Mood:
don't askTopic: aust govt
Author’s general introductory note
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.
For actual transcripts and/or video feeds go to the programme web sites quoted including Riley Diary on 7. And note transcripts don’t really give you the image content value.
Other sources of pollie talkies on Sunday include SkyNews paytv Sunday Agenda, Radio National Monica Attard Sunday Profile show. And of course Sunday night shows SBS Dateline, Sixty Minutes and now Sunday Tonight on 7.
Media backgrounders [still lacking power supply capacity with lack of monitoring but in the mindset again]
* John Howard was ‘robbed’ – lost govt, lost his own seat, lost all credibility over succession planning, but still reckons Rudd is bluding on ‘his’ surplus. Mmm. Relevance deprivation syndrome again this last 48 hours from JH. Ignores GFC thread breaker. Howard is so last century now.
* What’s more impressive – the reaction to 4 Corners across society including Ch9’s Footy Show, or ABC referring to “g*ngb*ngs” and “group s*x” on breakfast radio yesterday morning in yet quite proper Aunty tones with Geraldine Doogue on St James Ethics Centre Board. That’s what they call in the trade a mind f*ck, pun intended.
* An angle on NRL bad habits not covered – almost certainly brian injury of high level contact sports. One serious knock a year for 10 years adds up to brain injury, social deficits, retreat into alcohol and failure of judgement in always complex gender relations. It’s obvious when you put it like that.
* Early election talk – NSW can go before Feds constitutionally in early 2011. But the recession lends resonance to going earlier than that.
* Premier of Tasmania – read Sutherland Shire #2 with population of 500,000 – tries to sleaze out of global responsibilities: When barely 10% of Australia has forested land cover. With barely 1% of Australia’s land cover being old growth forest, said premier argues statistics (45% of Tasmania landmass is already protected). Trouble is Tasmania doesn’t finance itself. Australia massively subsidises Tasmania and we can decide how much old growth protection THIS NATION should protect, AS A NATION.
* Tim Blair right wing screamer with ruinous illness for initials - just read his defamatory, possibly legally actionable, attack on SAM editor here over 12 months back. ‘More crazy than Antony Lowenstein’ says TB. We’ll take that, got to have the Right (!) enemies. His peanut gallery seem to gag on moi’s academic and sports achievements – where did he go wrong they moan!
* New Matilda censor my sledge of ex Senator Andrew Bartlett, then I cop an email data sabotage 2 days later when I protest the decision. Are the two connected? "Post Hoc, Ergo Propter Hoc" We don’t know but editor Rod McGuinness isn’t commenting so far with email question 72 hours ago. As we recall Rod has some geek credentials? We added this to Bartlett’s crikey blog last Friday (cred to him for letting through too at
Evening Andrew. Interesting that you take up the GST topic. Recently on an Ian Lowe story on New Matilda you commented at length and I took you up on some things including about the GST as "regressive". You said I was "confused". I said gratuitously that perhaps you were with a sly comment about a glass of binge. This was a phrase that Annabel Crabb likes to use here in Sydneybig media commentary over the alcopops tax. But there is a meta aspect to my comment which might actually be real news. Within a day or so I had an email comment from the editor of New Matilda (Rod McGuinness) saying my comment was edited. I wrote back in fairly broken grammar that I disagreed with the edit because of various reasons like you are a public figure etc past on the public record, and besides you 'started it'. I got a condescending response that my correspondence was incomprehensible. So I wrote back to the editor saying they censored me once before (then editor Marnie Cordell - on a far more serious matter in the Middle East/Mordechai Vanunu) and I reported NM's emerging culture on my Sydney Alternative Media site
And that his job was not to protect you ex Senator Bartlett. Sooo .... being busy out on a rural block these days I return to my email 2 days later and a whole email folder is missing called "SAM tech" and no less than 3 months of email part Feb, March April, part May 2009. Including interesting the corro with NM's editor. Only I found a copy in my deleted box which hadn't been dumped yet, and printed it off. I've emailed him asked does he or his New Matilda tech boffins know anything about sabotage of my email inbox.
No response in the last 24 hours from New Matilda. Such is our state of Australian Democracy, Andrew!
Sadly New Matilda has form in censoring us once before on the Middle East can of worms. One has sympathy for lefty websites wanting to avoid emotional violence and flames on their string to uphold the standard of their website. But methinks Howard had some truth to the comment “fangs of the Left”. That is attack rivals or critics first and think second.
To cred of Bartlett, he publishes and responds to our comment above on his crikey string.
* Annabel Crabb on Glover abc 702 early last week notes Swan at the press club budget speech noted Oct 08 Cabinet thinking was ‘must build a bridge to a recovery’. Which was exactly SAM’s metaphor we published late 08 re Stimulus #1 of 2 (lending a Back to the Future movie angle of the train over the ravine just as the bridge magically appears in the future). Risky stuff.
10 Meet the Press: 8- 8-30 am
Press round up re News Corp $7M in trips in some weeks [leveraging UK expenses scandal and their own global franchise/reach]
Has Finance minister axe been blunted?’ with Lindsay Tanner as Minister as guest, sounding defensive and fast talking and competent too. $62K spent on trip for 4 over 8 days bad look.
Tough questions from rolly polly Paul Bongiorno. Signals more aggressive press gallery?
Julia Irwin MP western Sydney worried about budget for unemployed. [running at 11% in her electorate].
Costello footage walking into Treasurer Swan’s view in budget speech in parlt. Tanner scathing of Costello bludging on Turnbull’s hard work in opposition.
Humour out take, briefly Senator Fielding but Guy Rundle of crikey wins the prize and he is like David Rowe quite a genius in his field. [Cousel guy – stick to your strengths stay in your field and you will fly forever.]
Ist adbreak nurses union advert.
Panel - Jennifer Hewitt The Australian. Richardson of Access calls ALP budget as cream puffs. Tanner talks the reality down.
Peter Hartcher SMH – tough question again too. Tanner implies big media “hysterical” commentary. Defensive. Would be worried about holding his seat of inner Melbourne now.
[phone call break]
Compares Oz economy with small business lost its biggest customer. Can’t criticize media reporting the GFC he says [bit late now after calling them hysterical]. Says PR a balancing act.
Supplement guest is NRL gender equity consultant [drifted to 7 sunrise and missed this]
Meet The Press - Watch Political Video Online - Channel TEN.
[Fantastic] Riley Diary 7, from 8.30am
Bugdet humour Goosey Rudd footage, Benny Hill music, pirate music, ship of fools (great song true it is), Tuckey footage on Jenny Macklin nasal drone, John Cleese ‘don’t Labor the point’ (ha ha).
More Goosey Rudd, and Peter Costello new website www.PeterCostello.com.au [apparently – haven’t checked link].
http://www.seven.com.au/sunrise/weekend
9 Sunday newshour Laurie Oakes interview 8.40 am
Turnbull looking ‘distinguished’ grey. Travel expenses [leveraging UK scandal too, today’s press lead]
Refer to Hartcher’s book. Turnbull insulation to every home Costello challenged as treasurer. Energy efficiency and pays for itself, and pays for itself. No means test. Says Hartcher’s sources unverifiable.
http://news.ninemsn.com.au/oakes
Insiders 2: 9- 10am
Lead in on budget, speculating about early election [unlikely].
Albanese with Party lines. Might have said something but I didn’t notice it.
Panel is Crabb, Meglo, Toohey. Crabbies cute Recoco curls
Paul Kelly, the ‘professor’ – says ETS pretext for early election will wreck Coalition prospects and Liberals must rethink or Rudd will avoid election on a crashing economy 1 year out. “How stupid is that?” says the prof with feeling.
Compere BC notes PM Rudd redefining broken election promises as ‘policy commitments unfulfilled’.
Talking pics – funny Rudd blow drier visual gag.
Crabb evicerates Rudd on UN obsessions re ‘7 minutes on Bretton Woods”. Shades of brilliance by Crabby as camera dwells. Cheeky bright chubby Guy Rundle offset.
http://www.abc.net.au/insiders/
Inside Business with Alan Kohler
Talking point turns to colour code screen. WTF? Just as he calls for an early election because we can't afford a long pre election contest: This was 10.25 am image:
Refer http://www.abc.net.au/insidebusiness/
