Story by Atomou
If the Greens think that they have gained a victory by siding with enemy to deliver us this appalling Senate electoral mangling, I ask them to remember Pyrrhus who, after the battle against the Romans, he looked at the field in front of him, completely covered with the mangled corpses of his men (in a grotesque pile of brotherhood with the Romans) said “If we are victorious in one more battle with the Romans, we shall be utterly ruined.”
On that battle alone he has lost 6,000 of his soldiers.
How many soldiers have the Greens lost in this absurd Pyrrhic victory?
And who is the enemy here?
The enemy is not the LNP kennel of mongrels. It would be the same if the Greens had sided with the other lot of mongrels, the ALP because the enemy here are not the parties and their policies but a closed, unapproachable Govn’t. It is the Fortress Govn’t which, behind the well secured walls the career politicians do deals with each other to… to build more walls, as impenetrable as possible so that their seats can be safe, no matter who’s the sitter.
The enemy is the corrupt Govn’t.
The enemy is the Netanyahu type wall that encloses the self proclaimed elite and excludes those wishing to take part in the activities of a Democratic Parliament, activities which are quintessential to Democracy.
What does the word mean, what did it mean over two and a half thousand years when Peisistratus invented it and invented the system? “Demos” is us. All of us. “Cracy” (aka Kratos) is strength, power, also Govn’t. Democracy therefore means “people power.”
The Govn’t consists of -yes, you may have heard the words, now uttered by charlatans, “power by the people, of the people and for the people.”
And without the demos, there is no Democracy and without Democracy there is no civilization and without civilization the people die.
The enemy is the wall which the coalition of LNP-Greens have just now erected around Democracy.
In ancient Athens where it all began, during a sitting of Parliament state police would get a huge rope and, using it like a fish net, gathered all the lazy citizens and brought them to the assembly. Some 6,000 men would be gathered there to hear and to speak various motions about the city. Six thousand men would represent something very near 10% of the eligible citizens.
Any one of them could raise, walk to the podium and speak his mind.
Any one of them!
No “Parties,” no “coalitions” but individual citizens -farmers, candlestick makers, smiths and sculptors. All there and all able to speak their mind. Thucydides records a great many of these speeches and they make a very engaging read.
This deed in which the Greens participated is not a reform, certainly not one achieved by democratic means. It is a mangling of Democracy’s first principle: the universal right to be a politician, that is, a member of the Polis, of the State.
It was a coup against a Principle, the vital principle that’s at the heart of a civilised society. Remove it, as they did and we have nothing short of a CleptoKhazaria or North Korea.
Nothing short of every foul apartheid regime that lives on the delusion that it has exclusive rights to power.
I want my neighbour on the left and my neighbour on the right and my neighbour across the road to be able to use his right as a member of a society to enter Parliament and to air his views -no matter how appalling they might be; and mate, are there not people with appalling views in there already?- on the floor of the australian agora, the seat of govn’t. I want them to be able to speak where voices are heard not dismissed or disfigured by the lying, self interested press, floating in the sewers of the country.
Let them enter and let them speak. If their utterances are unwise then in an inclusive Parliament wiser voices will correct them.
People in political parties don’t speak their mind. Their mind is silenced by the inner-sanctum of the party in what they call a democratic vote. This is cabinet democracy and has nothing to do with people’s democracy. It is a self serving democracy for dictators.
A member of a party can hardly do anything wrong if s/he simply tows the line. If they miss out getting elected the next time, then the party -the worst, most abhorrent of grotesque cabals- will find him/her a sinecure of some sort to see him/her through his/her life, along with a most generous pension and all sorts of other bonuses.
The independent candidate, the one who is unattached to a party will have no such “assistance” from anyone. If s/he misbehaves, that is if he goes against the will of the people, s/he will be out of the House and out of a job. They are on their own and only their views, their heart, their intelligence will dictate where they end up.
Parties are rife with corruption. Wheeling and dealing and self interest is their adhesive. The political contagion which grips one politician can and almost certainly spread to the rest of the party.
Let me rather have a govn’t of independents, much like the one that ruled ancient Athens and much of the rest of Greece.
Finally, I have heard a nauseating number of times the slogan that the Greens had this policy in their books for over a decade!
So what?
And so what if it was Bob Brown who put it together?
It was wrong then and it certainly is wrong now. It should have been ditched then and it should certainly be ditched now. It is a foul policy, an indubitably wrong policy if we are to pride ourselves that we are ruled democratically.
Of all the great things that Bob has achieved over the years, did the Greens have to focus on this error of his and make it out to be the very emblem of virtue?
And why was it utterly dormant for a decade?
And did those who voted for the Greens ever suspected -even if they knew that the policy was there- that this party will launch into an election with that piece of anathema?
I certainly didn’t and not only have I been voting for the Greens for the last decade but was an active volunteer with them.
Never thought I’d see the election in which this nonsense will be so vigorously promoted.
“I am afraid. Very afraid!
I am afraid that the doors and windows of Parliament are shutting us out ever more certainly and ever more securely and that all we will be able to do henceforth is to see the very badly acted Theatre of the Absurd they present us, called Question Time.”
gerard oosterman said:
It seems all so hopeless. If it wasn’t for the rack of lamb on the Webber with char grilled capsicum this arvo, I could easily lose the will to go on. So much of nothing happening. I did like the chorus of ‘doomed,.. doomed…,’ doomed from the opposition.
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gerard oosterman said:
When I decided after an absence of decades to re-join the ALP here in Moss-Vale, I thought it would be a nice little local branch going on about the stuff of education, taxation, refugees and health and so. But, no. Again the same old waffle about pre-selections. Endless scheming against this person or supporting that person. Conniving against each other. I went to two meetings with biscuits and tea afterwards. I could not believe that over the thirty years of absence it was still the same old in- fighting to get into power.
I resigned and joined the Greens a year ago or so. And now, this business of above or below lines. What next? The Greens are now losing my vote. Except, what then?
I am convinced the Westminster system of adversarial governing is the bane of it all. I am not sure what Greece is having now, but I doubt they would enthuse about this above or below line voting.
Does it really mean anything being part of any party, when it is all about getting power, and nothing to do with progress and moving forward?
If a good policy comes about, where is the joint support for good policy?
How the fuck can a way of voting (below or above a line) be so important? I just don’t get this Westminster- Beef-eater business.
I suspect cricket is involved.
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vivienne29 said:
In some electorates (like Farrer and Indi) it is hard to find some poor bugger willing to stand ! The members discuss policy and hope to go to conferences to have a say. I’ll continue to vote Labor unless there is a good independent – the rest are all bastards. See how the co-founders of the Liberal Party are getting more of their IPA monsters into the House and the Senate.
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algernon1 said:
And Cathy McGowan has she got that grub Mirabella’s measure this time around.
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Yvonne said:
I reckon this is my new constituency. I’d better start paying attention!
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George Theodoridis said:
The Greek News Paper, Neos Kosmos had a large piece on her, calling her “our Mirabella.” I just couldn’t raise the requisite strength to read the article but the comments would have made her suicidal. That is, if she could read Greek. Lots of comments on my FB, too.
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Big M said:
It’s the same in our union, Gez, poorly performing middle managers obtain union rep positions, then do all they can to protect middle managers from any scrutiny. Thankfully our union president can see through all of this and maintains the rage for the litle bloke. I stay in the union out of a sense of loyalty, and financial contribution. I don’t see any direct benefit, except for ongoing wage rises in line with the CPI (which the health dept wouldn’t agree to without union pressure.
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Mark said:
“I suspect cricket is involved.” Wonderful Gerard, gave me a good workout of laughter with this gem, love it.
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vivienne29 said:
I’ve just done some research as in reading the actual bill. Until now I had thought it was only optional above the line and not below. Apparently they did change it to optional below the line as per the original recommendation. I’m now not as against it as I was. I’m not happy at the various minors being targeted as they are when the whole time the system till now has been just as manipulated by the majors to their benefit. I am sure it will be a DD on 2 July. So we will soon see the result of these changes. I think Muir will get many more votes and with a DD will stand a good chance of election.
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Mark said:
I agree Viv. We need less Bernardi’s and Wong’s and more Muir’s in my view. Never used to feel like that but the big two are simply corporations and Xenophon an Co can go for it in my view. Lets get bills in the senate that can be negotiated through a democratic process like we had under Julia.
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vivienne29 said:
The Libs can’t even stand the idea of it being a House of Review. Long since departed from being a States House. Though they like it being a reviewing and blocking thing when they are in Opposition. Another reason why I hate Liberals.
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algernon1 said:
“I think they will go to a DD at their peril viv. Especially with an election basically due from the next month. Even Textor reckons they’re mad if they do considering their internal polls are trending downwards. Its open warfare in the tory party. half of them signed the bucket of manures petition into safe schools. Labor looks stable and with policies by comparison. I think we could see the first one term government since Scullin.
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vivienne29 said:
He’s preparing to do it now – calling parliament back for special sitting, Budget a week earlier and DD if ABCC not passed. What a surprise – not, not for me anyway.
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vivienne29 said:
And of course why Senate voting changes had to get through last week. Electoral Commission needs time to sort it all out.
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algernon1 said:
What does one do. Living in Bennelong as I do we have a one legged arse kicker for a local member. Labor last election parachutes a celebrity in after they disendorsed the previous one. Before that they blew off Maxine McKew’s feet just as she looked like she’d win the 2010 election.
This time around they’ve endorsed someone who describes herself as a North Ryde mum, if only that were entirely true. She’s moved there last year from Rozelle and was a union hack. Read her blurb and she parrots the party line. Morons when are the Labor party going to realise they need real candidates with real life experiences instead of Sussex street hack like this person completely ignorant of the local needs. The Greens haven’t even preselected anyone.
As for the senate well The Greens have gone down in my estimation. When they decide they’re going to get a good goosing from M. Kroger then they have not a clue what they stand for. The Greens deal with the LNP is an abomination.
At least the cross benches appear to have real life experiences. Unlike the major parties who have seat warm party apparatchiks who have done little or nothing of value society except work for their individual parties. Look at some of the rubbish. Bernardi, Christiansen, Cormann, Bullock, Cash. Even this young clown Patterson who disowns his own public school education to be a parrot for Bernardi. What real value are they.
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George Theodoridis said:
Every syllable of what you’ve said Alge, is true. True and most despairing! This is why a house with a good dose of Independents is far preferable to a Troika of bastards. If there are enough of them, corrupting them all would be too difficult; and the voices and views would be far more disparate and more representative to the MP’s constituents, to whom they’ll have to answer directly.
No more of this pathetic excuse, “look, I think you’re right but the party room voted against it!’
All MPs should be beholden to the people not to their machine.
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Big M said:
Algy, you should come to Newcastle, all bribes and corruption, with the guilty squealing that such bribery shouldn’t be illegal!!
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algernon1 said:
Yes we all know Newie is the paper bag capital Big.
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Big M said:
Yes, it’s almost legal if the money is in a paper bag!
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vivienne29 said:
Totally agree.
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Therese Trouserzoff said:
‘Mou,”Fortress Government” is a mighty fine summation.
The Greens only get my vote from time to time when the ALP are even worse. My disenchantment with the Green’s progenitors – the Australian Democrats first started with their cave-in on GST – mustn’t upset the wealthy owners of the fortress !
The latest green cave is just another in a long line of disappointments.
When Glen Lazarus and Ricky Muir start to sound more acceptable than the main parties, I say we’re in REALLY deep trouble. Whatever happened to that unspeakable woman from Tassie ?
Many thanks, Emm
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Mark said:
Wasn’t that the Democrats that gave Howie the GST, Muir and Lazarus are miles ahead of Bernardi and Co and Jacqui Lambie, the Taswegian, is a breath of fresh air.
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algernon1 said:
Well she speaks her mind which is refreshing but she’s too far to the right on too many topics for my liking.
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vivienne29 said:
Doesn’t know if she is Martha or Arthur half the time which makes assessing her difficult. Sensible one week and off her rocker the next.
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algernon1 said:
Summed her up beautifully viv
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Big M said:
Yes, Algy, the Taswegian is a buffoon, of sorts. To be honest, I’m not always sure about what she’s on about, her spoken English is appalling, and she gets very angry when the interviewer presses her for a more in depth explanation.
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Mark said:
I don’t agree Big, she is a person from a non political background, doesn’t represent my views but neither does Bernardi. The media can’t cope with her and parliament representation at any level only requires popularity not intelligence, hence Abbott.
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George Theodoridis said:
Lambie is alright. Her heart is in the right place even she’s utterly confused about what a Muslim is and what sharia is about.
She’s definitely learning on the job.
I thought she showed her credentials as a gutsy person when she ditched Big Bully Palmer. Since then, her every vote went in the right direction.
Muir too, was bumboozled in the beginning and easily tricked by Bum Hole Extraordinaire, Morrison but, he has certainly regretted that. I think at the time he got the wrong impression because he had some wrongly placed faith in Xenophon who also gave his vote to the scum bag.
I have more faith in them doing the right things thank anyone else in the Great Troika simply because, as I said in the article, they don’t have to answer to a group of engineers and they can do what they like with only their constituents’ wishes in their heads.
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Big M said:
I’ve seen some Lambie interviews where she has performed pretty badly, as you say George, utterly confused at times.
I would give her points for dumping Palmer, and I would have thought she was a little bit dum, but, I wouldn’t survive the machinations of the house, either!
I did think of you yesterday, George, as it happens, I think it was the unread Iliad and Odyssey sitting next to my desk that reminded me!
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algernon1 said:
Muir is someone who has grown into the job and handles himself well. He doesn’t pretend to be what he isn’t. If he misses out on the senate he’ll go back to his old job in the timber industry. He handles himself better that the brick with eyes who managed to remove himself from Palmers arse as well.
What I just don’t get is the last parliament with a minority government can pass legislation, yet the conservatives cannot even bring themselves to negotiate in any form. I cannot recall a more useless government.
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Therese Trouserzoff said:
Correct. Thanks for the anti-alzheimer’s assist, Hung. Correction engineered above.
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George Theodoridis said:
Many thanks, Terese!
But, by Zeus, how I wish I had a bit of time to read over the piece!
Always a taxi, always a cook…
Nevermind, I ask for lenience on my syntax, grammar, missing words, etc, etc.
The event has infuriated me because I have spent an enormous amount of time aiding and abetting The Greens and doing so with quite some certainty that they would be better than the two others; and until DiNatale turned up I was still comfortable with that view.
DiNatale (or Di Nuts, as I like to call him) is the bearer of the apocalypse for them. An immediate turn to the right at a full gallop.
Zeus only knows how many letters I’ve written to them and how many posts on the FB page.
My only consolation comes, alas, alas, alas!, from the extreme Right in the person of Day of the Talking In Tongues army who is lodging a constitutional challenge in the High Court, with what looks to my untrained eyes a very good case. A case against thieves of civil rights.
Let us sacrifice a goat on the altar of Apollo the enlightener and hope Day has a good day on court
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Mark said:
Bob Day is chameleon at best George, don’t hang any hopes on him.
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George Theodoridis said:
Can’t stand the prick, Mark. Just hoping he does take the issue to the High Court and win so we can have the trap removed.
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Big M said:
Day seems to be the most right wing pollie in Australia. Wants labour markets completely deregulated, doesn’t believe in global warming, but rceived the AO for planting a few trees.
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