as lobbyist made donations to different parties, so no real surprises, for sake of his brother’s prime ministerial future. Good man. Just like his good wife. Says its union revenge but I wonder as donations are to Lib Nats so why not simple adversialism
Aust colour mag on Gillard some choice quotes:
..................
World Today abc radio show at midday with Eleanor Hall is made of stern stuff and hosed a Tele story with this:
School bans 'Sorry Song'
A school in NSW has banned students from singing a song with lyrics that calls for an apology to be given to Aboriginal people. A NSW politician is worried that young children are being indoctrinated while at school, but the song's composer doesn't know what all the fuss is about.
10 Meet the Press 8-8.30 am
The gorgeous Deborah Knight again.
Lawyer don’t fight the politicians.
Today’s papers – don’t refer to SunHerald in Sydney?
Ruddock looking weary, missed the throw, but its Laura Norder zeal on display. Howard footage looking chipper about law and order [they are my laws, I passed them.]
Q. 12 days so long? Blah blah answer.
Q. Haneef a bit of a lab rat?
Blah blah, sounding officious.
Amusing footage of budgie biting K Rudd. Laughs naturally, a good look. First ad break.
Panel: Alison Carabine and Tom Allard SMH
APEC rah rah Ruddock talks up “potential” for trouble, again officious daddy postures.
TA – weapons of foreign agents? Kept confidential. Need?
TA – AQ bleak assessment strong/er? Blah blah answer, downgraded in Indonesia. Nordim Top still at large. Concerns remain.
AC – polls are “bleak” 3 months away. Ruddock PM focused on winning after decades work together. [as per Richard Farmer tag team thesis].
AC – you are the “grandfather of the house” still at 64 stay on? [looks 104, but Law and Order daddy agenda is his forte for granddads].
DR – positive political bounce? – thinking parallel to me – Disingenuous denial, but demeanour says it all, replays “most important human right is right to life”
Said something about Opposition support but not on sedition?
TA – after 3 years these laws for Haneef, no review, when?
[this is the business] PR – when established Schiller review was done. Dead bat.
Nicholson amusing animation – Howard singing yesterday . Very funny,. Find it at The Australian, very cutting but still premature? Howard defiant late last week in front pager Daily Telegraph [don’t write me off]
2nd ad break
Expert Dr Ron Silverberg. Footage of Howard claims greater ability to keep interest rates down – sounding stale. Resonates but less so.
Housing affordability – ALP domestic agenda. [ In the shade this last day or two.]
Rental stress is the untold story in this problem.
“Opportunity for national leadership”
Discounts builders warranty insurance after HIH on the discount.
Transcript in due course www.ten.com.au/meetthepress
7 Weekend Sunrise, 8.35-40 am Riley Diary -
Preface – Gerald Stone sledge of 9.
Rough week thesis re forgetful PM,
Ruddometer – when its comes to ….16. On the question of…. Howard copying? When it comes to…*
Budgie footage – “Pollie wants a Kevin” who says never work with animals.
Magoo footage – Oh PM you’ve done it again.
Discussion – slip was indicative of a negative spiral, [but end of week is Big Daddy catch up]
Greg Rudd -
[* as per this email of mine, buried there about ‘when it comes to political skeletons of Robert Hill:
Sent: Friday, July 13, 2007 9:14 PM
Subject: adviser is not an employment appellation, it's when you give advice just like the industry 'greenhouse mafia'
As regards Guy Pearse I think it's a joke for Kerr or Brown to split hairs. In real politik outside the stuffy halls of Canberra, the germane aspect is whether one gives advice, especially where it is invited, accepted and then applied by the minister. Pearse is clearly an adviser applying the literal rule of statutory interpretation because he suggested stuff and it was used by Hill apparently. It matters not a jot whether Pearse was a ministerial staffer, public servant private citizen, party member or lobbyist at the same time. In the end perhaps Hill would be the only person able to really corroborate who he actually listened too of many voices. Even so, and speaking from experience, if Pearse can point to his own research and words turning up in Hansard in a lengthy speech or at a public rally delivered by his MP - that's what I call 'an adviser'. And that is exactly Pearse's thesis - it seems the industry 'greenhouse mafia' to quote 4 Corners terminology were even bigger advisers to the Coalition ministers on climate change than Pearse or Brown or Kerr ever were, no govt wage at all. No real suprises there. For me when it comes to political skeletons it's this (ha ha) - what did Hill know of AWB bribes via Defence intel, before it all blew up in the the govt's face and is that really why he got the shove as Defence Minister? Knew too much? To avoid Q&A before QCs in the Cole so called Royal Commission choreography? I put John Anderson in this category too. Ditched their ministries before it got sticky? I think Hill did exactly know about AWB before hand. Let him deny it. If he didn't already know he's incompetent and you can say many things about Hill but dumb or incompetent would never be one of them. He must have seen defence briefings about AWB and Iraq. Why indeed was Hill not even subpoened? What a white wash.
Tom McLoughlin
http://www.seven.com.au/sunrise/weekend
News wrap leads with more terrorism suspect/charge stories. [Is the public used to this now anyway?] Oakes goes with Wayne Swan.
Same with 7 news wrap -
Chopper Read feature, very articulate reformed crim. Demons of today. Softer guy healing via a good marriage. Adam Shand fantastic report, follows previous strong report by Coultard last week on bikie whistleblower, and Shand on depression in the legal industry.
Keep this up and Sunday 9 will be back. Just need to balance with a few less blokey stories of similar depth.
Iraq story by Ross Greenwood – Humvee not armour protection, Australian troops have the right kit – bushmaster beats humvee for killer IED. Made by ADI. Duch bought 28.
Big scandal of lack of US govt procurement of Australian designed and manufactured bush master. 15 tonne big car. ‘Homegrown US industry at the expense of its own troops.’
John Howard sounds “hollow”. This is a very damaging story as to competence of this govt on national security. ‘Would have saved hundreds of US lives.’
Ad break - Grandfather/grandson workchoices advert prior to Oakes with Opposition Treasurer Wayne Swan.
- Greg Rudd resignation: docs leaked from the union versus ALP? Disagrees held by Nat/Libs.
- domestic cost of living q's. "mortgage stress" x 10.
- solutions based campaigning.
- Oakes says cheap shots not very useful, probitive (my word). Disagrees - practical, positive solutions. [goes the general transparency angle - which is sound re "price gouging"]
Guarantee price pretrol or groceries lower?
No but transparency, maximum effort to stop rip offs.
Goes the squandering the boom line, feeds into inequity envy [this is profoundly true leveraging human nature, rather be paid $50 if neighbour is paid $25, than paid $100 if neighbour is paid $200! (Think about it.)]
Laurie looking very well. Lost weight. Swan fluffs a question may have misheard - who is candidate (Kevin Harkness, alleged union thug, not current MP retiring Harry Quick) but recovers fine, it will run tonight though on the bulletins.
missed the last bit.
polls quesstion - should PM Howard step down before the election
last week - 54% said terrorism attack inevitable in Australia, 36% said not. But from which party, swinging voters?
http://sunday.ninemsn.com.au/sunday/default.asp
Insiders 2
Cost of living agenda this week hurt Howard:
[as per our email here:
Sent: Thursday, July 12, 2007 3:50 PM
Subject: grumpy public ... "everyones poor", an anecdote from voter land
All this week it's been the Toyota Liteace van rego - only the mechanic faults my rack and tie rod steering gear for "excessive play". What the f... is that? It's off to the car manual, grovel inspection, 2 wreckers, crash course in ball joints, knuckles, steering shop, Pedders and two Repco franchisees (all invariably polite and friendly). $200 south and many km cycling, and that's even before the govt and insurance can bite me for $700. Whew. I ask naively at the last place why don't people repair the rubber boots (these are the black foldy things that go over the steering arms) with black silicon rubber sealant instead of buying new ones at 2 x $18 each ? To paraphrase the answer: 'Because it's only $11.50 for new ones here [Repco].' So I say - "I suppose it's only poor people like me who wonder". He says in a chummy way "Everyone's poor". Well relatively speaking.
I doubt the counter guy reads crikey or worries about high brow ABC current affairs or any of that. But either he felt poor on a full time job or that's how he reads his customers, or both. Self selecting maybe as customers like me get spares and do the grunt work themselves. But makes me wonder if the bite is on.
Tom McLoughlin
……………………..
Talent is Downer interviewed.
Downer talks up Patreas briefing, but he advised talent on radio national of years if not decades in such a conflict, more interested in promotion than the truth. Calls up the famed US military ability at PR conviction spin – re watch movie Salvador – death squads roaming the county and USA big media dutifully report the official line – all is well with our friendly domestic govt in [Iraq].
Downer spin bipartisan support for Occupation in the USA – includes Clinton and Obama. But ignores $60B hit on USA budget in the last 6 months plus hundreds their soldiers killed. Talks up endless “work” in Iraq, Aghanistan, Pakistan, Somalia, Sudan etc.
Downer sounding officiously Daddy like Ruddock and Howard above. “What I think ….” Ignores CIA listing of AQ at no.5 in Iraq. Chutzpah central by Downer here.
[No doubt feeling a political opportunity but how real, like the budget polls bounce, the Black kids overboard welfare ‘plan’, Productivity economics debate, will Laura Norder be another damp squib for Howard and Coalition.]
Downer aims dagger at Opposition, won’t welcome Rudd bipartisanship on anti terrorism. Cassidy quotes an Age editorial that after 12 days fairly trivial charge? Downer chips Age, but also Sunday Telegraph reads very contrary also noting “indefinite detention by stealth” quoting the Law Council concern, not endorsing it, but noting politicization concern “….showed the kind of support the public had given us [Kelty/AFP] ……That sounds like a lot like: the public want the bloke charges, so we [Kelty, AFP] charged him.”
Every person segment – cost of living food prices.
Panel: Fran Kelly, abc radio national. Says front pages for cheap announcement.[disagree keeping big business honest is the sleeper everyone understands, is Rudd willing to take the test? Actually, lack of transparency IS the main problem with market capitalism and everyone knows that, except these overpaid journos. Transparency is the news.]
Milne – with specs again. [Rising above his vanity?]
George Meglogenis – The Australian.
[discusses weaknesses of Rudd idea, but get it wrong as above]
Paul Kelly soliloquy – very effective tactic of Rudd. Alternative approach neutralize Howard on the economy. Rich economy but stressed households.
[missed some of this to see impressive Chopper/wife story]
Kelly says media adding value, framing stories that fit the ALP narrative. Comment on “media performance”
“very bad week for John Howard” Makes my point/post on SAM re front pages, about Daily Telegraph running against Howard.
Footage of Costello ridicule of Rudd on 7.30 didn’t work against Rudd despite trying. But they are missing the lack of transparency from one supermarket to the next leveraging price increases through enforced ignorance. Transparency is the main deficit and false assumption of capitalism, and a constant lie in big box shopping developments.
Discussion – descend into house property religious peregrinations (like Harry Potter, in fact Meglo is a Harry Potter type).
Bill Leak Talking Pictures – missed this for Greenwood story, got to webcast in due course, always good value.
Scepticism of web based stuff.
Marijuana in the past, stays in the past, not very relevant if no today. Meglo notes households self medicating with retail therapy.
Home page is http://www.abc.net.au/insiders/
