Australian Politics General...

[mullokintyre]

You could swap Albos name for any other politician state or federal, and it would be just as relvant.

Mick

 

[mullokintyre]

Some really interesting things coming out re the Higgins rape saga now that the various players are starting to add their bits.
Fiona Brown has a long piece in the Weekend OZ where, among other things, she says Morrison threw her under a bus, backed over her several times, and then lied to parliament about it.
She was also ostracised by the liberal hierarchy, was never allowed to challenge any of the 'questionable" things that Higgins said in court, and was one of the very few who abided by the Police request to say nothing to the media before the court case.
It never ceases to amaze me just how unethical and untrustworthy the grubby environment within political parties can get.
And it can never be pretended that it is only one gender involved, the females are just as scheming, nasty, lying and untrustworthy as the men.
Mick

 

[sptrawler]

Some really interesting things coming out re the Higgins rape saga now that the various players are starting to add their bits.
Fiona Brown has a long piece in the Weekend OZ where, among other things, she says Morrison threw her under a bus, backed over her several times, and then lied to parliament about it.
She was also ostracised by the liberal hierarchy, was never allowed to challenge any of the 'questionable" things that Higgins said in court, and was one of the very few who abided by the Police request to say nothing to the media before the court case.
It never ceases to amaze me just how unethical and untrustworthy the grubby environment within political parties can get.
And it can never be pretended that it is only one gender involved, the females are just as scheming, nasty, lying and untrustworthy as the men.
Mick

Well a minister said they didn't know before the media, now they say, oh that's right I did know I just forgot. ?

This is turning into a classic, I can't wait to see the new CCC look into it, that will be a good test of its gonads.?

How much did you pay? and on what basis did you come up with that?

 

[SirRumpole]

Well a minister said they didn't know before the media, now they say, oh that's right I did know I just forgot. ?

This is turning into a classic, I can't wait to see the new CCC look into it, that will be a good test of its gonads.?

How much did you pay? and on what basis did you come up with that?

Who gives a stuff apart from the Opposition ?

The Higgins saga is the Libs problem. They were both Liberal staffers and now they ar e trying a cheap gotchya on Gallagher. Pretty pathetic.

 

[sptrawler]

Who gives a stuff apart from the Opposition ?

The Higgins saga is the Libs problem. They were both Liberal staffers and now they ar e trying a cheap gotchya on Gallagher. Pretty pathetic.

If it happened down the street no one would give a sht, if they had just quietly gone through civil court no one would give a sht, when they make it a 6.30pm national news report and people who call off the the prosecution then get given tax payers money everyone gives a sht.
Like I said at the begining of the case, two people behaving badly in parliament house shouldn't be given air, but when they are being given my money for that behaviour, it is beyond the joke, they are supposed to be highly paid professionals.
They both should have been stood down pending an investigation, not be given a national pride of place, for behaviour which if they were my kids I would have been furious about.

 

[SirRumpole]

If it happened down the street no one would give a sht, if they had just quietly gone through civil court no one would give a sht, when they make it a 6.30pm national news report and people who call off the the prosecution then get given tax payers money everyone gives a sht.
Like I said at the begining of the case, two people behaving badly in parliament house shouldn't be given air, but when they are being given my money for that behaviour, it is beyond the joke, they are supposed to be highly paid professionals.
They both should have been stood down pending an investigation, not be given a national pride of place, for behaviour which if they were my kids I would have been furious about.

In my view it's a continuation of the "men bad, women good" narrative invoked by the woke feminist media we have suddenly been inflicted with.

Hopefully the inquiry will get to the bottom of the matter in an impartial and objective way.

 

[SirRumpole]

If it happened down the street no one would give a sht, if they had just quietly gone through civil court no one would give a sht, when they make it a 6.30pm national news report and people who call off the the prosecution then get given tax payers money everyone gives a sht.
Like I said at the begining of the case, two people behaving badly in parliament house shouldn't be given air, but when they are being given my money for that behaviour, it is beyond the joke, they are supposed to be highly paid professionals.
They both should have been stood down pending an investigation, not be given a national pride of place, for behaviour which if they were my kids I would have been furious about.

I really meant that people don't care about the Gallager involvement, the actual allegations are a concern bu they are being hysterically treated by the media who take sides on a gender basis.

 

[sptrawler]

In my view it's a continuation of the "men bad, women good" narrative invoked by the woke feminist media we have suddenly been inflicted with.

Hopefully the inquiry will get to the bottom of the matter in an impartial and objective way.

Yes the media today have actually brought about a change in how we view crimes, they have moved the narrative from innocent until proven guilty, to now where you are guilty by innuendo until you can prove your innocence.
The down side with their narrative is, it becomes a weapon to persecute, victimise, implicate, manipulate and intimidate individuals and or sectors of the community.

 

[sptrawler]

I really meant that people don't care about the Gallager involvement, the actual allegations are a concern bu they are being hysterically treated by the media who take sides on a gender basis.

In today's paper, it is amazing the rusted on reporters frantically trying to backfill holes for their 'favourites', making it all about politics and not a mention of the position the media put Lehrmann in.
Ah just another pawn in the media roundabout, maybe they haven't realised Lehrmann could already be serving a long jail term, or obviously that doesn't matter.
IMO it is important the whole truth comes out, hopefully when Wilkinson faces Lehrmann in court, it will.

Gallagher misled parliament, but she’s not the only one with questions to answer

A woman who made an allegation of rape is now being humiliated by having her private conversations leaked.

www.smh.com.au

From the article:
Katy Gallagher misled parliament on one simple fact when she told a Senate estimates hearing she did not know about an alleged rape before Brittany Higgins went public with her shocking claims in February 2021.

But the finance minister is not the only one with questions to answer about the dirty game being played with the backstory to the sexual assault claim against former ministerial adviser Bruce Lehrmann.
Yes, Higgins and Sharaz were on a mission and were playing the media almost as hard as anyone in the prime minister’s office. They sound at times like adolescents in their leaked text messages. But Higgins forced change on the government and the parliament by going public with her story. Nothing much happened when she made her allegation in private.
Higgins now has the contents of her mobile phone splashed on newspaper front pages. The phone she handed to police to assist their investigation is now used against her. A woman who made an allegation of rape is now being humiliated by having her private conversations leaked to suggest it was all a political conspiracy.

Are those who run the justice system happy with that?

 

[SirRumpole]

Yes it is all about politics now.

Neither of the two main players will ever get justice, but that doesn't seem to matter to the media.

 

[wayneL]

Yes it is all about politics now.

Neither of the two main players will ever get justice, but that doesn't seem to matter to the media.

Exactly.

I have long lost interest in the saga, judging that the likelihood of actually discovering the truth is almost zero and all about tainting political parties and/or other groups.

I just hope whoever the real perpetrators of bs are, are called to account, whomever they are.

 

[mullokintyre]

I just hope whoever the real perpetrators of bs are, are called to account, whomever they are.

Will not happen.
The media drive the news, have always done , and always will.
There are no enquiries, investigations, RC's, IBAC investigations etc unless someone in the media pushes it.
There are Wakley's and other awards to be had.
The media have their favourites, they pretend they are not biased, but they are no better or worse than any other professional group.
Good ones and bad ones, large and small egos, ambitious ones and some not so, and some who are just plain crooks.
Plus everything in between.
Mick

 

[mullokintyre]

 

[sptrawler]

Yet another article that is all about the reporters thoughts and no mention of the fact that Lehrmann could be sitting in prison saying what the fck happened, only about the fact some pretty awful information has come out and shouldn't have because it was private.

Mutually assured misery of Higgins case is rough justice for all

There are no winners in this brutal case, but nothing justifies the public rubbishing of the complainant’s privacy.

www.smh.com.au

 

[Smurf1976]

The media have their favourites, they pretend they are not biased, but they are no better or worse than any other professional group.

A key difference with the media is they can do more damage than most other professional groups combined.

We could round up a thousand random workers both white collar and blue plus their respective professional associations, unions and so on. Between them they'd be hard pressed to create as much havoc in society as even one journalist and their big media employer can create.

Nobody pays too much attention to what dentists say about anything other than dentistry or directly related matters. Same goes for everyone from farmers to accountants, any influence they might have tends to be limited to their own field of expertise. Versus the media with its ability to influence everything from taxation policy to town planning.

 

[wayneL]

the media with its ability to influence everything from taxation policy to town planning.

Not to mention hatchet jobs on individuals based on heresay or downright lies... And then there is the culture war.

So toxic.

 

[sptrawler]

A key difference with the media is they can do more damage than most other professional groups combined.
Versus the media with its ability to influence everything from taxation policy to town planning.

That's why they used to be heavily regulated, over regulated like China isn't good, but neither is under regulated, or self regulated like us IMO.

 

[sptrawler]

Back in the early days of the Covid pandamec, there was movement at the station to get quarantine facilities built.
Although quarantine is a FED issue, at least three states *(QLD, Vic and WA) went ahead and built their own facilities.
The change in Covid has meant that they are largely empty now.
The QLD one built at Wellcamp, is in addition to the Federal one built near the airport at Pinkemba.
After a lot of bluster, the Queensland Govt has finally released some of the costings for the Wellcamp site.
From The Evil Murdoch press

This is of course, over and above what the Qld Government agreed to pay Wellcamp Inc to actually build and run the camp, that is also commercial in confidence.
Commercial in Confidence, what a misnomer.
Very little thats commercial in it, and it provides very little confidence in the technocrats who hide behind the moniker.

Mick

At least the W.A taxpayer funded quarantine facility, will be used by the Government, makes a lot of sense with RAAF Pearce next door and the current increase in military activity.
Funny how the media call this facility a white elephant and Wellcamp is not toe be mentioned also it was the media screaming for the quarantine facilities in the first place that had them built.
Ah media narrative, don't you love it.

Defence to take on Bullsbrook quarantine white elephant

A Commonwealth Department of Finance spokeswoman confirmed it was considering defence as the likely operator of the empty Bullsbrook centre.

www.watoday.com.au

From the article:
The Department of Defence is shaping up as the likely owner of one of Western Australia’s biggest-ever white elephant projects: the 500-bed, $400 million Bullsbrook quarantine facility.
A Commonwealth Department of Finance spokeswoman confirmed it was considering defence as the likely operator of the Centre for National Resilience facility when the WA government’s operational responsibilities expired in October this year.

Handing over the facility to Defence, which already owned the 32-hectare patch of land it was built on, was in step with a similar decision by the Department of Finance over the future of the Brisbane facility in Pinkenba.

The facility was the brainchild of the former Coalition government, which built two other facilities in Melbourne and Brisbane in a bid to help the nation’s quarantine efforts during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The problem was the Bullsbrook facility was completed in September 2022 – seven months after WA opened its borders – rendering it basically useless.

Defence would not confirm what discussions it had with finance or the WA government.
Handing over the facility to Defence, which already owned the 32-hectare patch of land it was built on, was in step with a similar decision by the Department of Finance over the future of the Brisbane facility in Pinkenba.

Curtin University defence expert Associate Professor Alexey Muraviev said the facility could be of some use to the RAAF’s Pearce Air Base as a transit point – particularly as more foreign forces enter the state as the AUKUS relationship grows.
“It may be a way to bring in other ADF elements from elsewhere in Australia or foreign militaries because Perth will have a more intensive rotation of foreign military forces through this area because of the AUKUS agreement,” he said.

 

[sptrawler]

Wow the Higgins case cranks it up a notch, from my perspective and it is only a personal perspective, the highlighted lines nails it.

Katy Gallagher offers full denial to Senate over Brittany Higgins allegations

Senator Gallagher fiercely denies she misled parliament over statements she made in relation to Brittany Higgins, telling the Senate that recent events have harmed progress in making parliament safer.

www.abc.net.au

"We want Parliament House to be [a workplace] that sets an example for other workplaces and that if staff experienced harassment or assault, that they feel supported and confident enough to come forward and report it," Senator Gallagher said.

IMO, the charge of rape is a criminal offence, it is a disgusting and abhorrent crime and a perpetrator should be whipped and then thrown in jail for a long time, where no doubt fathers who are serving a term in prison will deal out there own justice on that perpetrator.
Then when the perpetrator gets out of jail they have to carry that stigma with them for the rest of their lives as they should.
So any report of harassment or assault should be handled with the utmost respect for both parties, the alleged victim and the alleged perpetrator.
None of the reporting so far that I have read regarding the handling of the issue, has given anything but a cursory footnote to Lehrmann.
He still hasn't been found guilty, but is for all intents and purposes unemployable and will wear the tag for the rest of his life. How weird is that?

"But the events of the past week with the media coverage, the questions surrounding the publication of a young woman's personal phone records that had been provided for use in a court splashed across TV and newspaper — with opposition members giddy with the coverage — has done nothing but seriously damage this confidence."

If the personal recordings weren't so damaging and supported the allegation it wouldn't be a problem, all of a sudden because it doesn't fit the narrative that someone is guilty until they can prove themselves innocent, the recordings somehow are a problem because they cast the accuser in a bad light. How weird is that?

The senator has faced pressure from the opposition to explain her involvement after private conversations between Ms Higgins and her partner David Sharaz, leaked to The Australian, suggested the pair were in contact with her shortly before the allegation was aired.

That allegation was never proven — no findings were made against former staffer Bruce Lehrmann, whose trial was abandoned due to juror misconduct last year, and who has maintained his innocence.

Senator Gallagher said she was acting on a claim that appeared to have been treated by the Coalition as a political issue, rather than being met with compassion.
It isn't a political issue, it is a fckn crime, it could have and probably has ruined people's lives, why make light of the responsibility of the office you hold, it isn't about you.
Just my two cents worth as a voter and a parent of two daughters and two sons.

My rant for the month.

 

[SirRumpole]

Wow the Higgins case cranks it up a notch, from my perspective and it is only a personal perspective, the highlighted lines nails it.

Katy Gallagher offers full denial to Senate over Brittany Higgins allegations

Senator Gallagher fiercely denies she misled parliament over statements she made in relation to Brittany Higgins, telling the Senate that recent events have harmed progress in making parliament safer.

www.abc.net.au

"We want Parliament House to be [a workplace] that sets an example for other workplaces and that if staff experienced harassment or assault, that they feel supported and confident enough to come forward and report it," Senator Gallagher said.

IMO, the charge of rape is a criminal offence, it is a disgusting and abhorrent crime and a perpetrator should be whipped and then thrown in jail for a long time, where no doubt fathers who are serving a term in prison will deal out there own justice on that perpetrator.
Then when the perpetrator gets out of jail they have to carry that stigma with them for the rest of their lives as they should.
So any report of harassment or assault should be handled with the utmost respect for both parties, the alleged victim and the alleged perpetrator.
None of the reporting so far that I have read regarding the handling of the issue, has given anything but a cursory footnote to Lehrmann.
He still hasn't been found guilty, but is for all intents and purposes unemployable and will wear the tag for the rest of his life. How weird is that?

"But the events of the past week with the media coverage, the questions surrounding the publication of a young woman's personal phone records that had been provided for use in a court splashed across TV and newspaper — with opposition members giddy with the coverage — has done nothing but seriously damage this confidence."

If the personal recordings weren't so damaging and supported the allegation it wouldn't be a problem, all of a sudden because it doesn't fit the narrative that someone is guilty until they can prove themselves innocent, the recordings somehow are a problem because they cast the accuser in a bad light. How weird is that?

The senator has faced pressure from the opposition to explain her involvement after private conversations between Ms Higgins and her partner David Sharaz, leaked to The Australian, suggested the pair were in contact with her shortly before the allegation was aired.

That allegation was never proven — no findings were made against former staffer Bruce Lehrmann, whose trial was abandoned due to juror misconduct last year, and who has maintained his innocence.

Senator Gallagher said she was acting on a claim that appeared to have been treated by the Coalition as a political issue, rather than being met with compassion.
It isn't a political issue, it is a fckn crime, it could have and probably has ruined people's lives, why make light of the responsibility of the office you hold, it isn't about you.
Just my two cents worth as a voter and a parent of two daughters and two sons.

My rant for the month.

One thing that has mostly escaped the media's attention is the conduct of the juror that forced the case to be aborted.

After being told multiple times not to do his (I assume it was male) own research, he did exactly what he was told not to do and bought the result into court with the high probability of being found out and having the trial aborted.

One can wonder if he had a motive to cause a mistrial, ie maybe he wanted to get Lerhman off but in any case there was no penalty exacted on him in what could be an attempt to pervert the course of justice.

So we can ask should there be a penalty for juror misconduct ? Maybe a year in jail would make people behave themselves, or maybe abandon jury trials and have it decided by judge alone.